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Catalog of Plays & Musicals College Edition Printable Format

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Payment Options Check, credit card, institutional check, or money order. Ordering online is the quickest way to get your scripts, but you can always order by fax or mail. TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE 2 Table of Contents

3 | New 3 | Full-Lengths 9 | One-Acts

Title, author, genre, | Rights Information cast range, synopsis, 35 and review 36 | Company Information

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com SECTION 1 | NEW PAGE 3

ABOUT THIS SECTION | The plays and musicals in the following section were chosen for publication in the past year, and meet the unique needs New of college theaters.

110 Stories captures the grief and resilience of New York City in Based on the iconic novel by George Orwell, 1984 brings us the the wake of September 11th through the words of those who ex- story of Winston Smith, a cog in the giant machine state of Oce- perienced it directly—not only the firefighters and police, but the ania. Physically and mentally under the omnipresent eye of Big ironworkers, chaplains, K9 handlers, nurses, photojournalists, and Brother, Winston has been caught struggling for scraps of love the homeless who witnessed the horrific events and saved lives and freedom in a world awash with distrust and violence. With that day, too. Together these unflinching first-person testimonials the brutal "help" of four Party Members, Winston is forced to con- offer catharsis by revealing the hope, humor, and compassion that fess his Thoughtcrimes before an unseen inquisitor, and the au- emerged in the midst of this tragedy. Memorializing 9/11 by shar- dience—which acts as a silent witness to his torture. A ferocious ing the stories no one saw on the news, this play is a powerful and and provocative adaptation of one of the most prescient works of humanizing account of New York City's darkest day. literature of the last century.

"Sullivan's adaptation of 1984 is a chilling

reminder that some of the political excesses set forth in George Orwell's novel are painfully evident in today's increasingly monopolistic media." —Melinda Schupmann, Backstage

25 Questions for a Jewish Mother Kate Moira Ryan and Judy Gold | BUY Memoir/Comedy | Full-length 4 females | 1-21 actors possible

Part memoir and part stand-up routine, this hilarious and affecting play breaks down just what makes Jewish mothers so lamentable, laughable, and lovable. Comedienne Judy Gold and playwright Kate Moira Ryan seamlessly weave actual interviews with Jewish mothers across the United States together with memories from Gold's childhood and her own experiences as a Jewish mother in order to create a performance piece that explores it all: from rugelach to rabbis, matzoh to marriage, Ann Landers to Anne Frank, and guilt to G-D.

Judy Gold in 25 Questions for a Jewish Mother, Ars Nova, New York, NY. "...fiercely funny, honest and moving." Photo: Carol Rosegg —The New York Times

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A Bright Swarm of Beetles | BUY Don Zolidis Drama | Full-length 6 males, 4 females | 10-40 actors possible

Based on actual events, A Bright Swarm of Beetles follows the breathtaking career of the greatest writer of the Soviet Union: Mikhail Bulgakov. From his beginnings in the Red revolution as a nearly homeless opium addict to the dizzying heights of liter- ary stardom, Bulgakov struggles to write in a world fraught with madness and betrayal. After his work is denounced and banned, Bulgakov is offered a chance at redemption by the sinister dictator Joseph Stalin—but he must choose between his art and his survival. A wild, fast-paced journey through fifteen years of one of the darkest periods of modern history.

A Commedia Christmas Carol | BUY Matthew R. Wilson Holiday Comedy | Full-length 4 males, 1 female, 4 either | 7-40 actors possible

Ebenezer Scrooge gets a Commedia dell'Arte makeover in this zany take on the classic Dickensian tale of redemption. On Christ- mas Eve, a Pantalone Scrooge receives a visit from his old friend Paul Reisman, Michael Sprouse, Joel David Santner, and Julie Garner in Dottore Marley, launching a series of quirky visitors and unfore- A Commedia Christmas Carol, Faction of Fools Theatre Company, Wash- seen capers. Masks, acrobatics, and holiday cheer abound in this ington, DC (2012). Masks: Waxing Moon Masks. Photo: Second Glance madcap physical romp. Photography.

"A Commedia Christmas Carol crackles and amuses with abandon...high-spirited Crazytown | BUY revelry...emotional depth." —Jane Horwitz, Jonathan Rand The Washington Post Comedy | Full-length 2 males, 2 females | 4-71 actors possible

Consider the Oyster | BUY Crazytown is a low-tech evening of comedy designed to be per- David MacGregor formed by a cast of four, but expandable to over 70 actors. Take a tour of the most messed up town in America, from the police in- Comedy | Full-length terrogation room where the nicest guy in town is issued a strange 2 males, 3 females | 4-5 actors possible ultimatum, to the elementary school for a heated political debate on critical issues like tater tots. Welcome to Crazytown, where our When Gene breaks his leg after proposing to girlfriend Marisa, he motto is: Welcome to Crazytown. begins to feel some odd changes. It turns out the oyster shell that the doctor left in his leg to assist with his healing is causing him to Current Economic Conditions | BUY slowly transition into a female—just the way an oyster does. Can Don Zolidis Gene learn to live his life as a different gender, and will he—or she—be able to feel the same for his fiancee?Consider the Oyster Comedy | Full-length is a funny and surprising exploration of gender and our change- 3 males, 3 females | 6-12 actors possible able human nature. After losing her low-level job in the publishing industry, 26-year-old "Consider the Oyster is David MacGregor's Lily has no choice but to move back in with her well-meaning but terrific new comedy... Some smart neurotic parents. A series of disastrous interviews and her parents' strict house rules have Lily feeling more like a troubled teenager producers have an off-Broadway 1,000-plus than an employable young woman—and the Justin Beiber posters performance hit ahead of them." in her old bedroom aren't helping. Will she find a job before she —Theatermania loses both her sanity and her dignity?

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Bryan Pridgen, Mary Lucy Bivins, Eugene Wolf, and Dan Folino in Elvis Has Left the Building, Barter Theatre, Abingdon, Virginia (2011). Photo Courtesy of Barter Theatre.

Elvis Has Left the Building | BUY crafting of the holiday parade float. But under the surface of this pleasant gathering, the women find themselves grappling with V. Cate and Duke Ernsberger sexuality, betrayal, and their own hard and fast notions of right and Comedy | Full-length wrong. In this ode to the complicated undercurrents of Midwestern 3 males, 2 females | 5 actors possible morality, you'll meet Marty, Luce, Char, Arletta, and Doodee—five women who face the tests life presents to them with laughter, love, and a lot of fake snow. It's December 20th, 1970, and Elvis Presley has disappeared. No one, not even his wily manager, "The Colonel", knows of his where- "A rare and wonderful accomplishment... This abouts. But the Colonel is all shook up because he has racked up is just plain excellent theatre; great characters, a secret debt—and with the King himself missing, the only way to pay it off is to find an Elvis impersonator within 24 hours. Hijinks engaging script, generous humor and ensue as the Colonel takes desperate measures to replace a man compelling conflict." —Chicago Stage Review who is irreplaceable, all while keeping the prying eyes of a nosy reporter at bay and figuring out what happened to the real Elvis. How We Got On | BUY "Unpretentious fun!" —Lexington Herald-Leader Idris Goodwin Coming of Age Drama | Full-length 2 males, 2 females | 4 actors possible Float | BUY Patricia Kane Hank, Julian, and Luann are three talented, determined suburban Comedy/Drama | Full-length teens coming of age in the 1980s. Dreaming of fame and fortune in 5 females | 5 actors possible the new Hip-Hop music scene, they must overcome cultural isolation, familial dysfunction, and ruthless rivalries to make the music that de- The industrious members of the Budapest Women's Club (pro- fines their lives. A sultry DJ spins their stories with her own meta-the- nounced "Bu-DAP-est") come together for an annual tradition: the atrical perspective in this contemporary ode to the roots of rap.

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The Lost Boy | BUY Ronald Gabriel Paolillo Drama | Full-length 4 males, 3 females | 7-18 actors possible

Despite finding success and fame as a writer, James M. Barrie is dissatisfied with his work and his life. He returns to his hometown in Scotland to visit his mother, who still blames him for the long- ago death of his older brother in a skating pond. Haunted by the tragic accident and his mother's harsh words, James slowly begins to confront his family's tragic past with the help of an unexpected friendship and his own gift for storytelling. This fictionalized account of the birth of Peter Pan will warm the hearts of audiences everywhere who remember the magic and mystery of The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up.

"An important and entertaining work." —Bob Heisler, The Journal News

Love at First Bite | BUY Jodi Picoult, Jake van Leer, and Ellen Wilber Musical Comedy | Full-length 11 males, 17 females, 7 either | 35-48 actors possible

A new school and a new girlfriend: things are looking good for teen vampire Drake. Except, of course, that his sweetheart's mom is not only the school principal—she's also a vampire hunter. Can Drake outwit Principal Stake and Lucy's vengeful ex-boyfriend? Jeff Berg and Joseph Lee Gramm in The Lost Boy, Helen Hayes Theatre Only with the help of new friends like an exchange student named Company, Nyack, New York (2005). Frank N. Stein and Scrappy, the unusually hairy basketball player with a thing for howling at the moon. With a hilarious cast of misfit characters and catchy songs, Love at First Bite is a monstrously The Lily's Revenge | BUY good time. Taylor Mac and Rachelle Garniez Play with Music | Full-length 3 males, 4 females, 25 either | 32-100 actors possible A Perfect Likeness | BUY Daniel Rover Singer An uprooted Lily falls in love with a blushing bride, much to the Comedy/Drama/Historic Fiction | Full-length dismay of The Great Longing Deity, a malicious stage curtain hell- bent on spreading nostalgia and institutionalized narrative. Tasked 2 males | 2 actors possible with becoming a real man in order to wed its beloved, the Lily attempts to hijack the story and create its own kind of narrative. Reclusive writer and photographer Charles Dodgson (also known What follows is an epic dismantling of theatrical norms and an as "Lewis Carroll") invites celebrity author Charles Dickens to his inspiring, raucous ode to storytelling in all its myriad forms. Part Oxford home to pose for a portrait. Dickens is so intrigued by the Noh play, part musical, part verse play, part dance-theater, part whimsical Alice's Adventures in Wonderland that he accepts. What silent film, and part party, The Lily's Revenge is a one-of-a-kind ensues is a baring of two creative souls, the one private and fas- extravaganza of theater, love, and community. tidious, the other boisterous and irreverent. As Dodgson struggles to capture a "perfect likeness" of Dickens, Dickens craftily pries "In its bravery, scope, creativity, extremity into Dodgson's personal life to get a handle on one of the most and sheer generosity of spirit, The Lily's curious men he has ever met. The result is a hilarious and reveal- Revenge, to my mind, surpasses any ing conversation between two quirky, fascinating, and completely American theater in New York this year. different men. [Taylor Mac] is one of the most exciting theater artists of our time." "So lovely and entertaining that you want it to —Adam Feldman, Time Out New York be true." —Lynn Felder, Winston-Salem Journal

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Play Dates | BUY Sam Wolfson Comedy | Full-length 2 males, 2 females | 4-11 actors possible

Love is hard at any age. In Kindergarten, five-year old Sam falls for Stacey, a tough Girl Scout who wants to be a cowboy when she grows up—just like he does. But Stacey eventually breaks Sam's heart, and instead of growing up to ride the range, he becomes a jaded radio show host. As "Dr. Love," Sam (not-so-secretly) pines for the long-lost Stacey, and dishes out cynical advice to frustrated couples like Mike and Katie, whose relationship has grown stale after 5 years together. When Mike and Katie cross paths with a grown-up Stacey in a TGI Fridays, she is thrust back into Sam's life with hilarious and touching results. Romeo & Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending, Capital Fringe "Highly recommended." —LA Weekly Festival, Washington, DC (2010). Photo: Joe Flood.

Pride and Prejudice: A Romantic Romeo & Juliet: Musical | BUY Jon Jory and Peter Ekstrom Choose Your Own Ending | BUY Musical Comedy | Full-length Ann Fraistat and Shawn Fraistat 6 males, 8 females | 14-22 actors possible Comedy | Full-length 4 males, 2 females | 6-14 actors possible Jane Austen's timeless love story is given new life in this faithful and fresh musical adaptation. Strong-minded Elizabeth Bennet is What if Romeo had stayed helplessly in love with Rosaline instead not out to find a husband, and the snobbish Mr. Darcy certainly of Juliet? Or if Mercutio and Tybalt hadn't died...but had gotten to- wouldn't be her first choice. But first impressions are not always gether instead? In this Shakespearean take on the "Choose Your what they seem, and soon both Elizabeth and Darcy must look Own Ending" model, the audience casts votes throughout the per- beyond their pride to discover their true feelings. When talk of formance to determine which course true love will take; ultimately marriage is everywhere and family expectations are high, can deciding whether everybody lives or everybody dies. With eight these two overcome their prejudices to make a more meaningful dramatically different possible endings, this isn't the tale of star- connection? A lively score and moving songs add richness and crossed lovers that you read in high school. An irreverent, madcap warmth to this classic story of wit and romance. reimagining of Shakespeare's most beloved romance.

"Whip-smart and hilarious... A fantastic, Pride@Prejudice | BUY unexpected comedic gem." —Fiona Zublin, Daniel Elihu Kramer The Washington Post Comedy | Full-length 2 males, 3 females | 5 actors possible Six Characters in Search of an Author Steve Moulds | BUY Watch Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy fall in love all over again— this time filtered through the world of the internet. Modern voices Comedy/Drama | Full-length interject and build on this classic love story in the form of blog 4 males, 4 females, 2 either | 10-13 actors possible posts, chat room discussions, quotes from film adaptations, and even letters from Ms. Austen herself to create a delightfully post- Six fictional characters, abandoned by their creator, invade are- modern view of 19th century England. Written for five actors to hearsal in progress and demand to be brought to life by a new au- play every role, Pride@Prejudice is a hilarious and moving hom- thor. But the characters' existential agenda collides with the more age to Jane Austen's most beloved novel, as well our love affair lighthearted ambitions of these theatre artists, whose open rehears- with reading. al "audience engagement event" becomes darkly entangled with the characters' tragic story. This intimate adaptation of Luigi Pirandello's "I can't think of another new work staged in absurdist classic foregrounds the comedic contrast between melo- Columbus in my 24-plus years as a Dispatch drama and the contemporary sensibilities of the acting company— critic that has displayed so much promise or all the while asking us to consider just what we believe to be real. polish... This play seems destined to be seen and celebrated across the country." "Fresh, insightful and a great deal of fun." —Michael Grossberg, Columbus Dispatch —Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune

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It's 1848, and Edgar Allan Poe is just coming off the spectacular suc- Ishaq and Zeblyan are the last remaining Jews in Afghanistan. cess of "The Raven." Unfortunately, it's only earned him a grand total They share the only remaining synagogue that has not been de- of nine dollars. So when a wealthy dowager commissions him to write stroyed by the Taliban. They share a mission to repopulate the her a poem for the vast sum of one hundred dollars, he leaps at the Jewish community in Kabul. But they also hate each other. Can chance. Only problem: the man who shows up to write the poem isn't this Middle Eastern odd couple commit to one incredible act of Poe, he's Poe's mailman, and he's on a quest to woo the dowager's faith to keep the diaspora alive without killing one other? A modern spinster niece. Playing Poe is harder than it looks, though, especially vaudeville full of schtick, sorrow, and survival. when your mustache keeps falling off, the teenage grand-daughter of the house is lusting after you, and Poe's arch-nemesis, Rufus Gris- "An uproarious comedy with a twist of faith. wold, just happens to be dropping by to settle old scores. A freewheel- Through a humorous story and unforgettable ing, door-slamming farce with a touch of the macabre. characters, playwright Seth Rozin poignantly explores issues of faith, commitment and perseverance that keeps audiences laughing Toil and Trouble | BUY and thinking long past curtain call." Lauren Gunderson —The Jewish Ledger Black Comedy | Full-length 2 males, 1 female | 3 actors possible The Walk Across America for Underemployed friends Adam, Matt and Beth are desperate to Mother Earth | BUY beat the recession any way they can—like combining forces to Taylor Mac and Ellen Maddow take over a small island in South America. But when a fortune cookie tells Matt that he will rule and Beth gets a little too handy Comedic Play with Music | Full-length with a dagger, plans go awry. This hilarious adaptation of Shake- 6 males, 4 females, 2 either | 10-12 actors possible speare's Macbeth pits friend against friend, ambition against fate, pet-sitting against miniature vicuna mogul-dom. Political activism meets bedazzled drag show in this story about two young friends who flee their suburban upbringing in "Real America" to join a ragtag group of activists on a protest march from The Two Musketeers! | BUY D.C. to Nevada. On the road, the group attempts to establish a no- madic utopia, but the marchers continually find themselves divided Jon Jory by cancer, unrequited affections, indecision, and a secret hunger Comedy | Full-length for power. Whimsically blending commedia dell'arte influences 4 males, 2 females | 6 actors possible with song and dance, The Walk Across America for Mother Earth explores how the idea of community sometimes fails to unite us, When a small acting company eliminates one Musketeer from their and sometimes brings us together in the most unexpected ways. production of The Three Musketeers due to budget constraints, the "With this new play, a sweet and satiric rest of the cast must sally forth bravely with only two. The classic tale of d'Artagnan and his sword-fighting friends is presented by a meditation on the beautiful folly of idealism, hilariously self-aware cast of six, with romance, wit, and derring-do Taylor Mac establishes himself as a writer to spare. This low-tech, high-comedy adaptation is a witty send-up and artist of serious consequence." of Alexandre Dumas' beloved adventure. —Charles Isherwood, The New York Times

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Apocalypse or Bust | BUY Davis Alianiello Comedy | One-act 5 males, 2 females, 12 either | 9-19 actors possible

It's doomsday, and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse have been called into action. Unfortunately, it turns out they're completely unprepared and have accidentally killed their horses. Luck- ily, the four contentious personalities (Conquest, War, Famine, and Death) meet Phyllis—a recently deceased Midwestern woman and their human liaison for the End of Days. Together, they hitch- hike their way to Earth, but various forgotten cultural figures keep delaying their progress. Will the Horsemen reach their destination in time to cause the end of the world?

Brief Interviews with Internet Cats Patrick Greene | BUY Comedy | One-act 7 males, 9 females, 6 either | 8-30 actors possible

Celebrity interviewer Ian McWorthy has a dream line-up for tonight's episode of the World Wide Window: a veritable litterful of felines whose internet antics have catapulted them to fame. In this fast- paced series of hilarious interviews, Ian uncovers the story behind Tuffy's first dramatic foray into a cardboard box, learns just what Rebecca Hurd and Brian Duranleau in Apocalypse or Bust, Edinburgh makes Nelson the Grouchy Cat so very, very grouchy, contends Fringe Festival, Edinburgh, Scotland (2012). Photo: Teresa Pearson. with the diva-like antics of Kitty Boo Boo and her entourage, and so much more. So stay tuned! Things are bound to get a little...hairy.

10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Finding Love In The 21st Century Apocalypse | BUY Jim Garvey | BUY Don Zolidis Comedy | One-act Comedy | One-act 3 males, 3 females | 6-30 actors possible 3 males, 5 females, 2 either | 8-24 actors possible With over 7 billion people currently living on planet Earth, finding love in the 21st century can be more than a bit daunting. When a It's the end of the world and hordes of rampaging zombies are about boy named Oliver and a girl named Elliot miraculously hit it off on to kill you. What do you do? Try your hand at kung fu against the un- their first-ever online date, their friends push them to date other dead? Attempt to reason with creatures that would rather eat brains people before committing. But after a series of dates that includes than use them? Turn to this handy and hilarious guide to survive the a guy who treats marriage as something to check off his bucket apocalypse! (Hint: sacrifice the weak is step number one.) list and a girl who livestreams her entire life, they realize they may have had it right the first time. But is it too late for these star- crossed lovers to reconnect? All I Really Need to Know I Learned The Future Is In Your Tiny Hands From Being a Zombie | BUY Jason Pizzarello Jonathan Rand | BUY Comedy | One-act Dramedy | One-act 2 males, 2 females | 4-11 actors possible 2 males, 2 females, 14 either | 5-45 actors possible Kaitlyn Parker and Eddie Grantwood square off for the political de- In today's chaotic, challenging world, we often don't know where bate of the century: student president of their elementary school. to turn for help. Little did we know that life's most valuable lessons No topic is off-limits, be it cootie prevention, kickball roster justice, lie within the undead. Finally, zombies engage us with musings on or—most critically of all—tater tots. Presented in a town hall for- life, death, and everything in between. They show us that brains mat, all the hard-hitting questions come from fellow students in aren't everything...you are what you eat...and what doesn't kill you the audience. Who will win? America's very freedom hangs in the makes you...more alive. balance. Or at least a decision as to whether Santa is real.

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All I Really Need to Know I Learned From Being a Zombie, Irondale Ensemble, Brooklyn, New York (2013).

Jane Eyre | BUY Two friends discover an incredible online simulator that shows them exactly what their future college roommate experiences Gerald Murphy will look like. Yet after a few minutes with a raging narcoleptic, a Comedy | One-act world-class procrastinator, and a children’s party clown, it may be 4 males, 6 females, 1 either | 9-11 actors possible time to seriously consider living alone.

The classic Gothic tale of Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre is deconstruct- No More, Mister Nice Guy | BUY ed and transformed into a comedy in this hilarious and fast-paced one- act. Despite a gruesomely unhappy younger life, Jane ascends from Jonathan Rand lowly orphan to governess at the strange and mysterious Thornfield Comedy | One-act Hall, where she falls for the brooding master of the house. Narrated by 4 males | 4 actors possible Jane's sassy and spoiled cousins, Georgiana and Eliza, and complete with a talking dog, imaginary horses, and, of course, the agonizing Meet Sheldon Grimes, the nicest guy in town. Unfortunately for pain of unspoken love, you've never seen plain Jane like this before. Sheldon, in this town, being a nice guy is prohibited by law. But after a crash course from a pair of local police detectives and a May the Best Fan Win | BUY very special specialist, Sheldon might just learn to be a jerk fast Jonathan Rand enough to stay out of prison. Comedy | One-act 4 males | 4 actors possible Orientation | BUY Ian McWethy Welcome to the thrilling world of watching dudes watch sports. Finally, the match-up the entire nation has been waiting for: the Comedy | One-act historic showdown between veteran slacker Donald Baxter and 10 females | 6-10 actors possible rookie sensation slacker Michael Felton. Legendary sportscasters Merv Johnson and Tim Bixby are there to break down all the exhil- Two college RAs are tasked with matching up 8 incoming freshmen arating action, LIVE from that couch by the TV. as roommates. By crafting the perfect pairings, their year could be worry-free! But if they fail, they may ruin the students' lives forever Meet the Roommates | BUY (according to a study they read, getting along with your freshman Jonathan Rand roommate means you are 80% more likely to have a productive and meaningful life). But with an extreme germaphobe, an intru- Comedy | One-act sive podcaster, an over-excited Alaskan, and other neurotic new- 8 males, 8 females | 7-16 actors possible bies, this is one assignment that deserves some extra credit.

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com SECTION 1 | NEW PAGE 11

ABOUT THIS SECTION | The source materials for the plays listed below are well-known pieces of literature or popular myths. From Jane Austen to Sophocles, these adaptations are sure to engage students and faculty in the Adaptations classroom or on stage.

Past and present collide in Ellen McLaughlin's mash-up of Soph- Professor Van Helsing and his brave comrades must hunt down ocles' classic tragedy Ajax with the modern-day war in Iraq. The and destroy the profoundly evil Count Dracula. But the Count is play follows the parallel narratives of Ajax, an ancient Greek military exceedingly resourceful, employing superhuman strength, psychic hero, and A.J., a modern female American soldier, both undone by powers, and shape-changing to confound and frustrate his antag- the betrayal of a commanding officer. Athena, goddess of war, cool- onists. Culminating in a wild and shocking confrontation between ly presides over the whole. Inspired by material collected from inter- the King of Vampires and those who would rid the world of him, this views with Iraq war veterans and their families, Ajax in Iraq explores adaptation is an action-packed, blood-soaked retelling of Bram the timeless struggle soldiers face in trying to make sense of war. Stoker's classic tale of horror.

"Ms. McLaughlin has carved out a career as BUY a playwright of fierce moral conviction." Frankenstein, A New Musical | —Anita Gates, The New York Times Mark Baron, Jeffrey Jackson, and Gary P. Cohen Musical | Full-length 7 males, 4 females, 3 either | 9-35 actors possible Anon(ymous) | BUY Naomi Iizuka With earnest ballads and soaring ensemble numbers, this compelling new musical brings the suspense and romance of the classic Drama | Full-length tale to life in a uniquely faithful, yet thoroughly innovative adaptation 5 males, 6 females | 11-35 actors possible of Mary Shelley's original novel. In his quest to discover the secret of life, Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant young scientist, creates a human Separated from his mother, a young refugee called Anon journeys of his own design that turns out to instead be a horrifying beast. through the United States, encountering a wide variety of people— This is no "Hollywood monster," but a flesh-and-blood man who, some kind, some dangerous and cruel—as he searches for his while terrifying in appearance, grows to become articulate, cunning, family. From a sinister one-eyed butcher to beguiling barflies to a and thirsting for revenge upon the creator who abandoned him. A sweatshop, Anon must navigate through a chaotic, ever-changing tragic love story and exploration of humanity, Frankenstein, A New landscape in this entrancing adaptation of Homer's Odyssey. Musical breathes new life into the world-renowned story of man and creator pitted against one another in epic battle. "Anon(ymous) is [a] stunning retelling of an epic quest." —Dominic P. Papatola, St. Paul "...brings the classic story thrillingly to life." Pioneer Press —Julie Reed, Associated Press

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More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com ADAPTATIONS PAGE 12

Hedda Gabler | BUY Christopher Shinn Drama | Full-length 3 males, 4 females | 7 actors possible

This Broadway adaptation of Ibsen's timeless drama presents a sym- pathetic, yet striking and powerful, Hedda in the classic tale of her struggle to find a means of escape from a loveless, ordinary existence. Beginning with the return from her honeymoon, Hedda finds herself bored of her husband, and longing for the days when she was free to exercise her wild and independent whims. With the return of an old flame and a proposition from an amorous judge, she begins a dangerous game, amusing herself by manipulating and destroying everyone around her in an attempt to regain control of her life.

"Shinn's new adaptation nudges Ibsen into modern passion without disrespecting him." —Newsday

Is He Dead? | BUY David Ives

Comedy | Full-length John McMartin and Tony Award winner Norbert Leo Butz in the Broadway 7 males, 4 females | 11-16 actors possible production of Is He Dead?, Lyceum Theatre, New York City (2007). Photo: Joan Marcus. Jean-Francois Millet, a young painter of genius, is in love with Ma- rie Leroux but in debt to a villainous picture-dealer, Bastien An- dre. Andre forecloses on Millet, threatening debtor's prison unless Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five Marie marries him. Millet realizes that the only way he can pay Eric Simonson | BUY his debts and keep Marie from marrying Andre is to die, as it is only dead painters who achieve fame and fortune. Millet fakes his Comedy/Drama | Full-length death and prospers, all while passing himself off as his own sister, 12 males, 3 females | 12-23 actors possible the Widow Tillou. Now a rich "widow," he must find a way to get out of a dress, return to life, and marry Marie. Based on Kurt Vonnegut's classic novel, Slaughterhouse-Five introduces us to Billy Pilgrim, a man who becomes "unstuck in "A ripely enjoyable confection! An elaborate time" after he is abducted by aliens. In a plot-scrambling display of madcap comedy that registers high on the virtuosity, we follow Pilgrim simultaneously through all the phases mirth meter and reaches especially giddy of his life. Concentrating on his (and Vonnegut's) shattering experi- comic heights!" —David Rooney, Variety ence as an American prisoner of war who witnesses the firebomb- ing of Dresden, this satirical and horrifying anti-war story carries a

unique poignancy—and humor.

It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio "The show moved me so much I couldn't speak Play (full-length version) | BUY for ten minutes after." —The Chicago Reader Joe Landry Holiday drama | Full-length Little Women | BUY 3 males, 2 females | 1-25 actors possible Marisha Chamberlain This beloved American holiday classic comes to captivating life as Drama | Full-length a live 1940s radio broadcast. With the help of an ensemble that 4 males, 7 females | 11-24 actors possible brings a few dozen characters to the stage, the story of idealistic George Bailey unfolds as he considers ending his life one fateful Under the guidance of their beloved mother, the four young March Christmas Eve. (A short version of this play is also available.) sisters—tempestuous Jo, motherly Meg, shy Beth, and spoiled baby Amy—struggle to keep their family going while Father's away "One of the best holiday shows around. This in the Civil War. In this beautifully dramatized adaptation of the is a fresh and inventive way of reconnecting classic novel, even as privation, illness, and sibling rivalry cast with a classic story of love and redemption." their shadows, each girl strives to find her true self. (A one-act —Mary Houlihan, Chicago Sun-Times version of this play is also available.)

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Forget all your dusty misconceptions about the traditions of com- Edgar Allan Poe stands alone in the flickering darkness of his mind, media dell'arte as The Love of Three Oranges, based on a sce- trying desperately to convince himself—and us—that he's not mad. nario by Carlo Gozzi, provides a wild, raucous slapstick comedy The spell he weaves brings us a highly theatrical adaptation of four that is completely retooled and revised for today's audiences. Prince tales Poe himself considered his best: "The Raven," "The Fall of the Tartaglia's life is filled with misery until an evil witch and her equally House of Usher," "The Pit and the Pendulum," and "The Tell-Tale evil henchmen curse him to search for three giant oranges. But this Heart." Enter the world of Poe and check your heartbeat at the door. quest proves more fruitful than anyone could have imagined as a once-lonely prince discovers love, friendship, and laughter when he Orestes: An Antic Tragedy | BUY encounters wizards, monarchs, and a wild narrator who isn't sure how far removed from the story he really is. Anne Washburn Drama/Comedy | Full-length Lysistrata: A Woman's Translation 2 males, 1 female, 5 either | 8-12 actors possible BUY Drue Robinson | The Trojan war is over. Orestes and Electra have killed their moth- Comedy | Full-length er. The city wants them dead. Just when it seems like they have 14 males, 14 females | 20-40 actors possible nowhere to turn, their best friend comes up with a plan... Ironic, desperate, humorous, and highly entertaining, this potent satire on Lysistrata: A Woman's Translation is the only modern adaptation of the Oresteia myth brings this marvelous play to new life. Aristophanes' classic comedy written entirely in rhyme. Lysistrata, an Athenian woman fed up with war, rallies together the women "Anne Washburn has a way of laser-targeting of Greece to seize the Treasury, stage a sex strike, and force the her language that makes the material explode, men of each warring faction to come home and sign a truce. This even at a distance of 3,000 years." makes for a fast-paced and bawdy affair, including the pompous —Helen Shaw, Time Out New York Magistrate's antics of male domination, and the celibacy-sworn Myrrhine's relentless teasing of her sex-starved, phallus-laden Pride and Prejudice | BUY husband. Meanwhile, the Chorus of Old Men and Chorus of Old Women square off in a hilarious battle of wits and guts, ultimately Jon Jory resulting in a reunion of genders, ages, and political positions. Romantic comedy | Full-length 6 males, 8 females | 13-40 actors possible Moliere Impromptu | BUY Rinne Groff All of the wit and romance of Jane Austen's classic 1813 novel come to life in this refreshingly fast-paced and engaging new adaptation. Comedy | Full-length Finding a husband is hardly Elizabeth Bennet's most urgent priority. 7 males, 5 females | 12-13 actors possible But with four sisters, an overzealous match-making mother, and a string of unsuitable suitors, it's difficult to escape the subject. When In 1665 Versailles, the members of Moliere's Illustre Theatre have the independent-minded Elizabeth meets the handsome but enig- gathered to rehearse a new play commissioned by the King for matic Mr. Darcy, she is determined not to let her feelings triumph a performance this very night. Everything is fine, except that the over her own good sense—but the truth turns out to be slipperier script is in horrible shape, the straight man wants to leave the than it seems. In a society where subtle snubs and deceit prolifer- troupe, marital spats are ripping the company apart, the intern is ate, is it possible for Elizabeth and Darcy to look beyond his pride lobbying for a bigger part, and Mademoiselle Du Croisy can never and her prejudice, and to make the best match of all? (A one-act remember her lines. A wickedly funny look at the magic of theater, version of this play, Darcy and Elizabeth, is also available.) translated and adapted from three short plays by Moliere. "Jory, the former longtime producing director "[Moliere Impromptu] satirizes as it sashays, at Actors Theatre of Louisville and founder of slyly infusing pop-culture references even as its famed Humana Festival of New American it honors Moliere's 17th-century playwriting Plays, has crafted an exceptionally clear, achievements...it crackles with entertainment funny and moving version." and energy..." —Gina Perille, Boston Globe —San Francisco Chronicle

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com ADAPTATIONS PAGE 14

Sherlock Holmes and The Case of the Jersey Lily | BUY NOW AVAILABLE: Katie Forgette Mystery/Comedy | Full-length eScripts 5 males, 2 females | 7-11 actors possible The wit of Oscar Wilde meets the cunning of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle when Wilde brings his dear friend, Lillie Langtry, to Baker to read and print. Street. Someone has stolen the highly intimate letters Lillie ex- changed with the Prince of Wales, and now she is being black- mailed. Only Holmes can solve the case, going so far as to dis- guise himself as an early version of Lady Bracknell from Wilde's latest play, The Importance of Being Forthright, while Watson falls head-over-heels for the Jersey Lily and a wicked professor attempts to bring the Crown to its knees. Sense and Sensibility | BUY Jon Jory Romance | Full-length The Spoon River Project | BUY 8 males, 8 females | 13-16 actors possible Tom Andolora Play with Music | Full-length Sisters Elinor and Marianne find themselves captivated by two 6 males, 5 females | 10-18 actors possible very different men in this lively and dynamic adaptation of Jane Austen's classic novel. Sensible Elinor is charmed by the quiet, bumbling goodness of Edward, while passionate Marianne is In this beautifully haunting play based on Edgar Lee Masters' swept off of her feet by the dashing and mysterious Willoughby. Spoon River Anthology, the former residents of Spoon River ex- But when Willoughby's scandalous past and Edward's secret fian- amine life and the longing for what might have been. As the citi- cee come to light, the sisters are forced to rely upon themselves zens reflect on the dreams, secrets, and regrets of their lives, they and one another to weather their heartache—and learn that when paint a gritty and honest portrait of the town as all of their pasts sense and sensibility meet, love can't be far behind. are illuminated.

The Spoon River Project, Hallberg Theatre, Cal State Fullerton, Fullerton, CA (2012). Directed by Mark Ramont; Department Head Bruce Goodrich. Lighting Design: AmyAnne Tafolla; Scene Design: David Corigliano; Costume Design: Theona White.

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com ADAPTATIONS PAGE 15

thrown in prison? Moliere's classic comedy satirizes religious hy- pocrisy, blind piety, and deceit, and this adaptation captures these themes in playful irreverent rhyme. (A short version of this play is also available.)

The Three Musketeers | BUY Linda Alper, Douglas Langworthy, and Penny Metropulos Drama | Full-length 17 males, 7 females | 14-40 actors possible

Alexandre Dumas' classic novel gets an adventurous update as this tale of friendship and romance follows young D'Artagnan as he arrives in Paris in seek of fame, fortune, and a place among the King's Musketeers. He is quickly taken under the wing of Athos, Aramis, and Porthos, and D'Artagnan soon finds himself helping the Queen hide an affair with a British Duke and making enemies with the Cardinal Richelieu. When D'Artagnan's love, Constance Bonacieux, is kidnapped out of revenge, D'Artagnan and the rest of the Musketeers must work together to rescue Constance and restore honor in the kingdom.

"For sheer action-packed, beguiling Sense and Sensibility, Orlando Shakespeare, Orlando Florida, (2013). Photo melodrama...there's nothing like this latest by Tony Firriolo. version of the oft-dramatized Musketeers." — San Francisco Examiner

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Troy Women | BUY Mr. Hyde | BUY Karen Hartman Noah Smith Drama | Full-length Science fiction thriller | Full-length 3 males, 9 females | 12-20 actors possible 5 males, 3 females | 8-21 actors possible Hecuba and the women of Troy mourn and celebrate their city on Dr. Henry Jekyll is a brilliant scientist frustrated by dull "respect- the morning after its destruction. Together, they grieve the deaths able" life in 1888 Victorian London. He creates a formula to un- of their husbands and children as they await their fates at the leash his inner bestial nature, transforming him into the brutish but hands of their Greek captors. With modern elements adapted into oddly compassionate Edward Hyde. Hyde lives the high life while Euripides' classic, Troy Women is a chilling, brutal, but accessible Jekyll's middle-aged normalcy continues—until Hyde's passions portrait of women during war. begin to turn up a body count. This intimate, easy-to-stage version of Robert Louis Stevenson's science fiction classic features two haunting chorus characters, who speed along the action, play Vintage Hitchcock: A Live Radio many supporting roles, and speak to Jekyll as the voices in his head, spurring him toward triumph and tragedy. Play | BUY Joe Landry Tartuffe | BUY Suspense | Full-length Timothy Mooney 3 males, 2 females | 2-30 actors possible Comedy | Full-length Spies, murder, love, and other trademarks of Alfred Hitchcock 5 males, 5 females, 2 either | 12-15 actors possible come to life in the style of a 1940s radio broadcast of the master of suspense's earlier films. With The Lodger, Sabotage and The When the religious hypocrite Tartuffe ingratiates himself into the 39 Steps, Vintage Hitchcock: A Live Radio Play is a triple feature, good graces of Orgon and his mother Mme. Pernelle, he is taken complete with vintage commercials, that recreates a daring train into their home and promised Orgon's daughter's hand in marriage chase, a serial killer's ominous presence, and a devastating explo- (even as he secretly attempts to seduce Orgon's wife, Elmire). sion through the magic of live sound effects and musical under- Everyone else in the family sees through Tartuffe's pose, and his scoring. This spooky, exciting piece is perfect for any space, large machinations and hypocrisies are eventually exposed, but is it too or small. (A one-act component of this play, The 39 Steps: A Live late to save the family from eviction and to keep Orgon from being Radio Play, is also available.)

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com Monologue Books

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More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com SECTION 1 | NEW PAGE 17

ABOUT THIS SECTION | Below you’ll find a curated selection of plays and musicals from Broadway, Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway. Challenging and provocative, these plays are examples of the compelling voices being cultivated in the New From New York York theater scene.

The 4th Graders Present an Unnamed Act A Lady | BUY Love-Suicide | BUY Jordan Harrison and Michael Friedman Sean Graney Comedy | Full-length Drama/Comedy | Full-length 3 males, 3 females | 6 actors possible 2 males, 5 females | 7 actors possible When the men of a small Prohibition-era town decide to put on When 4th grader Johnny shoots himself, he leaves behind a play a play dressed in “fancy-type, women-type clothes,” the whole as a suicide note that the kids in his class are forced to perform community is affected: gender lines blur, eyebrows raise, identities explode, and life and art are forever entangled. A thoughtful and as a memorial. As friends and bullies assume the roles of Johnny exuberant Midwestern fable about the woman in every man, the and his classmates, a heartbreaking, darkly curious story emerg- man in every woman and the power of theatre to uncover both. es, offering a glimpse into the motivation behind Johnny’s actions. Accompanied by accordion. “...an idiosyncratically clever one-act, as

precisely tooled as a Swiss music box.” —John Beer, The Village Voice Anna Bella Eema | BUY Lisa D’Amour Abraham Lincoln’s Big, Gay Dance Dramatic comedy with music | Full-length 3 females | 3-6 actors possible Party | BUY Aaron Loeb Ten-year-old Anna Bella and her hermetic mother Irene live in a Comedy | Full-length ratty trailer on the edge of town. When their trailer park is slated for 4 males, 3 females | 7 actors possible demolition because of interstate highway expansion, Irene refuses to leave. In this moment of crisis, Anna Bella creates a new girl out Illinois schoolteacher Harmony Green has told her fourth grade class of the mud behind their trailer home. This mud-girl helps Anna Bel- that Menard County’s most beloved homegrown hero, Abraham Lin- la and Irene channel the supernatural and face the life they must coln, was gay. When Honest Abe is “outed” in a reimagined Christ- live in the world outside their trailer home. A richly imagined tale of mas pageant, controversy and chaos engulf the town. As the trial of a fierce mother/daughter bond, spoken and sung by three women. the century begins, big-city reporters and Congressional candidates descend, and family skeletons are forced out of the closet. Top hats “Its beauty and its depth are almost beyond and beards abound in this hilarious, poignant, and timely look at prej- language other than its own.” udice past and present. —The Austin Chronicle

COMING SOON! 14Below: A Collection of New Plays from New York’s Downtown Theaters

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FROM NEW YORK PAGE 18

Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake) | BUY Sheila Callaghan Comedy/Drama | Full-length 2 males, 3 females | 5 actors possible

It’s Christmas, and a year has passed since the untimely death of Janice’s father. Struggling to cope, Janice is holding spiteful conversations with her dolls, and Mother is suffering from panic attacks, with only her baking skills to keep her busy. In their deteriorating Apartment that incessantly begs for repairs, their only comforts are visitations from their respective celebrity crushes—Justin Timber- lake and Harrison Ford. With the support of Justin’s affection, Janice begins to craft a plan that will mend the chasm in their lives. Mean- while, the Apartment is developing murderous plans of its own...

Glory Days | BUY Nick Blaemire and James Gardiner Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake), Moving Arts, Los Angeles Rock Musical | Full-length (2005). Photo: Paul Amendt. 4 males | 4 actors possible

A year after graduating high school, four best friends reconnect on In Darfur | BUY their old school’s football field. Will has called the boys together Winter Miller with a mission: to hack into the sprinkler system so that it goes off when the jocks who bullied them in high school take the field for a Drama | Full-length charity game. But as the guys wait for instructions on how to break 3 males, 4 females | 7-12 actors possible into the system, they quickly realize how dramatically their lives have grown apart. With a soaring pop-rock score, Glory Days is In Darfur is the provocative account of three intertwined lives at a a poignant and witty coming-of-age story about friends searching camp for internally displaced persons in Darfur. The story follows an for understanding and validation as they face the consequences aid worker’s mission to save and protect lives, a journalist’s pursuit to of growing up. deliver a “Page One” story and a Darfuri woman’s quest for safety. It is a searing story of urgency and international significance. (A portion “This charming little pop musical about of the royalties from In Darfur will be donated to an anti-genocide adolescent innocence comes from two experts organization.) Winner, “Two-Headed Challenge,” on the subject... [it] should register with legions of like-minded souls on the threshold “Winter’s play is an urgent and passionate of adulthood...” —Paul Harris, Variety response to a crisis unfolding at this moment.” —Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director, the Public Theater Goodbye Cruel World | BUY

Semyon Semyonovich has a problem: he thinks his life isn’t worth Through the eyes of a strong-willed woman comes the remarkable living. Unfortunately, everyone he knows agrees with him! But when true story of Irena Gut Opdyke and the triumphs of the human he decides to end it all, he finds himself the center of attention, spirit over devastating tragedy. 19-year-old Irena Gut is promot- urged to blame his misery on love, philosophy, and even politics. ed to housekeeper in the home of a highly respected Nazi officer When a glorious death is the most popular commodity in town, how when she finds out that the Jewish ghetto is about to be liquidated. much will a simple suicide cost? A saucy Soviet satire. Seriously. Determined to help twelve Jewish workers, she decides to shelter them in the safest place she can think of: the basement of the Ger- This rarely produced gem is a door-slamming man commandant’s house. Over the next two years, Irena uses farce wrapped inside a humanist attack on the her wit, humor, and courage to hide her friends until the end of Soviet regime... As comedies about mortality the German occupation, concealing them in the midst of countless go, this one is rather joyful. —Jason Zinoman, Nazi parties, a blackmail scheme, and even the birth of a child. Her New York Times story is one of the most inspiring of our time.

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FROM NEW YORK PAGE 19

Natalia Zvereva and Dianne Wiest in the New York Premiere of Memory House, Playwrights Horizons, New York City (2005). Photo: Joan Marcus.

time Hollywood casting director in the house, as well as his crazy Juvenilia | BUY mother (who’s also his agent) and his crazy aunt (who’s really his Wendy MacLeod mother). When one of the actors takes sleeping pills and passes Comedy/Drama | Full-length out mid-performance, and the leading lady quits, Joel’s relatives 2 males, 2 females | 4 actors possible leap over the footlights to rescue the show. Realities collide, and his family’s wild stories out-Greek the script, in a horrifically hilarious night of truth-telling. Just two actors can play all of the outland- Bored of frat parties and second-run movies, a group of college ish characters in this stripped-down, high-octane farce. friends challenge each other to have a three-way with the Chris- tian who lives next door. (“It could be the new Survivor.”) In this undergraduate world of irony and internet porn, sex is common but Memory House | BUY love is the thing that dares not speak its name. Kathleen Tolan “Cleverly written...it’s the playwright’s Comedy/Drama | Full-length way with language that does the trick, her 2 females | 2 actors possible understanding of the versatile uses these sharp kids find for the idiomatic speech of 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 their generation.” —Marilyn Stasio, Variety girl’s adoption from Russia, the rupture of her parents divorce, and the fear of leaving home break through the surface as the mother Love Child | BUY cajoles, deflects, and maneuvers around her own feelings of sad- Daniel Jenkins and Robert Stanton ness and loss. Unfolding in real time, Memory House is about a young and an older woman who are forced to grapple with the past Comedy | Full-length as they face an uncertain future. A funny and moving story about 2 males | 2-13 actors possible the complexity of living in the world today.

Joel, a neurotic, down-on-his-heels actor/playwright, is opening “This glowingly written play by Kathleen his new adaptation of an obscure Euripides comedy in a smelly Tolan may remind you of why we go to the former sausage factory in Brooklyn. Unknown to him, there’s a big- theater in the first place.” —Journal News

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FROM NEW YORK PAGE 20

MilkMilkLemonade | BUY Joshua Conkel Comedy | Full-length 5 either | 5 actors possible

Emory is an effeminate 11-year-old boy who lives on a farm with his chain smoking Nanna and his only friend, a depressed chicken about to be processed. Nanna wishes Emory would get his head out of the clouds, stop choreographing ribbon stick dance numbers, and be more like Elliot, the boy down the road with a penchant for burning things. But Emory and Elliot have a relationship—just not one Nanna would expect or approve of. With absurd, poignant dialog and brutal characterizations, MilkMilkLemonade is a bitterly funny exploration of gender, sexuality, life, death, and the human body.

“Conkel and director Isaac Butler are unafraid to go for the belly: They want you laughing, nauseated or both. It’s proof of how desperately comedy needs audacity: Here, as on your average chicken farm, only the plucky survive.” —TimeOut New York

The Pied Pipers of The Lower East Side Derek Ahonen | BUY Drama/Comedy | Full-length Max Posner and Sam Alper in punkplay, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island (2008). Set & Photo: Sara Ossana 4 males, 2 females | 6 actors possible

An extraordinary gathering of young idealists lives above a vegan Self Defense, or death of some restaurant in NYC. Billy, Dawn, Dear and Wyatt are an extended salesmen | BUY sexual family battling their fears and addictions in order to live their utopian dream. The Pied Pipers of The Lower East Side is a cel- Carson Kreitzer ebration of love and the search for human grandness—and what Drama | Full-length happens when bohemian paradise begins to crumble. 3 males, 5 females | 8-24 actors possible “Brings to mind the vitality that distinguished Seven white men have been found dead along I-95 in Florida. the early Off-Off Broadway work of artists A prostitute is arrested and charged with their murders. The po- like Sam Shepard only a generation ago.” lice say she’s a serial killer. She claims seven separate acts of —The New Yorker self-defense. Inspired by the true story of Aileen Wuornos, Self Defense, or death of some salesmen is a whirlwind seven acts in 95 minutes. The play is fast and furious, shocking and funny, and punkplay | BUY at its center, a portrait of a very complicated human being. She is complex, charismatic, dangerous, damaged, full of love and an- Gregory S. Moss ger; above all else, she is alive. An investigation of capital punish- Comedy/Drama | Full-length ment, destitution, violence against (and by) women, and whether 3 males, 1 female, 2 either | 4-6 actors possible a prostitute is considered a person under our justice system, Self Defense gives a long, hard look at an America most of us don’t want to admit exists. A history of America in the 1980s, an idiosyncratic genealogy of punk rock music, and a personal narrative of growing up as an “The play moves like lightning, cutting outsider, punkplay is a mix tape tribute to the excesses and ener- through a series of brief scenes that illuminate gy of adolescence. Mickey, a thirteen-year-old suburban misfit, is the story in puzzle-piece fashion...smart and befriended by an angry runaway named Duck. Together, the boys attempt to reinvent themselves using punk rock, but as reality surprisingly funny... Insightful, engaging, threatens to crash in on them, their fabricated world of amped-up witty, earnest...Self Defense is socially- music and shocking band names becomes just as oppressive as conscious drama at its best.” the society they’re desperate to reject. —Brooke Pierce, TheaterMania

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FROM NEW YORK PAGE 21

It’s a Friday night in 1995 and Monday morning homeroom is a Barb finds out that Buddhist monks in Thailand only own eight million miles away. Six over-stimulated, under-supervised high things—and wonders if that is all she wants. She starts giving school students are gathered in Margot’s basement to meet her away her things but her husband Bob keeps buying her new ones. mysterious boyfriend from summer camp—though none of them Donna wants Carla Carla to marry her, but Carla Carla doesn’t like have even seen a picture of him and he has yet to show up. As the that Donna smokes. Nick meets a shark at the aquarium—they go teens keep themselves busy with rounds of party games, the night on a date to the beach and Nick tries not to sleep with the shark gives way to stolen kisses, malicious gossip, and broken hearts. too fast. Plus dream sequences. Plus a wedding. This heartbreaking, hilariously real play showcases the absurd and terrible ecstasy of being young in America. “Bock tells his fairy tale in a surreal idiom that shows wit and imagination. Working “Wildly charming... Spot-on teen dialogue. with a loose-limbed structure of episodic The show paces itself as parties do, with what- scenes, [he] focuses on cute characters caught should-we-play-next aimlessness punctuated up in winsome gay love stories deriving by sudden moments of abruptly adult pain.” considerable charm from their oddball —Helen Shaw, Time Out New York humor.” —Marilyn Stasio, Variety

Kia Clark has dreamt of Marisol Feliciano since the start of the This live comic book anthology contains three irreverent comedies school year, but always assumed that she was staunchly hetero- that hilariously skewer well-beloved genres. Hard-boiled paranormal sexual (like everyone else in their neighborhood). While supporting detective Jake Misco takes on the case of a mysterious stranger who Marisol through a health crisis, the two share a forbidden kiss that is haunted by her dead husband; a Cold War-era crime-fighting duo starts a fulfilling—but challenging—romantic relationship. Strain- struggles to save America from the throes of Communism while ques- ing to keep their involvement a secret from their conservative tioning their own principles; and a teenage warrior princess named Tina mothers and their gay-bashing classmates, harassment from even must fight evil Zombie cheerleaders and the tedium of French class. their closest friends escalates, forcing Kia to choose between her newfound sexuality and societal acceptance. roger&tom | Coming Soon “Ms. Hutchinson has a sharp ear for Julien Schwab dialogue...and shows clearly the web of Comedy/Drama | Full-length prejudice and hostility woven by peers and parents.” —The New York Times A fast paced, mind bending, quasi romanti-tragi-dramedy that obliter- ates the fourth wall before building it back up again. Penny is Penny. But her ex-husband Richard is actually William. And Roger? Well, he’s just here to watch his brother’s play roger&tom. Or is he?

Trevor | Coming Soon Nick Jones Comedy/Drama | Full-length

Inspired by true events, Trevor is a subversive comedy about fame, success, and the lies we tell ourselves in order to keep people from taking away an erratic, 200-pound chimpanzee. At the center of this hilarious and heart-wrenching play are two individu- als fighting against a world unable to understand their love: Trevor, a chimpanzee who once performed in commercials with the likes of Morgan Fairchild, and his owner Sandra, who swears he would Seven Minutes in Heaven, HERE Arts Center, New York City (2010). Photo: never hurt a fly...at least not on purpose. A moving exploration of Adrienne Campbell-Holt family, flawed communication, and humanity.

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com SECTION 1 | NEW PAGE 22

ABOUT THIS SECTION | Covering the classics as well as new plays, this section lists plays that feature strong female leads. From Lysistrata to Nora, and everything in between, the lead roles in these plays are perfect for Female Leads college-age women.

A man moves to write the great American novel. A woman moves A contemporary adaptation of Ibsen's A Doll's House that sheds to Alaska to start a new life. Babies, wild dogs, komodo dragons, a fresh new light on Nora's struggle to reclaim herself. In the tony and hula dancers abound in this play about finding your tribe in a suburbs of Connecticut, Nora's children are cared for by a Jamai- world gone haywire. can nanny, her husband's best friend is in love with her, and her Anne of Green Gables | BUY stifling marriage is crumbling. Nora also has a secret, the revela- tion of which irrevocably sets her life on a new course. Peter DeLaurier Comedy/Drama | Full-length Exit, Pursued by a Bear | BUY 3 males, 8 females | 11-13 actors possible Lauren Gunderson When aging brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert send Revenge Comedy | Full-length to the orphanage in Nova Scotia for a boy to help them on the 2 males, 2 females | 4 actors possible 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 Nan has decided to teach her abusive husband Kyle a lesson. six years, this romantic, hot-headed, and energetic girl wins their With the help of her friend Simon (acting as her emotional—and hearts and turns the stodgy, rural Canadian community into a bright world of "kindred spirits." This swift yet theatrical adaptation actual—cheerleader) and a stripper named Sweetheart, she tapes of the classic novel is an all-ages crowd-pleaser. Kyle to a chair and forces him to watch as they reenacts scenes from their painful past. In the piece de resistance, they plan to cov- Dog Act | BUY er the room in meat and honey so Kyle will be mauled by a bear. Through this night of emotional trials and ridiculous theatrics, Nan Liz Duffy Adams and Kyle are both freed from their past in this smart, dark revenge Post-apocalyptic comedy | Full-length comedy. 3 males, 3 females | 6 actors possible "Gunderson's script not only makes each Post-apocalyptic wilderness was never funnier. Follow the adven- character adorably quirky but engenders tures of Zetta Stone, a traveling performer, and her companion Dog empathy for all four as well. This show (a young man undergoing a voluntary species demotion) as they contains enough offbeat and grisly—no pun wander through the former northeastern United States. Zetta, Dog intended—humor that the Bard's immortally and their little troupe are on their way to a gig in China, assuming they can find it...and survive the journey. A theatrical, darkly comic funny line is a fitting title." variation on the classic doomsday genre, with five original songs. —The Week Magazine

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More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FEMALE LEADS PAGE 23

Finger Foods: An Evening of Short Plays | BUY Nina Shengold Comedy/Drama | Full-length 3 males, 5 females | 8-45 actors possible

These seven short comedies and dramas provide a lightly surreal romp for actors, who play everything from ex-boyfriends in a police lineup (Forty to Life), to abandoned suitcases (Emotional Baggage), to four women of uncommon zen wisdom (Lives of the Great Waitresses). Together these pieces serve up a satisfying assortment of life experiences that are sometimes mysterious, sometimes hilarious, and always surprising.

Heddatron | BUY Elizabeth Meriwether Comedy/Drama | Full-length 6 males, 4 females, 2 either | 10-14 actors possible

A pregnant housewife is abducted by robots and taken to the rain- forest and forced to perform Hedda Gabler by her robot captors. Meanwhile, her family is back home in Michigan trying to find her, and Henrik Ibsen is in Norway attempting to write Hedda Gabler, as Strindberg taunts him. A hilarious and savage journey to freedom.

"Strangely moving... Achieves true, and truly original, theatrical transcendence... Magical... Brings to mind the heady fall down the rabbit hole Hiding in the Open, History Theatre, St. Paul, Minnesota (2010). that begins Alice's Adventures in Wonderland..." —Ben Brantley, The New York Times

Kate's sister Anne, a ravishing beauty, wakes up one morning to An adaptation of Sabina Zimering's memoir, Hiding in the Open tells the true story of two Jewish sisters from Poland who assume discover a sheep's head between her shoulders. Thus begins the false Catholic identities and work in a Nazi hotel during World War journey of the two sisters in their quest to return Anne's true head to II. Living in constant fear of having their identities revealed, the its proper place. The journey is sidetracked, however, by Kate's ob- sisters bravely face danger and the challenges of growing up while session with a slim raver-boy who has a nasty little addiction. Based keeping their heritage a secret. Thrilling and heart-warming, this loosely and lyrically on the British fairy tale "Kate Crackernuts." story of survival and teenage courage examines the bonds of family and human kindness in the face of great atrocities. Kid-Simple: a radio play in the flesh Jordan Harrison | BUY Iphigenia and Other Daughters | BUY Comedy | Full-length Ellen McLaughlin 3 males, 3 females, 1 either | 6-11 actors possible Drama | Full-length 1 male, 9 females | 9-21 actors possible Moll, a girl who invents things, wins the science fair with a machine for hearing sounds that can't be heard. But when a shapeshifting This three-play cycle is a modern retelling of the fall of the House Mercenary steals the invention (and her heart), she must embark of Atreus. It follows the children of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, on a quest to save noise as we know it. Accompanied by the last siblings who are both players in the family tragedy and victims of boy-virgin in the eleventh grade, Moll crosses chasms and rafts riv- it. The cycle of blood and vengeance seems inescapable until the ers into a world where sound is always more than what meets the final reunion of a lost sister and brother brings the bloody family ear. A quirky fable of innocence and experience, featuring live sound saga to its mystical and unlikely end. effects, mutinous onomatopoeia, and a host of woodsy temptations.

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FEMALE LEADS PAGE 24

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In this affecting, delightful adaptation of Alcott's classic novel, the Marriage is an inevitable fact of life for the five Bennet sisters— four spirited March sisters—Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy—endeavor Jane, Elizabeth, Mary, Kitty, and Lydia. With the family estate en- to sustain their family in the absence of their father, who is away tailed away to their closest male cousin, their only hope to advance fighting the Civil War. Led by their devoted Marmee and accompa- in life is to find a rich and single man—and one has just arrived in nied by music from the period, each girl struggles to overcome her the form of the very handsome and very well-off Charles Bing- own limitations to become the best version of herself, even in the ley. The kindhearted and beautiful Jane seems poised to make a match, but must contend with her overly zealous mother, his midst of disease, jealousy, and poverty. snobbish sister, and a slippery social ladder. And when Bingley's taciturn friend Fitzwilliam Darcy shows an interest in the opinionat- Lysistrata | BUY ed and spirited Elizabeth, the situation becomes more complicated Ellen McLaughlin than either of them expect. The fire and wit of Jane Austen's classic 1813 romance shines through in this vibrant new adaptation. Comedy | Full-length 7 males, 13 females | 13-26 actors possible Quake | BUY This fresh, fast-paced comedy, inspired by the Aristophanes play, Melanie Marnich follows Lysistrata, an Athenian housewife, who calls for the wom- Comedy/Drama | Full-length en of Greece to help end the Peloponnesian War. She proposes 3 males, 3 females | 5-17 actors possible a radical plan: all Greek women must refuse to engage in love making until the men see reason, lay down their arms and come Lucy is on a cross-country mission, looking for the love of her life. home to lay down with their wives in peace. The women agree to Her journey takes her across the American landscape, through hi- make the sacrifice and all hell breaks loose as men wander the larious and eccentric relationships in which time and emotion pass country in an agony of unsatisfied lust. Will Lysistrata and her crew in a warped instant. When her quest becomes intertwined with accomplish what the politicians could not? that of a quirky female serial killer (an astrophysicist gone bad), the landscape changes once again, as they cross state lines and Miss Julie | BUY faultlines, exploring the geography of the human heart.

Craig Lucas Schoolgirl Figure | BUY Drama | Full-length Wendy MacLeod 1 male, 2 females | 3 actors possible Comedy | Full-length 1 male, 4 females | 5-11 actors possible In this new adaptation of Strindberg's classic drama, mistress of the house, Miss Julie, and her servant play a dangerous game of seduction in an effort to relieve themselves of their trapped exis- Welcome to a high school where the in-crowd is the thin-crowd. The death of the uber-anorexic Monique, queen of the Carpenters, tences. Using everything in their arsenals from sex to money, the kicks off a scramble for the crown, and the school's hottest hottie, two battle each other in a struggle for power and escape. The Bradley. Renee, with the help of her bulimic best friend Patty, is determined to claim the crown by out-foxing her rival Jeanine "Craig Lucas' mission in adapting and taking her body back to its pre-puberty contours. Let the diet Strindberg's Miss Julie was to remove the wars begin! fussy Victorian attitudes that have hampered previous translations and are not faithful to "Playwright Wendy MacLeod's bitter black the original. He has succeeded admirably in comedy is...sick. It's perverse. It's irreverent. this new version." —Victor Gluck, Backstage And it's hilarious." —The Washington Post

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Asa Somers and Lia Aprile in Tallgrass Gothic, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky (2004). Photo: Harlan Taylor.

The longing, isolation, desire and fear of the classic Jacobean In the wake of their devastating defeat, the women of Troy, all now tragedy The Changeling are transported to the Great Plains of the widows, wait on the beach below the ravaged city to be claimed Midwest in this haunting tale. At the center of the story is Laura, by their Greek conquerors as slaves and concubines. Though the whose need to leave her small, rural home and controlling hus- war is over, exile and degradation lie ahead and the fates of these band is ignited when she falls in love with a man who offers her women, including Queen Hecuba, her daughter Cassandra, the escape and a future. But in this place where history and its ghosts doomed, mad prophetess, and her daughter-in-law Andromache, populate the landscape, Laura's hunger for a new beginning sets widow of the great Hector, are still in the balance. off a violent chain of events that leads her not out of town, but to a profound (and terrifying) understanding of her true nature.

"In Tallgrass Gothic, her lyric and strangely engrossing play...Marnich has sharply drawn The Big Book of Moliere some characters who may give the denizens of Wisteria Lane a run for their scandals... But the Monologues: play is most exciting because of Marnich's promise as a writer. She has found a poetic, natural Hilarious Performance cadence for characters, and this heightened Pieces from Our Greatest language is part of what makes Eugene O'Neill and August Wilson enduring figures." Comic Playwright —Rohan Preston, Minneapolis Star Tribune

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ABOUT THIS SECTION | Listed in this section are our most popular one-acts for college-age actors and directors. From a modern adaptation of Antigone, to scenes from the wackiest dates you’ve ever seen (Check Please), the short plays below are perfect for study, in One-Acts class performance, or studio shows.

13 Ways to Screw Up Your College Interview | BUY Ian McWethy Comedy | One-act 6 males, 7 females, 3 either | 4-16 actors possible

When two college recruiters at a prestigious university need to fill one last spot to keep their jobs, thirteen eccentric, dimwitted and slightly-insane high school seniors are eager to come in for an interview. What seems like a simple task turns into a nightmare when the applicants turn out to be a reality TV star, a practicing vampire, an amateur magician, and others that are much, much worse. Each applicant’s interview hilariously illustrates what NOT to do at a college interview.

15 Reasons Not To Be in a Play Antigone Now, Dallas Theater Center (2003). Alan Haehnel | BUY Comedy | One-act “This deeply stirring adaptation of Sophocles’ 14 males, 14 females, 12 either | 15-67 actors possible Antigone ...proved the starkest, most electrifying and inspired piece the company has produced in This is a play about not being in a play, ironically expressed years... It’s great for kids to see ancient theater through a hilarious series of monologues, duets, and ensemble scenes. From early traumas involving a glory-seeking elementary connect so electrifyingly with their own world. school teacher to possible disturbances in the global climate, 15 But adult audiences deserve to see this superb Reasons Not To Be in a Play keeps the audience guessing just experiment as well.” —Dallas Morning News what scenario will be next.

The Auditioners | BUY Antigone Now | BUY Doug Rand Melissa Cooper Comedy | One-act Drama | One-act 3 males, 11 females | 3-14 actors possible 1 male, 3 females | 4-11 actors possible This audition was supposed to be simple: prepare one classical In the midst of a bombed-out city still feeling the aftershocks of monologue and one contemporary monologue. But when this war, the rebellious and intense Antigone defies her uncle to bury challenge is taken up by a beauty queen, a stand-up comic, a her disgraced brother. This contemporary response to the myth slam poet, an Esperanto-speaking mime, and a parade of other of Antigone brings powerful, modern prose to an ancient and uni- crazies—most of whom insist on doing the same Lady Macbeth versal story. piece very badly—what’s a director to do?

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Check Please | BUY Jonathan Rand Comedy | One-act 7 males, 7 females | 4-26 actors possible

Dating can be hard. Especially when your date happens to be a raging kleptomaniac, or your grandmother’s bridge partner, or a mime. Check Please follows a series of blind dinner dates that couldn’t get any worse—until they do. Could there possibly be a light at the end of the tunnel?

Down Came the Rain | BUY Burgess Clark Drama | One-act 2 males | 2 actors possible

Eighteen-year-old Michael and his fourteen-year-old brother Brucie— who has been considered mentally “slow” since birth—venture out on a camping trip together. Brucie’s never-ending curiosity becomes increasingly unbearable to Michael, especially when the questions Matt Craig and Lucy Luedeke in Boy Meets Girl: A Young Love Story, involve the death of their mother. Down Came the Rain is a touching, Huntington University, Huntington, Indiana (2012) sad, and ultimately hopeful exploration of two vastly different broth- ers, and how they navigate the delicacy of family and truth.

Last year, the largest cash prize in Bake Off history was awarded A defense lawyer cross-examines a woman during her testimony to a man; this year, one female contestant will make sure that the in a sexual assault case—and in doing so, horribly distorts her male entrants get their just desserts... perfectly innocent walk in the park.

“Top honors go to Sheri Wilner’s Bake Off, BUY a devastatingly funny riff on the Pillsbury Kissing Scene | Bake-Off, in which contestant Rita, furious Carl Martin that a man won the previous year’s grand Comedy | One-act prize for the first time, goes to any lengths to 1 male, 1 female | 2 actors possible keep well-meaning Paul from repeating the other man’s win.” —CurtainUp An hour before acting class, Ashley and Richard meet to rehearse their scene. It calls for them to kiss five times, but whenever they get Boy Meets Girl: A Young Love Story to the first kiss they break character to argue—about Richard’s late- ness, about Ashley’s attitude, about who chose this scene and why. BUY Sam Wolfson | Does one of them have a secret crush on the other? They’ll have Comedy | One-act to rehearse the entire scene to find out—if they can make it that far. 1 male, 1 female | 2-4 actors possible Meet the Roommates | BUY Follow Sam and Katie as they go through the trials and tribulations of Jonathan Rand love at the tender age of five in this hilarious and sweet take on young romance. From the decision to check the “yes” box on their boyfriend/ Comedy | One-act girlfriend contracts to more serious conversations about past nap part- 8 females, 8 males | 7-16 actors possible ners, Sam and Katie find themselves entering into a genuine relationship, all in the midst of worrying about the spelling bee, selling Girl Scout Two friends discover an incredible online simulator that shows cookies, and figuring out what they want to be when they grow up. them exactly what their future college roommate experiences will look like. Yet after a few minutes with a raging narcoleptic, a world- “A non-stop 30-minute laughfest!!!” —The Los class procrastinator, and a children’s party clown, it may be time to Angeles Times seriously consider living alone.

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The Most Massive Woman Wins | BUY Madeleine George Comedy/Drama | One-act Discover adaptations 4 females | 4 actors possible of your favorite Challenging, brutal and hilarious, four women of various shapes and sizes sitting in the waiting room of a liposuction clinic explore children’s books. their perceptions of body image. The women reveal their experiences dealing with their weight issues through monologues, short scenes, and even schoolyard rhymes. From painful childhood memories to frustrations with the opposite sex, these experiences both haunt and empower these women as they imagine their way to a new vision of themselves as beautiful and whole. The Siren Song of Stephen Jay Gould “...a thought-provoking glimpse at the anguished consequences for women trying to Benjamin Bettenbender | BUY conform to society’s often unattainable image of Comedy | One-act female beauty.” —Martin Hernandez, LA Weekly 1 male, 1 female | 2 actors possible

A man lands on a woman after trying to throw himself off a bridge in a botched suicide attempt. On the quiet riverbank, as he attends Poof! | BUY to her minor injury, he learns that she too was planning to end her Lynn Nottage life over a broken heart. An argument ensues over the relative se- Comedy | One-act riousness of their respective losses, the nature of existence, and 2 females | 2 actors possible the harmful effects of the essays of biologist Stephen Jay Gould. Will this unexpected collision lead each of them back to the dark When a housewife comes to the end of her rope with her abusive place where they started, or will they start anew? husband, she doesn’t expect him to spontaneously combust. Now she has a pile of ashes on the floor, and a life to reclaim. The Whole Shebang | BUY Rich Orloff The Role of Della | BUY Comedy | One-act John Wooten 1 male, 1 female, 4 either | 6 actors possible Comedy | One-act 3 females | 3 actors possible This play asks the question, “What if the entire universe was just some nerd’s science project?” In a classroom in a dimension far be- An eager young actress has her eye set on the role of Della, but can yond ours, a student striving for a “Master of the Universe” degree she convince a cold, sarcastic director that she’s right for the part? gives an oral presentation on an unusual thesis—the creation of the A riveting and riotous look at the contemporary audition process, heavens and the earth. Two professors and a dean interrogate the giving new meaning to the term “stealing a scene.” student and his two visual aids, a “typical” man and woman. (This play can also be performed as part of the full-length collection.) “Wooten has come up with a very witty ending. Give the playwright a candy bar—and “It’s a witty, whimsical, charming one-act make sure it’s an O. Henry.” —Peter Filichia, play.” —New York Daily News The Newark Star Ledger SUPERHEROES: With Great Power The Seussification of Romeo Comes Ordinary Responsibilities BUY and Juliet | Ian McWethy | Coming Soon Peter Bloedel Comedy | One-act Comedy | One-act 6 males, 6 females, 12 either | 12-24 actors possible For superheroes, saving the world is tough, but the time spent away from work is tougher. The Hulk has to do taxes, sidekicks A whimsical reinvention of Shakespeare’s tragic love story, com- form a support group, and Batman goes stir-crazy without enough plete with rhymed couplets, creative wordplay, and fantastical ma- crime to fight. Superheroes is a funny, fast-paced series of vi- chines—similar to something Dr. Seuss might have come up with gnettes that explores how the caped crusaders deal with life in if he ever had his way with the script... street clothes.

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com SECTION 1 | NEW PAGE 29

ABOUT THIS SECTION | Playscripts offers a wide selection of anthologies from some of today’s most renowned theater companies, festivals, and playwrights. From modern classics to the best 10-minute plays, these anthologies are perfect for classroom Anthologies study and performance.

24 by 24: The 24 Hour Beast, and a group of traveling freak show performers who reveal a deep humanity underneath their crowd-drawing deformities in BUY Plays Anthology | Freakshow, among other uniquely inventive stories. For over a Will Eno, Tina Howe, decade, Clubbed Thumb has had its finger firmly planted on the David Ives, Terrence pulse of new work, and these plays prove it.

McNally, Adam Rapp, California Scenarios | BUY Theresa Rebeck, Luis Alfaro, Rick Coca, Joann Farias, Anne and more Garcia-Romero, Jose Cruz Gonzalez, and In 1995, a group of writers, directors and Octavio Solis actors gathered on Manhattan’s Lower East Side for what was supposed to be Rich in history, fantasy, triumph, and longing, this collection of short a one-time-only event: write, direct, pro- plays captures aspects of Latinos in California, from a group of duce and perform new plays within the women waiting in the night to be swept away by their bandit-boy- span of 24 hours. More than a decade friend (Desert Longing or Las Aventureras by Anne Garcia-Romero), and just over 300 plays later, The 24 Hour Plays have been pro- to a young monk who finds introspection in the form of a skeleton duced on Broadway, in London, Los Angeles, Chicago and across (The Seven Visions of Encarnacion by Octavio Solis). Inspired by the globe. Isamu Noguchi’s sculpture garden “California Scenario,” each play reveals a complex view of the California landscape as it has never Funny, Strange, been seen before. Provocative: Seven Plays from Clubbed Great Short Comedies, Thumb | BUY Volumes 1-6 | BUY Adam Bock, Sheila Lucy Alibar, Callaghan, Erin Courtney, David Lindsay-Abaire, Lisa D’Amour, Rinne Werner Trieschmann, Groff, Ann Marie Healy, Daryl Watson, and more and Carson Kreitzer Fast and funny, these volumes con- This anthology includes seven plays tain short comedies that will split your produced by Clubbed Thumb, the side as you roll down the aisle bust- Obie Award-winning downtown New ing a gut. From four young business- York City theater company that burst onto the new play scene in men handling delicate negotiations 1996. Edgy and thought-provoking, each play is funny, strange, over whether to like girls (Controlling and provocative in surprising, widely varying ways—including an Interest by Wayne S. Rawley),to a apartment that both adores and despises its inhabitants in Crumble blue-collar family coming to terms with their absurd prejudices (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake), a metropolitan housewife who (How We Talk in South Boston by David Lindsay-Abaire), and senses that something is watching her in 16 Spells to Charm the many more these collections will make audiences laugh till it hurts.

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Great Short Plays, Random Acts of Volumes 1-10 | BUY Comedy: 15 Hit One- Liz Duffy Adams, Trista Act Plays for Student Baldwin, Taylor Mac, Actors | BUY Elizabeth Meriwether, Julia Brownell, Ian John Walch, and more McWethy, Ed Monk, Qui Nguyen, Rich Orloff, With a diverse blend of themes, styles, Jonathan Rand, Don and cast requirements, Great Short Plays contain extraordinary comedies Zolidis, and more and dramas. From the oldest living human with exactly ten minutes left before Home of the most popular one-act the end of the world (The Last Woman plays for student actors, Playscripts, on Earth by Liz Duffy Adams), to a marriage reconciled with puppet Inc. presents 15 of their very best therapy (The Rebirth of Beautiful by John Walch), these collections short comedies. From a blind dating debacle to a silly Shake- deliver a little bit of everything in half the time. speare spoof, from a fairy tale farce to a self-hating satire, this anthology contains hilarious large-cast plays that have delighted Humana Festival: thousands of audiences around the world.

The Complete Plays Snapshot | BUY (2006-2013) | BUY Tanya Barfield, Lynn Nottage, Dan O’Brien, Idris Goodwin, Lucas Craig Wright and more Hnath, Greg Kotis, Lisa Kron, Allison Moore, A. A photograph captures and documents a single moment in time and space—a snapshot of history, of a reality bounded by the pho- Rey Pamatmat, and more to’s frame. But what lies outside, beyond, behind the photograph? And what stories, memories, or associations does an image of Each anthology brings together all ten place inspire? In this multi-writer project from Actors Theatre of scripts from the year’s Humana Festival Louisville, a diverse assortment of talented playwrights encounter of New American Plays, staged at Ac- and transform Mount Rushmore, South Dakota, 1969, a compel- tors Theatre of Louisville. These unique ling image of the monument by renowned photographer Lee Fried- compilations feature an exceptional ar- lander. Their thought-provoking scenes and monologues range ray of work by some of the most exciting from delightful comedy to utterly serious tragedy, each approach- new voices in the American theatre, including Adam Rapp, Anne ing the photo’s themes through a new lens. Washburn, A. Rey Pamatmat, Sharr White, Adam Bock and many more. These diverse compilations of plays are must-haves for anyone searching for challenging, captivating, and bold theater.

Naked Angels Issues Projects: Collected Plays | BUY Lee Blessing, Warren Leight, Kenneth Lonergan, Craig Lucas, Jon Robin Baitz, and more

Since 1989, New York City’s Naked Angels has collaborated with some of America’s most beloved playwrights to create exciting, topical plays for their time-honored tradition: The Issues Project. The short plays within this collection respond to resonant themes from gun control to the Act a Lady (Humana Festival 2006: The Complete Plays), Actors Theatre environment, faith to human rights. of Louisville, Kentucky (2006). Photo: Harlan Taylor.

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Ten-Minute Plays from the Guthrie Theater Volumes 1-3 | BUY Joan Ackermann, Carson Kreitzer, Melanie Marnich, Kira Obolensky, and more

Since its founding in 1963, the Guthrie Theater of Minneapolis has pioneered the American regional theater movement, bringing to life both the traditional classical repertoire and a diverse body of new works. The ten-minute plays in this series were commissioned by the theater for its Guthrie Experience summer acting conservatory. Each volume includes plays by outstanding playwrights, every one expanding the possibilities of the ten-minute form.

The Civilians: An Anthology of Six Canard, Canard, Goose? (The Civilians: An Anthology of Six Plays), Plays | BUY HERE Arts Center, New York City (2002). Photo: Leslie Lyons. Neal Bell, Steven Cosson, Michael Friedman, Anne Washburn, and The Civilians Twas the Night Before | BUY Collected for the first time in one volume are six inventive theater Christopher Durang, Len Jenkin, Roger pieces created by Obie Award-winning theater company The Civil- ians. Based on the creative investigation of actual experience, and Rosenblatt, Elizabeth Swados, and often intertwined with experimental cabaret, their pieces are bold- Mac Wellman ly theatrical and always unique—from a story about a Hollywood movie and a lost flock of geese (Canard, Canard, Goose?); to a A collection of five Christmas-themed short plays from New York tale about things lost and found, charting a musical landscape of City’s acclaimed Flea Theater. From a family sitting down to loss (Gone Missing); to a dark ride through the landscape of Amer- read “’Twas the Night Before Christmas” with unexpected results ican public culture, asking a thorny question: how do we know (Not a Creature Was Stirring), to elves rapping about bloody films what we know when everyone in power seems to be lying? ((I Am) (Holiday Movies), to an irreverent take on the story of Jesus’ birth Nobody’s Lunch). (Away in the Manger), these comedies and dramas take on the holiday season like never before. Thornton Wilder’s Playlets: Short, Too Much Light Makes the Baby Short Plays for 3-5 Persons | BUY Thornton Wilder Go Blind (30 plays in 60 minutes): 90 Plays from the First 25 Years This anthology by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Thornton Wild- of the Neo-Futurists er is a collection of twenty-two very short plays, three of which are published here for the very first time. These snapshots of the Greg Allen | Coming Soon creative spirit at play explore a variety of complex characters that range from the ordinary to the biblical, the haunted to the mysti- The longest-running show in Chicago history, Too Much Light Makes cal. From the tale of a conflicted composer with a strangely- fa the Baby Go Blind comprises 90 1-minute plays from the Neo-Fu- miliar tune stuck in his head (The Song of Maria Bentedos), to turists, the ensemble that dares to attempt “30 Plays in 60 Minutes,” a pair of newlyweds who find themselves bizarrely affected by letting the audience choose which plays will be performed, and in the color of their hotel’s tea room (Flamingo Red: A Comedy in what sequence. Comedy, tragedy, social consciousness, and me- Danger), all these tales—many told with great wit and humor—ask ta-theatrical mayhem are all represented in this unique collection the thought-provoking questions of mortality, morality, and faith that presents the ultimate challenge: how many plays can you per- that Thornton Wilder is famous for asking. form once the 60-minute timer starts to tick?

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More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com SECTION 1 | NEW PAGE 32

CAST OF CHARACTERS BRIAN, 18 years old | MELISSA, 18 years old | DARLA, 18 years old | EM, 18 years old

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Sleep was first performed at The Stella Adler Studio of Acting Teen Rehearsal and Performance Program on August 13th and 14th, 2010 in New York City. It was directed by Melissa Ross and starred Shaina Ferguson, Minou Clark, Hugh Smith and Annie Rasiel.

It was subsequently produced by Rattlestick Playwrights Theater as part of TheatreJam June 2, 2013 in New York City. It was directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel and starred Emma Galvin, Pico Jogalla, Emily Perkins, and Marie Polizzano.

PLEASE NOTE: To perform this play you must obtain performance rights at playscripts.com. Sleep By Adam Szymkowicz

ADAM SZYMKOWICZ’s plays have been produced throughout the U.S., and in Canada, England, The Netherlands, Germany and Lithuania.

Published full length plays include Deflowering Waldo, Pretty Theft, Food For Fish, Hearts Like Fists, Clown Bar, The Why Overhead, and Nerve.

Adam received a Playwright’s Diploma from The Juilliard School’s Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program and an MFA from Columbia University where he was the Dean’s Fellow. Szymkowicz is a two-time Lecomte du Nouy Prize winner, a member of the Dramatists Guild, Writer’s Guild of America, Primary Stages’ Dorothy Strelsin New American Writer’s Group, the MCC Playwright’s Coalition and was a founding member of the Ars Nova Play Group.

His plays are published by Dramatists Play Service, Samuel French, Playscripts, Original Works Publishing, Indie Theater Now and featured in New York Theatre Review ’07 and ’09, NYTE’s Cino Nights, and numerous Smith and Kraus books.

He has written articles for Howlround, New York Theatre Magazine and The Brooklyn Rail and has interviewed over 600 playwrights on his blog. He also has a web series called Compulsive Love and a comic strip called Toys In My House Comics. For more, www.adamszymkowicz.com.

(BRIAN, MELISSA, DARLA and EM speak to the audience from DARLA. Where am I? separate spaces. Their speech may overlap.) BRIAN. On Saturday— DARLA. Where am I? DARLA. On Saturday— BRIAN. All I want is to be taken seriously. Is that so much to ask? EM. On Saturday— MELISSA. I just— It doesn’t make sense. MELISSA. It was a day like any other. I woke up early to run. EM. The truth is, there are a limited number of happy people in the BRIAN. I woke up at ten. world at any given time. EM. I woke up at noon. DARLA. Where am I? DARLA. I didn’t wake up. MELISSA. I just…give me a minute. (Beat.) BRIAN. Look at me. See me. BRIAN. On Monday— EM. The more people that are aware of how many unknowable EM. On Monday— things there are, the more people are unhappy. But of course more MELISSA. On Monday— people are being born all the time. The number of happy people on EM. They told us. the earth is a constant. I can show you the math. (A shift.)

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FREE PLAY | Sleep, by Adam Szymkowicz PAGE 33

BRIAN. I am her best friend. Why would they not tell me? No, I’m BRIAN. But I love you. not her boyfriend. But that’s just something we decided. As adults. DARLA. See, why’d you have to go and say that? Don’t diminish my friendship with her. Don’t diminish me. You BRIAN. I didn’t have to. could have told me. Sure I was surprised not to hear from her over DARLA. Then don’t. I think we should just be friends. Don’t you? the weekend and was surprised that she didn’t answer the phone or BRIAN. I guess. text me back, but it wasn’t alarming. I didn’t think it was alarming. DARLA. Good. That’s a relief. EM. Darla and I haven’t been friends in a while. And there are lots BRIAN. Yeah. I mean— of reasons for that, none of them entirely clear. And it makes me DARLA. I’m glad we decided this like adults. sad, but that’s how it is. Still when they had an assembly to tell us BRIAN. (Defeated:) Yeah. about her, it hit me hard, and when they said you could go talk to DARLA. What are you having? I’m going to have a grilled cheese. the school psychiatrist if you wanted, I found that I wanted. Or (BRIAN gets up from the table. DARLA lies down on the table, in something. I want something. her coma. BRIAN talks to MELISSA in the present.) MELISSA. I don’t want to talk to some ass clown school shrink. MELISSA. You’re not going to the shrink, are you? What does she know about Darla? What could she possibly know? BRIAN. I don’t know. We could go to the hospital. Who the hell even falls into a coma for no reason? It just doesn’t MELISSA. Is she even in there? happen. I mean she’s eighteen, not eighty. She didn’t have head BRIAN. I don’t know. trauma or a drug overdose she just went to sleep and kept sleeping. MELISSA. It doesn’t make any sense. Someone explain it to me! BRIAN. I know. (Beat. No one explains it.) MELISSA. Just last week we were waiting for a ride after cross BRIAN. Last week. At the West End Diner. country and she said— (BRIAN sits at a table with DARLA.) DARLA. (Sitting up and moving into MELISSA’s space:) Melissa, BRIAN. Do you know what you want? I don’t know. DARLA. I don’t know. MELISSA. What? BRIAN. Because— DARLA. I just can’t handle the weight of it any more. DARLA. Stop. MELISSA. The weight of what? BRIAN. No, I was just going to say— DARLA. There are so many terrible things happening in the world DARLA. Please, Brian. Sometimes it’s just so tiring. at any given time. Mass murders, destructions of virgin forests, the BRIAN. What is? creation of more plastic, people dropping out of school, not enough DARLA. You have to be sick of it too. drinking water, oppression, home schooling, unemployment, BRIAN. Sure. (Beat.) Wait, what? focus groups, yellow number five, the push to ignore science, the DARLA. Just all the stupid things we’re expected to do in a normal lack of understanding, diseased animals, unsafe farming, the lack day. Everything wants something from you, all the time. I’m just so of justice, general assholery. exhausted of the whole thing. MELISSA. Oh. BRIAN. I don’t know what you mean. DARLA. You know what I mean. DARLA. Doesn’t it bother you? BRIAN. I don’t want anything. MELISSA. I try not to think about it. DARLA. That’s exactly wrong. You’re a good example. I mean you DARLA. It makes me so tired. and I are great. MELISSA. Yeah. I’m going to get a bottle of water. You want one? BRIAN. Yeah. DARLA. Melissa, don’t be part of the problem. DARLA. What we have is great. (DARLA lies back down.) BRIAN. Right. MELISSA. (To BRIAN:) Do you think I’m part of the problem? DARLA. But you want something more. BRIAN. No. I mean, you didn’t put her in a coma. BRIAN. Well— MELISSA. I didn’t, did I? It’s not my fault. DARLA. You know it’s true. You’re going to ruin our friendship. BRIAN. No. It’s my fault. Youchave to stop. (EM approaches.) BRIAN. Stop what? EM. Um, hi. Sorry, um. You guys are friends with Darla, right? DARLA. Stop sending that kind of energy my way. It’s only causing MELISSA. What do you care? me pain. BRIAN. (Scolding:) Melissa. (To EM:) Yeah we are. BRIAN. Pain? EM. I used to be friends with her. DARLA. Irritation! BRIAN. Oh. Cool.

More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com FREE PLAY | Sleep, by Adam Szymkowicz PAGE 34

EM. I was just wondering. Are you going to visit her? In the MELISSA. Yeah. hospital, I mean? EM. The smell. MELISSA. Yeah. I think so. MELISSA. Yeah. (Pause.) (They get to DARLA.) BRIAN. You want to come? BRIAN. I’ve never seen her so calm. EM. Can I? MELISSA. It’s unnatural. MELISSA. Do you have a car? EM. I wonder what she’s thinking. EM. Sort of. BRIAN. Should we say something? (They go to her “car.” EM opens the doors.) MELISSA. What? Like a eulogy. EM. Sorry it’s such a mess. Just put all that crap on the floor. BRIAN. No, like, “Hi?” I don’t know. (The three get in EM’s car.) (EM steps up.) EM. St. Thomas’? EM. Darla, it’s Em. Hi. I know we haven’t talked in a while but we BRIAN. Yeah. used to be good friends. And I miss you. I hope that when you (EM drives. They are all silent.) come out of this we can be friends again. If you want. I promise to MELISSA. This sucks. not ignore you in the halls and I will be there for you, in various BRIAN. Yeah. ways, if you want me to… Just so you know. So…OK. MELISSA. I mean, what the hell, Darla!? (EM kind of steps away and BRIAN steps up.) (Silence.) BRIAN. Hey, it’s me. Hey. How’s it going in there? You feel rested? BRIAN. How did you know her? (Beat.) Sorry. I know I’m part of the problem. So, sorry about that. EM. When we were kids, we played a lot. What can I say? I love you. I can’t help it. You’re different. You see (DARLA gets up and becomes her younger self. She reveals dolls things other people don’t see. I wish I was more like you. Come which she puts to sleep in various places on the stage.) back, will you? I promise I won’t bother you. I’ll try not to. EM. She lived right down the street from me so we would play. She (BRIAN steps back. MELISSA’s turn.) liked to put all the dolls to sleep. One by one, we would put them MELISSA. Listen, I’m sorry so much of the world sucks. I am. But all down. And she would always say— dropping out doesn’t help anyone. It makes it a little harder for the DARLA. Goodnight. Enjoy your rest. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. world when you’re not around. So wake up, OK? Stop screwing Sleep. around. I’m serious. I’ll kick your ass if you don’t come out of that EM. Then she would do it again. And again. Until all of the babies coma right now! were asleep. (Does DARLA shift slightly or do they just act like she did?) (DARLA does this.) EM. What was that? BRIAN. I bet she was real cute when she was a kid. MELISSA. Did she move? I think she moved. (The others say nothing. They arrive at the hospital. DARLA lies BRIAN. Darla? back down. They get out of the car, go to her.) (They watch her. DARLA doesn’t move. Blackout.) EM. I hate hospitals. END OF PLAY

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