26 pages
2 m, 4 w, 5 flexible, extras
Two brothers lie dead at the gates of the ancient city of Thebes, each killed by the other in the final battle of a bloody civil war fought for the throne of Thebes.
King Creon decrees that one brother, Eteocles, defender of Thebes, is to be given a hero’s burial. The other brother, Polyneices, leader of the rebel forces, is to be left lying where he fell outside the city gates, unburied, and unmourned. Anyone who violates Creon’s decree will be stoned to death.
76 pages
10 m, 16 w, many extras. (With doubling 8 m, 11 w.)
Jane Austen's timeless tale of romantic love touched by pride and prejudice is brought to the stage in this adaptation conceived especially for schools and small theatres. All the components of the novel remain: romance, love, rivalry, friendship and the many foibles and delights of family. While the clash between the lively Elizabeth and the arrogant Darcy remains at the heart of the play, love in all its many facets dominate all of the characters’ lives. The play remains faithful to the marital rites and manners of Regency England as courtships are explored...
21 pages
2 m, 2 w
Perhaps the most perfect Christmas parable ever written is O. Henry's "The Gift of the Magi." In this one-act play version is the timeless story of Della and Jim, a struggling young couple who seek to give the other the ideal Christmas gift. They barter their most valued possessions to purchase each other's gifts: Della's beautiful long hair for a watch fob and chain Jim's watch for a tortoise shell comb set for Della. While the physical gifts prove useless, their love is enriched beyond measure.
68 pages
7 m, 6 w, extras. Doubling possible.
The classic story of two emotionally-stunted children who discover, through their love for a garden, and the teachings of a boy of the English moors, that the key to happiness lies in caring for others. The story opens as two British officers in India discover 10-year-old Mary Lennox alone, her parents having just died in the cholera epidemic. She is sent back to England to live with an uncle, Archibald Craven, whom she doesn’t know, in the foreboding Misselthwaite Manor. His son Colin is sickly and bedridden and his cries can be heard echoing down the dark h...
59 pages
5 m, 4 w
Adapted by Pat Cook From the short story by Oscar Wilde. Hiram and Lucy Otis can't wait to move into their pastoral English manor house...just as soon as the ghost moves out. That's right, Canterville Hall comes complete with a howling, green ghoul, but only if Sir Simon (the ghost) can remember to bring the green mist with him. This classic Oscar Wilde tale spins the Otis family through a maze of dithering maids, blustering bosses and an English realtor who's always looking for a free lunch. The mystery unfolds amid flashes of thunder and disappearing guests...
63 pages
9 m, 9 w, extras, doubling possible
Here are three updated tales of horror. "The Monkey's Paw," by W. W. Jacobs, tells the story of a family destroyed by a grisly talisman that promises to grant three wishes. When a college-aged daughter is crushed while chiseling a huge marble tombstone, her parents wish her alive - at first. "The Tell-Tale Heart," by Edgar Allan Poe, is set in a contemporary prison where clinical experts delve deep into a killer's scarred psyche, only to discover that the motiveless murder is anything but. "Midnight Wax," by L. Don Swartz, is the story of an ambitious reporte...