59 pages
5 m, 5 w, 12 or more flexible. (With doubling, 7 actors)
"The Velveteen Rabbit" is Margery Williams' endearing tale of love between a boy and his favorite toy. At first the Rabbit is new and lonely in the toy chest, where the other toys deride his inability to "do" anything ... until the Skin Horse teaches him "It isn't what you do, it's who you are," and sings to him about becoming REAL. Sure enough, in time, the Boy begins to love the Rabbit, and when he says to Nana, "He's not a toy!" the dream comes true. When the Boy gets scarlet fever, the Rabbit's constant vigil helps save him. But later the Doctor orders th...
49 pages
2 m, 2 w, 7 flexible parts, doubling possible
The characters in this version of Pinocchio are guaranteed to delight everyone. They include Pinocchio, an innocent kid who believes anything; three irrepressible urchins, Zip, Petey, and Dew "Duh"; the Fox and Cat, a comical pair of con artists; and the Blue Fairy, a grandmotherly type who keeps coughing whenever she emerges from a puff of smoke. Easy sets, easy to tour. About 50 minutes.
71 pages
17 m, 11 w, 7 b, 1 g, 2 teen boys, 2 teen girls, flexible carolers, party guests and townspeople
This unique and faithful adaptation of the holiday classic takes a closer look at the character of Jacob Marley and the circumstances which lead him to his decision to save his unrepentant friend, Ebenezer Scrooge. The play begins in "another world" where Marley is granted permission to return to Earth. A "small but powerful army" of holiday spirits is to accompany him on his adventure of converting the covetous old sinner into a Yuletide saint. The most popular scenes of the novel are dramatized with added bits that are not often included. The play is fast m...
15 pages
2 m, 2 w, 2 flexible, 3 narrators
In ancient Thebes, Antigone determines to give a sacred burial to her brother, Polynices, who had died on the battlefield. But her uncle Creon, the tyrant king, forbids her to do so under pain of death, because, he says, Polynices is a traitor. Antigone gives up her family, her fiancé and even her own life to do what she believes is right.
37 pages
Cast of 20 or more, doubling possible
Lots of small, easily learned roles plus narrators make this 45-minute version of the story of Aladdin a breeze to rehearse and tour. The sultan wants to marry off his four beautiful daughters to neighboring princes and when the daughters object, he sends them on a journey. Ali Baba and his band of thieves kidnap the daughters to get a king's ransom, but luckily Aladdin, a poor young man, comes to the rescue. With a little help from the Genies of the Lamp and Ring, Aladdin saves the day. Simple staging yet lots of action and adventure to enchant children's au...
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...