One-Act Plays

19 pages

4 m, 3 w

Charles Augustus Milverton is a blackmailer who preys on women who have at times slipped into indiscretions. Thus Lady Eva Blackwell wrote several imprudent letters to a young squire, which Milverton now possesses, and threatens to release them to her future husband if she does not give him 7,000 pounds. Sherlock Holmes, who agrees to represent her, refuses payment. Instead he and Watson resort to obtaining the letters by burglarizing Milverton's home. While doing so, they surreptitiously witness his meeting with a veiled woman whose letters had been sent by ...

21 pages

3 m, 2 w

High school senior Eric Nilsson is a patient in the hospital when, late one night, his three closest friends sneak in to visit. There's Bruce, the class genius; Shawn, the class clown; and the lovely Jenny, who brightens any room she's in. But their jokes and antics do little to lift Eric's spirits. It is only when they talk about their drinking before the car accident all four of them were in that Eric finds the courage to face the question why he alone survived. This play is a favorite with SADD chapters.

30 pages

6 m, 8 w

A group of students from the late '60s are suffering through "time-out" suspension in school. A dreaded teacher, Miss Pruette (who is never seen on stage), lectures them on the seriousness of their infractions. If they only knew the consequences of their actions, they would act differently. She'd sure like to show them their future. Suddenly, a group of students from the '90s enters for in-school suspension and they bear a striking resemblance to the first group. It soon becomes apparent to the first group that these social renegades are their children! As th...

17 pages

1 m, 5 w

Several new cheerleaders are having a picnic in the park to meet each other. There is bitter rivalry between Joyce and Kathleen over a boyfriend. Most of the girls are jealous of Kathleen, since she is rich and gets everything she wants - even down to ousting another girl for the cheerleading position. The girls have a plan to scare Kathleen, but she, in the meantime, has learned of their plan and plots retribution. A spine-tingling play.

30 pages

5 m, 5 w

A series of short scenes tells an unusual tale of love. A young woman named Vanesa endures unsuccessful dates that include a mummy, a ghost, and a zombie. Across town, Zack, a vampire, encounters a series of human women with equally monstrous results. Are the characters fated to search fruitlessly or destined to discover their hearts’ desire? Find out if romance rules…or if love bites!

38 pages

2 m, 4 w, 2 flex and optional extras

Every day, we make a thousand choices that might not seem important at the time, but who knows which one has the potential to change the course of our entire life? Three high school friends, Summer, Victoria and Ariel, are simply choosing a place to eat that night, but where they end up might set their futures on very different paths. Explore four possible scenarios springing from the same mundane decision in this comedy/drama about friendship, destiny, and the surprises life has to offer.

21 pages

4 m, 3 w

Poe's familiar story is updated here, set in the modern American judicial system. As part of a competency hearing to determine the suspect's mental ability to stand trial, the caged murderer faces a panel of legal and psychological experts as his confession is videotaped for all to see. As the experts probe deeper into the killer's psyche, the apparently motiveless murder starts to come into focus and we discover the victim's "evil eye" was just the tip of the iceberg. One interior set. (Excerpted from the full-length play, "Fright Night." Please state adapto...

38 pages

With doubling, 10 m, 8 w, many extras.

The Civil War was unlike any other war our country has ever endured. It not only severed our nation, it severed our nation’s families. Husbands, wives, mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters were torn apart by politics, beliefs, distance, and death. Evidence of this bitter separation can be found in the abundant journals, diaries, poetry, songs, and letters of the day. This play, a one act with music, draws from these sources to provide a glimpse into the joys and struggles of “loving” during this turbulent period. The characters are based on real people, th...

35 pages

5-15 actors.

Four spellbinding stories from Native American lore. In the first, the Raven, great trickster bird of all the Northwest Native American tribes, creates the world and the creatures in it. When Man complains about the darkness Raven fills the sky with the sun, the moon and the stars. Soon the new inventions are stolen by the greedy Ganuk. Raven turns himself into Ganuk's infant grandson to return the lights to the sky. In the second story, Raven disintegrates a giant, blood-thirsty cannibal into all the mosquitoes of the world. In the third story Raven's tragic...

17 pages

2 m, 4 w

Clayton Hill is an escaped convict who cherishes his independence. Mabel Pulver is a strong-willed, elderly lady who above all cherishes her independence. And no down-on-his-luck, on-the-run convict is going to make her call for help, which is the first step to a nursing home. Thrown together, this odd couple creates a laugh riot, especially when Clayton must dress up like a lady to pose as a long-lost cousin at Mabel's birthday party AND baby-sit the state trooper's children.

26 pages

8 m, 3 w, extras

A complex and moving play as a soldier serving overseas "celebrates" a birthday by militarily taking a hill while his twin sister back home celebrates their birthday with the family and her twin's fiancée. The surreal setting and movement of the action lead to a shocking conclusion. About 30 minutes.

35 pages

3 m, 2 w, flexible cast of 25, doubling possible

Deep in the forest on a cold winter's night, an owl tells his friends about another winter's night when a shooting star lit up the sky, fell to the ground, and left a human child in a hollow tree. A woodcutter, who sees the shooting star, finds the child, takes him home, and rears him as a member of his family. The Star Child grows up to be a very handsome young man, but he doesn't have compassion or kindness. He mistreats the poor and the sick, he hurts the animals of the forest, and he shows no love for the family that raised him. Eventually he loses his ha...

24 pages

4 m, 4 w, extras

Two unpopular high school students, Sam and Alexandra, find themselves with nothing to do on Halloween, until they're suddenly called to come to a costume party given by the most popular kids. Since they have been invited at the last minute, our unlikely heroes must improvise their costumes. They decide to disguise themselves by cross-dressing so they can find out what the popular kids really think about them. The already awkward heroine dresses up as a thug from the Bronx and the geeky boy puts on a secondhand prom dress and a blonde wig to disguise himself ...

38 pages

4 m, 8 w

Otto and Spider are trying to crack a safe in what seems to be a mansion. However, they have inadvertently stumbled into an exclusive girls school. The headmistress mistakes them for a visiting professor and newly-hired stable hand. The girls have a plot of their own. They've invited a TV hero to the school - without permission. The action is lively, especially when the headmistress hands Otto the combination to the safe and an envelope containing a thousand dollars.

16 pages

2 m, 2 w, 6 flexible

If humor is the best medicine, get ready to feel great! Slade, new to the hospital housekeeping staff, has just been given his cleaning duties in a patient's room when a lovely nurse mistakes him for a new doctor. She thinks his bumbling is just a little professional humor and even calls in student nurses to watch him administer a suppository. After blowing up a rubber glove like a balloon and conning all the nurses into exercising the patient's limbs while singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," the poor patient finally crawls from bed just to escape. Lots of vis...