School

27 pages

1 w, 3-10 flexible

Dee has recently come out to his entire school as transgender. After his former friend Riley harasses him about his trans identity on social media, Dee uses an undercover pseudonym to post embarrassing secrets about her. The revealing post quickly circulates among the student body. Soon, Dee and Riley realize they have said more than they can take back. In this interactive performance, students will be prompted to think about the unintended consequences of cyberbullying and the ways that social media can strain relationships. This show can be produced using a...

29 pages

4 m, 3 w and 1 m, 2 w

Here are two short, comic plays that have won high school state festivals and competitions: THIEF BETWEEN THE FLOORS (4 m, 3 w) What would you do after the elevator stopped, the door locked, and someone said "Hands up!"? A thief robs everyone in the elevator, but they talk him out of keeping their money and valuables. They then use the same possessions to bribe the thief into saying they were the heroes. About 15 minutes. THREE IN AN ELEVATOR (1 m, 2 w) A man and his wife are stuck in an elevator with the man's first wife. The problem is that he never told hi...

33 pages

1 m, 4 w

Boy, did the "evil" stepsisters and stepmother get a bum wrap. Now they tell their side of the story - about how Cinderella martyred herself into subservience and gave up control of her life, waiting for the right man to take care of her. The two stepsisters, Anastasia and Drizella, used education (master's degrees in finance and chemical engineering, respectively) to come out on top. But Cinderella has made herself so hapless, hopeless, and helpless that when the big ball comes, Mama has to pretend to be a fairy godmother ("Whatever that is") to convince her...

32 pages

3 m, 2 w, 1 flexible

Get the youngsters in your audience twitching their noses, making engine noises, bowing to the king, catching imaginary gold thread, and shouting out names, especially Rumpelstiltskin! With such audience participation, this fairy tale adaptation is loads of active fun. It features a braggart father, his long-suffering wife, their poor but beautiful daughter, a strict rule-enforcing chancellor; a monarch whose kingdom depends on straw being spun into gold, and of course, the mysterious little man who is willing to perform that exceptional feat – but at a treme...

22 pages

6 actors

The legend of Pyramus and Thisby is known today primarily because William Shakespeare used it in his comedy "A Midsummer Night’s Dream." As a part of Shakespeare’s play, six workers, sometimes called “mechanicals” or “clowns,” decide to present a play for the festivities that will follow the wedding of the Duke of Athens. In this one-act, we see the mechanicals getting their parts, then rehearsing in the woods the night before the wedding. Of course, these men know nothing about acting or play production, and, as a result, the audience is treated to a rousing...

62 pages

Flexible cast minimum 4 (3 m, 1 w) maximum 37 (28 m, 9 w)

Here are ten short views of turn-of-the-century New York through the eyes of O. Henry, the master of the twist ending and chronicler of everyday people from young shop girls with enormous dreams to the ne'er-do-wells with plans for the easy life. Among the people you'll come to know and almost love are: three of the dingiest and laziest musketeers you've ever seen, plotting to relieve a hard-working wife of a whole dollar she earned scrubbing clothes; a young gentleman with a sudden insurmountable problem in giving away a "mere one-thousand-dollar" inheritanc...

22 pages

2 m, 2 w, 1 flexible

Four speech and drama students and their coach are preparing for a tournament. Charles is the team's supremely confident extemporaneous speaker. Patty is the group's entry into the category of original oratory. Cathy is both a debater and, at least in her own mind, a talented actress. And then there's Chris Higgins, a former football player whose mother is forcing him to participate in public speaking as a way of overcoming his stuttering problem. Unable to join in the athletics that used to bring him glory, he's reluctantly joined this group, a group which h...

18 pages

3 m, 3 w

Distraught at the lack of any stimuli, an old man’s five senses are concerned that he’s dying, which means the end for them as well. As a final tribute, Sight, Hearing, Touch, Smell and Taste reminisce about poignant moments they remember from the man’s life. They are joined by Intuition, who senses that the man is not necessarily dying of old age and suggests that they all recount the last stimulus they remember in the hopes that they can figure out what happened. As they put it all together, they realize what has occurred and try to help him…and themselves....

36 pages

With doubling: 2 m, 4 w.

Before putting "Through the Looking Glass" down on paper in 1860s, Lewis Carroll told a colleague’s young daughter, Alice Liddell (the real Alice in the books), the story of talking chess pieces. The novel, of course, was a sequel to his earlier one, "Alice in Wonderland." This play is set in the early 1920s as a now elderly Alice Liddell reflects on the telling of the story. Faithful to Carroll’s expression of childhood fears of growing up, this adaptation keeps the Victorian charm and merriment by maintaining Carroll’s scenes intact. The audience is transpo...

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...

60 pages

2 m, 3 w

Beverly Cain has escaped to an island home to recover following a tragic car accident. She had been driving and her mother, famed Hollywood star Fiona Street, had been killed instantly. Beverly, now confined to a wheelchair, blames herself mercilessly. Unfortunately, her sanctuary is disturbed by her estranged husband who has come seeking reconciliation. Or is it for another check to cover his gambling debts? Then an old friend of her mother shows up unexpectedly, complicating what Beverly had hoped to be a quiet weekend getting to know her long-lost half bro...

47 pages

2 m, 3 w

Barrett is an outstanding musician and songwriter. Due to his talents his band is growing in popularity. This would-be great news but Barrett is on the spectrum and in addition to the normal teen pressures, he must manage his autism. He is most comfortable expressing himself with music. He is struggling with the fact that he is in love with Sarah, his best friend, and the lead singer of the group. Although his songs are written about her, Barrett has changed the lyrics so that she has no clue. When she finds out, Barrett must figure out what to do to save his...