School

32 pages

7 m, 9 w, 4 flexible

Fed up with the unruliness of his school, hard-nosed Principal Wolfenstein hires Janitor Patton and his top-notch cleaning crew to fix the problem. But it’s not enough against Bobby Franko, leader of the pranksters for all of his six years of high school, and his mafia-like group of friends. When the war reaches new heights, Wolfenstein calls for the return of someone so horribly cruel and void of any joy that she was previously banned from ever setting foot in the school again --The Funsucker! She literally sucks the fun out of every student she encounters, ...

30 pages

Ensemble cast of 5 to 22 actors

Some of the gentle, humorous, and well-loved characters from the writings of Beatrix Potter come alive in this gem of a story theatre play for young audiences. The play consists of adaptations of three Beatrix Potter stories: “The Tale of Benjamin Bunny” (one of the Peter Rabbit tales); her renowned Christmas story, “The Tailor of Gloucester”; and “Grasshopper Belle and Susan Emmet,” Potter’s adaptation of the Aesop fable. Also included are two poems from the “Apply Dapply Rhymes” and a third inspired by them. The pieces are short, the action continuous, and ...

36 pages

8 m, 7 w, flexible extras

It's the late 1890s, and the little town of Astaire, Wyoming, ready to enter the new century as the "Paris of the Plains," has just elected the first female sheriff west of the Mississippi! Daisy Dandelion vows to bring about law and order with just a law book and "good ol' female common sense." The mayor, who's always looking at the “big picture," and his town council are holding a hoedown in honor of Daisy, who loves to dance. But this celebration is tap-dancing with trouble! One young woman, in a burst of defiance against husbands ruling the roost, encoura...

20 pages

2 m, 1 w

Two class-clown type guys are playing a video basketball game and discussing one of their girlfriends. When one of the guys loses the game, along with his temper, the illusion of the fourth wall gets broken. The two young men, now exposed for being merely actors in a play, argue and debate about what to do next. When the character "Jessica" enters and proves to be trapped in the world of the play, things go more than haywire. The play is set in real time, able to be adapted to whatever stage or competition in which it is performed.

32 pages

Approx. 15 m, 15 w, much doubling possible

Here's a delightful and easy-to-do version of Dickens' Christmas story, faithfully adapted for young people and their families. Originally written as a touring show, it is adaptable to any theatre or stage facility. All the beloved characters and scenes are included: Scrooge and Cratchit in the counting house; the Ghost of Christmas Past; Scrooge’s sweetheart Belle at the Fezziwig ball; the Ghost of Ghost of Christmas Present and the Cratchit home with Tiny Tim; and even the sensitive scenes at the pawn shop and graveyard. Of course, there’s the happy ending ...

25 pages

6 m, 4 w

Edgar Allan Poe is called an American literary genius and here are three of his short stories dramatized for Reader's Theatre. “The Masque of the Red Death" is a fantastic tale of how, after half the people of his country have died, Prince Prospero gathers knights and ladies to his castle and locks the doors to avoid the devastating “red death” disease. In "The Cask of Amontillado" we find that if a man seeks revenge, there are many ways to do it. In "Lionizing" Poe mocks authors who get recognition when they write nothing but trivia and nonsense in flowery a...

16 pages

4 m, 1 w, 2 flexible

This play is written in the tradition of the great Marx Brothers movies and plays of the ‘30s and ‘40s. The not-so-famous lawyer Julius P.Milksop (Groucho) is defending Luigi and Adolph (Chico and Harpo) in court. They turn the courtroom into a circus of hilarious gags. The two are on trial for stealing jewelry from the famous Buckwalter estate. (Mrs. Buckwalter is a Margaret Dumont-type.) The stage directions for this play could never be complete, so it is up to each production to come up with business, bits, gags, etc., to fill in the gaps, thereby making e...

20 pages

2 m, 1 w

Part of The Half-hour Classics Series. This adaptation of "The Marriage Proposal" shows how hilarious and ridiculous a situation can become when the excitable and "ailing" Lomov comes to propose to the attractive, but equally excitable, Natalia. They soon enter into rowdy quarrels about land boundaries and hunting dogs. Will they marry? Will they fight their way through life? This adaptation has been created especially for high school students.

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...

24 pages

5 m, 4 w, extras if desired.

Inspired by a true story, "Carl" tells of a young man's experience with being teased and bullied throughout school. The play opens with a 10-year reunion, then flashes back to his high school days, episodes in the lunchroom and classroom. We even see a brief bit of Carl's home life. Through the moving portrayal of Carl's life and ultimate suicide, members of the audience are compelled to examine their reactions to people who may be different. "Carl" is the winner of Minnesota's "Arc of Excellence Community Media Award."

14 pages

2 m, 3 w

Time has passed. Della and Jim, the young couple from O. Henry's short story, are now elderly. At their yearly Christmas Eve visit to a simple coffee shop, they encounter a melancholy woman. Touched by her sadness, they tell their story in a flashback scene of their first Christmas together when they each sold their most precious possession to buy the other a present. That experience changed forever their idea of buying expensive Christmas gifts. Instead they exchange the most priceless of all, love.

41 pages

3 m, 4 w, or all men

Back by popular demand! All the beloved characters are present - the large awkward, wig-wearing heroine, Little Nell; tall, slinky mustachioed villain, Carlton Bainbridge; and the affable, lovable, but-oh-so-slow hero, Hector Skyscraper. Revolving around the heavy plot of "Marry-me-or-I'll-foreclose," you'll want to cry with the heroine, hiss the villain and applaud the hero. This play's a favorite with community groups. One hour (can be lengthened or shortened).

20 pages

3 m, 11 w

Take seven inept campers who must win a variety show competition on which the whole camp's reputation is based and what have you got? Instant disaster! Luckily for the campers, Jo White, who would rather sing than whistle while she works, has escaped to their cabin. Hilarity and confusion follow, but the camp's reputation is saved!

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...

31 pages

15 flexible characters, approx. 6 m, 9 w, doubling possible.

The Countess Dracula needs money badly, so she's allowing a movie to be filmed at her castle. Everybody's excited by the prospect, especially the kids, Doug and Donna Dracula; the castle muscle men, Wiener and Schnitzel; and the attorneys who arranged the deal. But when the loud movie director, the catty actresses, and the bubbly dancers enter on the scene, there's plenty of chaos and the Countess is stricken. There's a quick trial and justice is handed down Transylvania style, with gravely funny complications. 40 minutes.