School

58 pages

Large flexible casting

From the first anxious day of high school to the hopefulness of graduation, these scenes recount the good times and bad - the awkwardness and joys of dating, going to the prom and just hangin' out, to the pain of breaking up or having a friend die. We get some glimpses of life from those who are experiencing newfound freedom with wide-eyed wonder. There is a joke that teenagers should "leave home now while you still know everything." But we see these teens also realize that they are nowhere near being complete and have quite a daunting but wonderful road ahea...

70 pages

5 m, 5 w

"Doing a kiddie TV show is like playing the bagpipes," Uncle Neddy says. "Who knows when you make a mistake?" And whether it is hunting down an escaped snake or sawing a lady in half, he and his sidekick, Skeezix the Clown, have been at it for decades. However, when the new station manager plans to get rid of his show, it is time for action! Filled with oddball characters, from a neurotic moose-toting puppeteer to a muscle-bound yes-man, this frantic slapstick comedy races along with action on both ends of the stage. Everyone is tuning in to the final show to...

88 pages

9 m, 15 w, and numerous extras, doubling possible

Set in an all-female boarding school in Victorian London, young Sara Crewe loses all her money and place in society when her father dies. Forced by the merciless headmistress to work in slave-like conditions in the school she once attended, Sara dreams of a better life. She uses her vivid imagination to deal with her adversity and even bring happiness to those around her. She encounters all sorts of characters, from the school bully and her cronies, to the nervous servant girl, to the mysterious old gentleman who moves in next door... The songs have been writ...

76 pages

8 m, 14 w, chorus

The students of Hilltop High are excited! They're going to put on a musical of "Romeo and Juliet." However, the director, Miss Peggy Donahue, pressed into service by a principal eager to please his superindendent, is horrified. Twenty years before, when she was a student at Hilltop, she starred in a disastrous production of Shakespeare's "Scottish Play," and she believes the curse lingers on. Sure enough, everthing that can go wrong, does. The set for the balcony scene collapses, Juliet breaks her leg, her replacement develops laryngitis, and the semi-deaf co...

28 pages

4 m, 3 w, 1 flexible, extras

This drama tells the story of the last days of high school student Luke's life, and the repercussions felt by those who play a role in what happens to him: his teacher, the bully, the most popular girl in school, and his best friend. Luke finds himself overwhelmed by years of not feeling good enough, a feeling that finally reaches a breaking point. The decision Luke makes will have repercussions for everyone around him for the rest of their lives. This story, though, isn’t just about Luke: it's about all of them, all of us, and the struggles that we all carry...

32 pages

5 m, 4 w

Have you ever asked yourself, “What was I thinking?” Well, Spencer and Olivia are doing just that – while on their first date!  Their conscious minds (played by two separate actors) are present on stage, sharing their thoughts (often contradictory thoughts!) on the conversation. Things get off to a rocky start, the usual awkward silences ensue, but the complications really begin when both their exes show up. Furthermore, Olivia produces her checklist of grueling questions for Spencer to test whether he is “boyfriend material.” The date concludes with Olivia m...

19 pages

Approx. 8 m, 5 w, numerous flexible roles and chorus

"Mary Jane of Whitechapel" is set during the Autumn of Terror of 1888 when London was haunted by the spectre of a killer which, even now, we know only by the name of Jack the Ripper. Alternating between the investigation into the killings and the life of Mary Jane Kelly, the Ripper’s final victim, the play re-creates the dark atmosphere of a city horrified by blood and violence. Most of the play is based on real people and incidents: the frantic officers on the case, the scores of suspects, the vigilantes who attack foreigners, and ordinary people, scared of ...

28 pages

6 m, 5 w doubling possible to 4 m, 3 w

This powerful one-act is based on the first pages of Victor Hugo's "Les Miserables." The year is 1815 and Jean Valjean has been imprisoned nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his sister's starving family. Now, after being released, Valjean finds it impossible to find lodging or food. Society has treated him like an animal and he feels like one. Finally he finds refuge at the Bishop's home. The clergyman welcomes him with kindness and even trust, using his best silver candlesticks at the evening meal, much to the dismay and warnings of the susp...

33 pages

Widely flexible cast, minimum of 12. (Approx. 4 m, 3 w, plus 5-23 flexible, extras)

Adapted from Washington Irving's short story. No one will be caught napping as Washington Irving's supernatural tale comes to vibrant life in this action-packed comedy that combines faithfulness to the original text with slapstick humor, hilarious dialogue and fascinating characters. Young Rip Van Winkle escapes from an overly-critical wife, bowls with the ghostly Henry Hudson in the Catskill Mountains, then mysteriously awakens 20 years later to find life in his colonial village vastly changed. With minimal set requirements and maximum involvement by an extr...

61 pages

4 m, 4 w, 5-19 flexible, extras

Shakespeare's agent options his script "Macbeth" to a Hollywood producer who wants a "few" changes to make the play more contemporary. The trouble is the producer isn't sure what changes exactly should be made. Soon Shakespeare is casting the poor witches alternately as country singers, rappers, and punk rockers, while Macbeth and Lady Macbeth perform their lines as gangsters, farmers and Goths. A member of the audience is even pulled onstage at one point to help Macbeth rehearse a murder scene. If that's not bad enough, the final showdown between Macbeth and...

35 pages

3 m, 4 w

Here's a poignant but necessary look at the problems of teenage bullying and suicide. J. Michael is a high school student and aspiring writer. Already dead, he narrates the events that lead up to his suicide. Along the way, we meet Melissa, his unrequited love, and Ms. Dodge, the hopeful English teacher. There's also Artie, a tough, rival student, and Mr. Butler, the ineffectual high school principal. Two other characters, J. Michael's overwhelmed mother and a tough district attorney, round out the cast. Together these multidimensional characters paint a comp...

35 pages

3 m, 3 w, 5 flexible parts

An undercover policeman is sitting on a park bench impersonating an old woman in the hopes of catching a purse snatcher red-handed. To his surprise, there is more than one purse snatcher, or so he thinks. Passersby, including a jogger escaping a vicious dog, a harried business woman, a male model and others, become victims of wacky experiences leading to more than one suspect being handcuffed to the park bench. On top of that, three mental patients have gone missing from the hospital located close to the park, and the old lady the undercover cop was impersona...

58 pages

6 m, 6 w, 16 flexible, extras if desired

Follow Prince Tamino in this hilarious tale as he travels to the castle of the evil Sarastro to save the princess Pamina. Along his magical journey he meets a wild cast of characters including Papageno, the three muses, the Greenbird, the spirits, and the fabled Queen of the Night. Armed with a magic flute given by the queen, Tamino is ready to take on Sarastro. Once inside the castle our prince and his friends face monsters, magic, and a test to free his beloved Pamina. Fast-paced dialogue and hysterical characters enchant this large-cast play based on the o...

29 pages

4 m, 2 w

Kyle, William, Natalie, and Richard are not likely friends. With such different backgrounds, they never would have met outside of the subway station. But when their train becomes stalled unexpectedly, they have no choice but to turn to one another. Personalities clash and tensions rise. In the midst of crisis, with nothing but time, these four strangers reflect on their problems and insecurities, defining who they are now. Slowly, they begin to realize how much they really share. Despite initial difficulties, they bond and come out stronger on the other side ...

42 pages

9 m, 9 w

What happens when a sympathetic teacher slips an advance copy of the algebra midterm exam to a struggling student and warns him not to share it with the rest of the class? In two words: cheating scandal! Come sort out the vagaries of honor, friendship and the straight skinny with the 18 members of Mr. Bolton's fourth-period algebra class. Join them as they discover the value of truthfulness, morality and higher math in a way that is at times hilarious, touching, and provocative. The one-act play is chockful of vividly drawn characters, generously explored eth...