School

24 pages

5 m, 3 w, and ensemble

Hassan works as a scholar in the House of Wisdom specializing in translating legends. She spends her days alongside her father and twin. Together they are all living a dangerous secret. It is 13th century Bagdad at the height of Islamic civilization and women are forbidden in the House of Wisdom, so Hassan and her sister are posing as men. The daughters are living a protected and peaceful life, yet Hassan dreams of travelling the world. The arrival of a new scholar expands Hassan’s horizons, but will he jeopardize her secret identity as well as her future? Wh...

34 pages

4 m, 3 w, 4 flexible, extras

Santa’s elves, Flip and Twip, are sent to help Mrs. Santa with her last-minute preparations for Christmas Eve. The two elves spin mischief, but real trouble arrives in the form of King Sarak and his spoiled son, Prince Horace. By royal decree, Horace’s Christmas stocking must include all the toys in the land! When Santa refuses, offering instead to visit Prince Horace in the usual manner, the King has the toys seized, thus jeopardizing the merriment of Christmas. With Mrs. Santa’s guidance, plus cooperation between Flip and Twip, as well as lots of audience i...

47 pages

1 m, 1 w

Two teenagers, an African-American urban girl and a white rural boy, confront their racial prejudices when they meet at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Looking for clues into their fathers' pasts, they discover more about themselves and each other and are changed forever. About 60 mins. Winner of the 1994 AATE Distinguished Play Award. Ideal for Black History month observances.

16 pages

3 m, 3 w

Shelby has been feeling depressed and seeing her grandmother in constant pain has upset her even more. Finally, she decides to steal two bottles of her grandmother's pain pills and commit suicide. But Grandma finds the pills and confronts Shelby - admitting that her age and illness have caused her to consider overdosing on the pills herself. Horrified, Shelby realizes she has her whole life ahead of her and both recommit to life.

29 pages

2 m, 2 w, 3 flexible

Adapted from the story "Peter Rugg, the Missing Man" by William Austin. This play tells the story of the phantom coachman Peter Rugg, a man doomed forever to race along the roads to Boston but never to arrive there. Overtaken by a fit of rage while traveling during a stormy night, Bostonite Peter Rugg made a dangerous promise: "Let the storm increase! I will see home tonight in spite of the tempest, or may I never see home again!" He never arrived in Boston. Now his ghost rides the roads leading to and from that city, and he always brings behind him the feroc...

43 pages

5 m, 5 w, 2 flexible, 7 optional

How far will one student go to ensure the safety of his school? Alex Baxter, the student body president, tries to implement a plan to improve the safety of his high school. When his principal refuses to support his plan, Alex stages a phony shooting to show how vulnerable his school is. Several teachers think the squirt gun he is using is real, and he is charged with fourth-degree assault. Because the crime is a misdemeanor, he is tried by a youth court. The action begins as the judge raps her gavel, and Alex's story unwinds through the skillful and often dra...

38 pages

4 m, 3 w

Philip, the Stone Age lord of an elegant cave suite, is something of a Neanderthal when it comes to change. Rumors of a new secret weapon worry him. So does the alarmingly barbaric tribe that has settled across the river who live in boxes made of wooden logs with a panel that opens and closes! Then there's his son, Thomas, who has dropped out of hunting-fishing-agriculture school and does nothing but play with inventions. His daughter, Sharon, befriends animals instead of attracting a nice caveman who will carry her off to a decent cavern in a good neighborho...

41 pages

5 m, 3 w, 2 flexible

Mayhem and comedy are guaranteed when a small troupe of animal actors perform "The Taming of the Shrew" for King Louie, a lion, and Queen Marie, a lioness. Bartholomew, a fox, and Cassandra, a cat, are the leaders of an acting troupe consisting of a sarcastic crow, a bumbling bear, a young rabbit, and a sleepy dog. Include a diva cat opera singer, Miss Bianca, and the fur is guaranteed to fly! As the stage story of "The Taming of the Shrew" unfolds, we see that the actors are like the characters they portray. We also see how much can go wrong when performing ...

40 pages

11 m, 4 f, 1 Either + sprites, nymphs, reapers and sailors.

The plotting, the revenge, the tempered justice, requited love, compassion and forgiveness is all here in Shakespeare's fantasy-comedy masterpiece. This version has edited the archaic terms and unnecessary business and dialogue. Perfect for high school and college theatre departments. A special CD is available of sound effects and flute songs. (Song sample at right is "Nymphs and Reapers Dance.")

22 pages

5 m, 3 w, extras

Marcus lives in an exciting time for theatre: the very beginning in Ancient Greece. He wants to become a great actor and impress everyone at the Festival of Dionysus, especially the lovely maiden Chara. Unfortunately, he can't act, but the gods Dionysus and Apollo see this and decide to help him out. With his new, god-given talent of acting, Marcus is able to win the tragedy competition and the heart of Chara, but not without upsetting two goddesses on Mt. Olympus. Hera and Aphrodite are outraged and have plans to stir up the situation even more. This magical...

27 pages

2 m, 3w

Davey is a small freshman boy, who's got a crush on his sister's friend, Jennifer. With his idol a professional wrestler, Davey starts on a quest to get pumped up. But his behavior becomes obsessive. He has "bigorexia," a disorder that is a lesser-known counterpart to women's anorexia. Men and boys become obsessed with developing their bodies through controlled diet, body building and, in extreme cases, drugs such as steroids. Davey starts to take an over-the-counter adrenal hormone possibly connected to uncontrollable rage. The only one who believes Davey ha...

18 pages

3 m, 3 w

A psychotic murders an old man and then copes successfully with the village constable, only to be trapped and betrayed by conscience and a twisted mind. Increasing the story's playability is the addition of two nieces of the old man who suspect murder, and an innocent bride of the murderer. A smashing climax with thunderous "heartbeats" of the dead man. (Please state adaptor's name when ordering.)

60 pages

Monologue Collection

Here is another monologue collection written by the ever-popular Dan Kehde who, because of his full-time work with teens in theatre, can give an honest voice to their thoughts and emotions. These serious, and at times, humorous monologues tell the stories of more than 20 teens and their struggles to cope with a variety issues. In "Will's Excuse," a student pens his own unique version of the "dog-ate-my-homework" excuse - a classic of which even Shakespeare would be proud! In "Notes From a Best Friend," a student faces feelings of grief and guilt after her bes...

64 pages

8 m, 10 w, 3 flexible, doubling possible

Bridey Stands conned General Washington into making the female-run town of Bridey's Haven its own country, totally separate from the United States of America. But even Bridey realized the 18th century wasn't quite ready for a country run entirely by women. So she hid the document under a fireplace stone in her inn. Two hundred years later, the inn is in deep financial trouble. To make matters worse, a local politician and greedy land developer want to turn the entire area into a big shopping mall while the U.S. government wants to take over the little nation....

32 pages

4 m, 4 w

Friendships are tried, prejudice revealed, and self-interest is (dare it be said) exposed, in this fast-moving comedy. A small Iowa town must deal with the weighty issue of whether a stone statue violates the morals ordinance. Chorlis Deets, longtime resident of Lamb’s Corner, has a new lawn ornament in honor of his departed wife...a stone statue of Aphrodite...painted pink and “situated” on a swing in his front yard. An emergency meeting of the city council is called to debate the issue and decide whether or not to forcibly remove the statue. As the meeting ...