|
|
Comedy
Short, 20-30 minutes
2 females, 2 males, 15 either
(4-19 actors possible: 2-15 females, 2-15 males)
$40.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
Living with parents can be rough -- especially when Mom and Dad are nothing but ordinary. So when Julie and her mother get into a battle over curfew, Julie convinces her brother Johnnie to hold interviews for new and improved parents. Not to be outdone, Mom and Dad conduct their own interviews for new children. Faced with interviewees from a militant father to a get-rich-quick-scheming child, "ordinary" doesn't look so bad anymore.
|  |
|
|
|
Comedy/Drama
Full-length, 80-90 minutes
2 females
$75.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
One winter night a woman bakes a pie as a girl tries to finish her college essay. As the deadline looms, unexamined issues of the girl's adoption from Russia, the rupture of her parents divorce, and the fear of leaving home break through the surface as the mother cajoles, deflects, and maneuvers around her own feelings of sadness and loss. Unfolding in real time, Memory House is about a young and an older woman who are forced to grapple with the past as they face an uncertain future. A funny and moving story about the complexity of living in the world today.
|  |
|
 |
| "A captivating emotional ballet that is also a moving demonstration of the strenuous work that goes into good mothering." |
| --The New York Times |
|
|
|
|
Drama
Short, 40-45 minutes
10 females, 5 males, 2 either
(8-27 actors possible: 5-15 females, 3-12 males)
$40.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
From 1853 to 1929, The Orphan Trains Project joined adoptive parents with orphans in countless towns throughout the vast American landscape. Based on primary records from the Children's Aid Society of New York, Orphan Trains brings this compelling story of hardships and victories to life, resonating with the authentic voices of a diverse group of children.
|  |
|
|
|
Comedy/Drama
Full-length, 120-130 minutes
8 females, 3 males (11-13 actors possible: 8-10 females, exactly 3 males)
$75.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
When aging brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert send to the orphanage in Nova Scotia for a boy to help them on the farm, they get more than they bargain for. Due to a mix-up, they are instead left with 11-year-old Anne Shirley. Over the course of six years, this romantic, hot-headed, and energetic girl wins their hearts and turns the stodgy, rural Canadian community into a bright world of "kindred spirits." This swift yet theatrical adaptation of the classic novel is an all-ages crowd-pleaser.
|  |
|
|
| "It is very rare to experience a piece of theater that is absolutely delightful from start to finish... Although classified as 'family drama,' Anne of Green Gables is a production that would entertain and charm a theatergoer of any age." |
| --David Cregan, Main Line Times (Philadelphia) |
|
|
|
|
Comedy/Drama
Short, 25-35 minutes
3 females
$40.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
A young airline passenger decides that the woman seated next to her might be the mother she never had. She finds an ally in a wacky stewardess who, unlike the reluctant mother figure, believes these two passengers are a match made in heaven.
|  |
|
|
| "Relative Strangers is a wonder, a miniature epic, plugging into the Zeitgeist with wit and flawless comic timing -- and sadness at the core." |
| --Vladimir Zelevinsky, Boston Globe |
|
|
|
|
Comedy/Drama
Short, 50-60 minutes
11 females, 3 males (9-15 actors possible: 7-12 females, 2-3 males)
$40.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
This innovative adaptation, using five different actors to play Anne, is the classic story of a fiery young girl named Anne Shirley. When Marilla and Mathew Cuthbert end up with young Anne, instead of the boy they thought they were adopting, their world is turned upside down. Marilla is not pleased with the orphanage's mix-up, but agrees to keep the little girl for one month with the hope that she will be able to civilize Anne before sending her back. But will the imaginative and mischievous girl win over the hearts of her reluctant parents?
|  |
|
|
|
Drama/Comedy
Full-length, 65-80 minutes
7 females, 10 males, 20 either (10-50 actors possible: 6-26 females, 4-24 males)
$75.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
NOTE: Each piece in this anthology can be licensed and performed separately.
Four well-loved tales -- The Odyssey, Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone -- are brought to life in this hilarious and accessible collection of short adaptations. With a large, funny chorus of narrators, several songs and raps, and even some cheerleading, The Odyssey, Oedipus, and Others offers a brand new look at age-old classics.
To purchase this book of 4 plays, click "Order this play" above. To perform an individual play, click on its title below:
The Odyssey
Oedipus the King
Oedipus at Colonus
Antigone
| |
|
|
|
Drama/Comedy
Short, 40-50 minutes
1 female, 2 males (3 actors possible: 0-3 females, 0-3 males)
$35.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
Painted Rain explores the relationship between two boys in an orphanage, on the verge of being separated by adoption. The younger boy, an energetic non-conformist, tries desperately to draw out his older roommate, who is an aspiring painter confined to a wheelchair that he refuses to relinquish for leg braces. Both boys strive to live life the way they want to live it and make their own choices, despite the external pressures and expectations of a well-meaning social worker. As the impending separation nears, these two "almost brothers" struggle to break through their alienation and isolation to find companionship and connection.
|  |
|
|
| "This is a sweet, sad vignette about two lonely boys growing up in an orphanage, one of whom dreams about being a painter. There is a gentle poetic quality in the writing and the imagery." |
| --Mel Gussow, The New York Times |
|
|
|
|
$19.95 per book
NOTE: This book contains 10 plays. To perform any of the plays, each must be licensed separately.
Humana Festival 2012: The Complete Plays brings together all ten scripts from the 2012 Humana Festival of New American Plays, the 36th annual cycle of world premiere productions staged at Actors Theatre of Louisville. This unique compilation features an exceptional array of work by some of the most exciting new voices in the American theatre, from a group of suburban kids in the late 80s who forge a cultural identity through hip hop (How We Got On), to a rich, dying woman who suspects her nurse is being paid off to expedite her death (Death Tax), to a 500-year-old Austrian vampire struggling with the existential grind of modern living (Michael von Siebenburg Melts Through the Floorboards). This original and diverse collection of plays is a must-have for anyone seeking fresh, daring, and compelling theater.
To purchase this book of 10 plays, click "Order this play" above. To perform an individual play, click on its title below:
The Ballad of 423 and 424
by Nicholas C. Pappas
Death Tax
by Lucas Hnath
The Dungeons and the Dragons
by Kyle John Schmidt
Eat Your Heart Out
by Courtney Baron
Hero Dad
by Laura Jacqmin
The Hour of Feeling
by Mona Mansour
How We Got On
by Idris Goodwin
Michael von Siebenburg Melts Through the Floorboards
by Greg Kotis
Oh, Gastronomy!
by Michael Golamco, Carson Kreitzer, Steve Moulds, Tanya Saracho, and Matt Schatz
The Veri**n Play
by Lisa Kron
|  |
|
|
| "One of the most prestigious showcases for original theater in the country." |
| --The New York Times |
|
|
|
|
Comedy/Drama
Short, 30-40 minutes
8 females, 8 males (10-20 actors possible: 5-10 females, 5-10 males)
$35.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
Adoption brings a multitude of diverse people together, transcending race, culture, and traditional gender roles. In this fast-paced collection of humorous and thought-provoking interconnected stories, we meet a young woman raised by two dads, an African-American family considering adopting a Native-American girl, a Korean college student who has to cope with her adopted mom's mental illness, and many others. Skipping freely through the present, past, and future, Conspicuous examines adoption from multiple angles, revealing its complexities and joys. (This play was specially commissioned by Playscripts for high school actors.)
|  |
|
Oedipus adapted by Ellen McLaughlin
from the play by Sophocles |
 
|
|
Drama
Full-length, 70-90 minutes
1 female, 6 males, 6 either (13-20 actors possible: 2-6 females, 8-13 males)
$75.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
A plague grips the city of Thebes. Desperate to save his people, King Oedipus sends a messenger to the oracle at Delphi and discovers that the city's salvation lies in finding and punishing the murderer of the former king, Laius, who was brutally slain by a stranger at a crossroads years ago. When Oedipus orders a manhunt, he unknowingly sets the wheels of his own destruction in motion. This lean, contemporary version brings a new, poignant power to this primal work that is the cornerstone of Western drama.
| |
|
|
| "Shatteringly brilliant...builds with moment after moment of bitter beauty, its poetry and revelations coming in grave waves." |
| --Rohan Preston, Star Tribune |
|
|
|
|
Comedy
Full-length, 80-90 minutes
3 females, 2 males
$75.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
Food writer Francesca's dinner party features famous recipes from the Alice B. Toklas Cookbook, along with a guest list that's an almost certain recipe for disaster. It includes Pilar, a multilingual art detective with visa problems; Bricka, a lesbian widow with a child and custody-seeking Republican in-laws; Joe, an OB/GYN whose lover is a disoriented drug addict; and Kev, a playwright who has written a soon-to-open play about...all of them. A hilarious, irreverent look at gay and lesbian life in the new millennium.
|  |
|
|
| "Hilarious! I had a ball at Bass for Picasso! An authentically witty and intelligent comedy...the same kind of exotic and nurturing treat Toklas intended to cook up for Picasso." |
| --NYtheatre.com |
|
|
|
|
Drama
Full-length, 100-120 minutes
4 females, 1 male
$75.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
Well-educated, middle-class couple James and Rachel have moved back to America from Uganda with their traumatized adopted son in hopes of providing him with a better life. Instead, Daniel is threatened with expulsion from school for his violent behavior. As his behavior becomes increasingly dangerous, Daniel's rocky progress is revealed through the eyes of the adults who are responsible for him -- his levelheaded principal, his apprehensive teacher, and his sympathetic counselor -- and James and Rachel are forced to grapple with the backlash of their choices.
|  |
|
|
| "McKee dispassionately observes how each of these adult authority figures fails to help Daniel emerge from his private hell. By keeping him offstage, she places the focus squarely on how adult desire, always rationalized, displaces a child's basic needs." |
| --Charlotte Stoudt, Los Angeles Times |
|
|
Oedipus the King
adapted by Stacey Coates and Rosalind Flynn
from Sophocles' classic play |
|
|
Drama/Comedy
Short, 12-15 minutes
4 females, 4 males, 6 either (5-23 actors possible: 2-11 females, 3-12 males)
$30.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
NOTE: This play is part of an anthology called The Odyssey, Oedipus, and Others or Greek Story Theatre.
When Oedipus, the new king of Thebes, promises to bring justice to the murderer of former king Laius (and deceased husband of Oedipus's wife Jocasta), a blind prophet tells Oedipus that it was the king himself who murdered Laius. Naively ignoring the prophecy, Oedipus and Jocasta soon realize that perhaps they were too quick to dismiss the prophet's claim. This is a condensed and comical version of the first tale in the classic Oedipus trilogy.
(This play can also be performed as part of the full-length play The Odyssey, Oedipus, and Others or Greek Story Theatre.)
| |
|
|
|
Comedy
Short, 45-60 minutes
1 female, 3 males (4-5 actors possible: 0-4 females, 1-5 males)
$35.00 per performance; $7.99 per book
Convinced his mother died in a plane crash and tired of dealing with his absent-minded father, Quentin embarks on an epic journey across the globe in search of his lost love, Phoebe. Little does Quentin know that his journey will take him to France where he confronts Phoebe's new boyfriend, to a Haitian mission where he searches for his adopted child, and to Texas where he attempts to free a farmer's incarcerated girlfriend. Traveling with an eccentric Frenchman at the helm of a stolen boat, Quentin searches for meaning and love in this uproarious comedy.
|  |
|
|
|
Comedy
Short, 10-20 minutes
1 female, 1 male
$30.00 per performance; $8.99 per book
NOTE: This play is part of an anthology called Family Life: Three Brutal Comedies.
Pregnant Minna insists that space people communicate with her through her mascara wand and put a baby inside her so the child can save the world. This claim lands her in the mental hospital, where her brother Brian visits her and tries to convince her that she needs to have an abortion, since she is unfit to raise a child. At first frustrated by his sister's insistence of her higher purpose, Brian stumbles onto a wonderful surprise.
(This play can also be performed as part of the full-length play Family Life: Three Brutal Comedies.)
| |
|
|
|
Drama
Short, 10-12 minutes
1 female, 1 male
$30.00 per performance; $18.95 per book
NOTE: This play is part of an anthology called Naked Angels Issues Projects: Collected Plays.
Robert is applying to adopt a baby through an agency run by the stern, overworked Rosemary. Nothing about their meeting seems to be going right from the start, and when Robert reveals that he is gay, the interview is cut short. Realizing that his chances to adopt are slim, he challenges Rosemary to confront her prejudices in this play about acceptance, forgiveness, and moving on.
| |
|
|
