One-Acts

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  Charles Augustus Milverton

Reader Theatre by Al Rodin

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 ...

  Dyin' Free

Drama by Troy Shearer

62 pages

Interracial cast of 4 m, 3 w, 2 flexible, 1 child


Cole, a slave, struggles with the prospect of escaping--the personal struggles and danger it would mean for his family. Escape would also mean forgoing all the trust and faith his “owner,” Mr. Jones, had invested in Cole. After much thought, and arguing with his wife, Cole agrees that an opportunity for freedom is worth sacrificing his fairly contented life as a slave. Their plan of escape, however, is found out. Cole must come face to face with Mr. Jones and suffer the consequences. The cost is great. The slave gives his life for individual freedom. The slav...

  Final Exam

Drama by Burton Bumgarner

41 pages

5 m, 6 w


What would you do if you were faced with a former teacher you loathed? Ever-optimistic Tammy Davis gives a party for Florence Furtney, the despot who taught senior English at Central High School for 40 years. Only a few former students show up for the party and then only to see if time has rendered the dreaded teacher harmless. Some want to tell her off, some want to ignore her, one wants to kill her! One by one, as the former students sit in an old desk, Miss Furtney comes to life and tells them why she acted as she did. All come away with a different view o...

  First Comes Love

Drama by Regina M Ballard

21 pages

3 m, 4 w, extras


Jenny, a high school student, is on cloud nine: Dave Stone has asked her to the prom. Her girlfriends are all sexually active and have been pressuring Jenny to change her old-fashioned views on premarital sex. Then, on the day before the prom, Jenny's best friend, Michelle, tearfully confides that she thinks she is pregnant and her boyfriend dumped her when she told him. Distraught, Jenny begins to question whether premarital sex is worth the gamble of pregnancy, disease, loss of reputation, or compromise of values. Her decision is one that many youth are als...

  Fish and the Ring

Fairy Tale by Gerald Murphy

27 pages

3 m, 8 w, 5 flexible, doubling possible


Adapted from the English fairy tale. Baroness Agatha, a rich and powerful noblewoman, learns from a hermit that her newborn son, Alex, will marry Marie, a mere peasant's daughter. The Baroness will have none of this! She intends to kill her, but the baby somehow survives being thrown into a river and ends up being raised by a fisherman and his wife. Fifteen years later, Alex accidentally sees Marie and instantly falls in love with her. The Baroness again arranges to have Marie murdered, but a helpful innkeeper intercepts the fateful letter and changes it to r...

  Flamboyant Man in the Rain

Drama by Richard T. Young

20 pages

2 m, 2 w


A cartoon show writer who is getting bad reviews and an about-to-be-fired hair dresser land in the same taxi cab in the middle of a rain storm. After initial-humorous-hostilities toward each other they realize their plights may have much in common. About 30 minutes.

  Football Cheer

Drama by Patricia Williams

19 pages

4 m, 4 w


Here is a slice of life peek into the locker room of both the players and the cheerleaders on game day at a typical high school. From Phil, the gladiator on a mission, to little Helena who just wants a hamburger, each team member plays an important piece of the mosaic. With both comic hijinks to serious moments, this dramedy delves into the heart of the athletes that make up the sport, their motivations, desires and the camaraderie that makes them a team on and off the field. These are not caricatures of football players and cheerleaders, but real kids dealin...

  Frozen Waffles on the Interstate

Drama by Richard T. Young

19 pages

2 m, 2 w


A lady truck driver picks up a blind Vietnam vet. Both their lives seem to be in a holding pattern and they challenge each other to make changes. About 30 minutes.

  Girl Who Fell in Love With a Squirrel

Drama by Gwen Hansen

17 pages

3 - 4 m, 2 w


Braz, a soft gray squirrel, easily captures the heart of Ann, a nurturing teenager who wants only to please. “I love you, Ann,” Braz proclaims, “but I need you to do a few things for me. Do you think you could bring me some nuts—cashews are my fav, Ann.” But he really isn’t appreciative of her best efforts: “Peanuts! I thought I said cashews!” he complains. In this allegory Ann makes Braz very happy, seeing to his every demand, but what is this love-professing squirrel doing for Ann? Ann has to think about this when she sits with a boy named James while an en...

  Gravedigger

Drama by Eric Luthi

22 pages

2 m, 1 w, 2 flexible.


Here is a dark, suspenseful play that follows the life of Tiburtius Gerhardt, the gravedigger. As the cemetery he has worked in all his life fills up and comes to its end, Tiburtius tries to cope with his demanding and demeaning boss; his deceased uncle; and two other denizens who should or should not really be there. It’s enough to drive a man to his grave. Approximate running time is 35 to 45 minutes.

  GrEEKS - or - Campus Love and Other Disasters

Farce by Jerome Mcdonough

42 pages

6 m, 7 w, 1 to 3 flexible


This play explores all kinds of love. Too bad it isn't exactly a love story. OK, it's a kind of a love story. But it's more a story of good intentions falling flat time after time. There are these nice girls, the Alpha Omegas, who each have a boyfriend almost exactly as loony as they are. And there are these bad girls who want to shut down the Alpha sorority. And there's a dean who used to be an Alpha Omega and still pines for her college sweetheart. And the nice girls win and the dean finds her guy and the bad girls almost get killed by flying roof shingles....

  Highland Requiem

Drama by R. James Scott

31 pages

5 m, 4 w, 1 flexible, extras


In the spring of 1609, two Scottish clans, the McLorens and the McGreggors, come together for an arranged marriage. The young bridegroom, William McGreggor, arrives early and by chance meets his bride-to-be at the church. Heather McLoren does not recognize him for who he is, and later that day at the wedding is infuriated at the ruse he has played. The play ends happily as the spirits of fallen ancestors bless the union. About 45 minutes.

  Honorable Mention

Drama by E. D. Schell

16 pages

2 m, 4 w, 3 extras


Average high school student Medley can't keep up with her older sister, Monica, a cheerleader with straight A's and Kevin, a football star and class officer, as her boyfriend. Even Medley's honorable mention award in an essay contest seems small potatoes next to Monica's latest achievements. But everything changes when Kevin, depressed and suicidal, phones and Medley is the only one home. She talks him into calling a crisis hot line, a number she knows intimately as it is scrawled in red lipstick on her bedroom mirror. A play that handles teen suicide in a dr...

  Hunchback

Drama by Reid Conrad

27 pages

6 m, 2 w, 6 flexible, many extras


Born a hunchback, Quasimodo finds himself in love with Fleur, a wealthy socialite hoping for a position with the queen. Frollo, Quasimodo’s brother, seeks to influence the queen, and Fleur easily agrees to be his pawn but refuses to become his wife. Enraged, Frollo tricks Quasimodo into a plan to kill Fleur. Seeking to free Quasimodo from his heartache, Esmerelda, a kind, brave gypsy woman, also designs to kill Fleur. Easy staging with a single bench. Based on the characters in “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame” by Victor Hugo.

  If You See Amanda

Drama by Mickey Wright

38 pages

6 m, 7 w, optional extras


They say Amanda's back. They say she's crazier than ever. And they say Debbie's her next victim. Caught in a whirlwind of gossip Debbie is swept away from her friend Amanda and from her boyfriend Nathan. Valley High School panics and Amanda blows her top. She may blow up the whole school if Debbie doesn't take a stand. Friendship, loyalty, relationships, gossip and the power of peers - these topics are all probed by this thoughtful play. An entangling tale of gossip and truth, prejudice and compassion. 45 - 50 minutes.