| Matt Casarino has been writing since 1997, when City Theater in Wilmington, Delaware produced his first play. Since then, his short plays been produced in 49 states and eight countries. His full-length comedy The PornoZombies debuted with the Renegade Theater Experiment in San Jose and was produced in Chicago, Delaware, and North Carolina.
Mr. Casarino's plays have been anthologized by Original Works and United Stages, and his play Larry Gets the Call appears in the Smith & Kraus' Best American 10-Minute Plays series. His works have appeared at such theaters and festivals as the Emerging Artists Theatre, New York 15-Minute Play Festival, Prop Thtr, The ArtsCenter 10X10 Festival, The Short & Sweet Festival, Impact Theatre, Moving Arts, City Theater, The High Desert Play Development Workshop, the Dublin Gay Theatre Festival, and Philly Fringe. In 2005, he was awarded an Established Artist Fellowship by the Delaware Division of the Arts, and his works have been honored with the L.W. Thomas Award and the Alan Minieri Playwriting Award. His plays have appeared at the Last Frontier Theatre Conference (Valdez, AK) and the Kennedy Center Playwrights Intensive.
Mr. Casarino is a member of The Dramatists Guild and Emerging Artists Theater, and a co-founder of First Draft Theatre, an ongoing workshop for east-coast playwrights. He lives in Delaware. Turn-ons include singing, songwriting, Tom Waits, purple, Smithwicks, Tilly and the Wall, and Tromeo & Juliet. Turn-offs include mushrooms. |
|
|
|
Comedy
Short, 15-25 minutes
3 females, 3 males (5-6 actors possible: exactly 3 females, 2-3 males)
$40.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
A small cast attempts to produce a sprawling, historical, century-spanning epic play, in only fifteen minutes. Events start out silly and continue to unravel as our actors fight for the good roles and try to make sense of it all.
|  |
|
 |
| "A wonderfully camp look at American History." |
| --Paula Shulak, Community News (Hockessin, Delaware) |
|
|
|
|
Dark comedy
Short, 20-30 minutes
6 females, 6 males, 4 either
(9-16 actors possible: 4-10 females, 4-11 males)
$40.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
The play is over, and the cast would like to take their bows. Unfortunately, a crazed unseen chorus member with a gun is making things difficult. Realizing that the show ain't over 'til the cast takes their curtain call, the actors try several methods to subdue the chorus member, all with disastrous results. Finally, inspiration strikes the leads, as they realize that there are people among them willing to pay the ultimate price for a moment of glory...
|  |
|
|
|
Comedy for young audiences
Short, 35-40 minutes
4 females, 3 males, 6 either
(13-30 actors possible: 4-25 females, 2-21 males)
$35.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
In this comic spin on the classic fairy tale, Goldilocks is once again confronted by the Three Bears...and Joe, the Bears' species exchange student. From Goldilocks' house to the Bears' home and back again, a slew of fairy tale characters cross Goldilocks' path to give advice and tell their tales. This fresh adaptation teaches young audiences the meaning of responsibility through its clever, upbeat dialogue and audience participation.
|  |
|
|
|
Comedy
Various durations
Various cast requirements
$9.99 per book
NOTE: This book contains 10 plays. To perform any of the plays, each must be licensed separately.
Fast and funny, this volume contains ten short comedies that will split your side as you roll down the aisle busting a gut. From a blue-collar family coming to terms with their absurd prejudices (How We Talk in South Boston by David Lindsay-Abaire), to three co-workers figuring out the intricacies of being men (Three Guys and a Brenda by Adam Bock), to a Yo' Mama showdown with the Clarence Thomas High School Dozens Team (Snap by Daryl Watson), this collection will make audiences laugh till it hurts.
To purchase this book of 10 plays, click "Order this play" above. To perform an individual play, click on its title below:
Bar Mitzvah Boy
Failing the Improv
The Fortune Cookie
Heritage, Her-i-tage, and Hair-i-tage
How We Talk in South Boston
Miss Kentucky
Snap
Three Guys and a Brenda
Who's a Good Boy?
Yes, Mamet
|  |
|
|
|
Comedy for young audiences
Short, 35-40 minutes
3 females, 4 males, 3 either
(8-17 actors possible: 3-10 females, 5-10 males)
$35.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
The story of Jack and the Beanstalk gets interrupted by Larry -- the old guy who sells Jack his magic beans. Larry gets to tell his story, which begins during the Great Fairytale Wars, when Larry owned a milk bar. He stayed neutral in the war, but one day his old friend Humpty Dumpty burst in with urgent news: a giant in the sky started the war. Larry decides to join the fight, but not without the help of his friends Pinocchio, Rapunzel, Rumpelstiltskin, and, of course, a boy with an axe named Jack.
|  |
|
|
|
Drama
Short, 20-30 minutes
2 females, 2 males
$35.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
In a San Francisco restaurant, Peter and Valerie, a handsome May-December couple, are having drinks. Meanwhile, Peter's wife Susan and her new friend Man (who calls himself Henry) are sharing a bottle of wine in her upper-class New Jersey home. All four begin to carefully explore their secrets and betrayals, which may or may not include infidelity and murder. Valerie learns the truth about the jovial Peter, while Man and Susan, despite their carefully chosen dialogue, reveal their darkest intentions to each other.
|  |
|
|
|
Comedy
Short, 12-17 minutes
1 female, 3 males (4 actors possible: 1-2 females, 2-3 males)
$35.00 per performance; $9.99 per book
NOTE: This play is part of an anthology called Great Short Comedies: Volume 1.
Two David Mamet-obsessed writers pitch their play to Reginald, an African-American theatre director. Their work is a derivative doozy -- a compilation of all things Mamet, including con artists, rhythmic dialogue, and lots and lots of profanity. Reginald sees right through their Mametisms and urges them to rediscover their own voices, but the boys find that maybe there's another hero out there to emulate...
|  |
|
|
| "Casarino's wit is obvious as he targets the characters for ridicule. His writing always stays just a step ahead of the audience, supplying an unexpected laugh when they anticipate a conventional gag." |
| --Tom Butler, Wilmington News Journal |
|
|
|
|
