SHORT AND MEDIUM LENGTH PLAYS
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|
Play |
Title |
Author |
Script Price |
Price per Perf |
Length |
|
Twosome |
1A/02/001 TWO OR THREE GHOSTS |
Michael Law |
£2 |
£12 |
45 mins |
|
Twosome |
1A/02/002 WALL TO WALL |
Charles Ford |
£2.50 |
£18 |
50 mins |
|
Twosome |
1A/02/003 EMPTY AND READY |
David Elliot Brown |
£1.75 |
£10 |
30 mins |
|
Twosome |
1A/02/004 SALLY FACES UP |
David Elliot Brown |
£1.75 |
£10 |
30 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/001 THE LONGEST DAY |
Don West |
£1.50 |
£8 |
20 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/002 POLES APART |
|
£1.75 |
£10 |
30 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/003 THE PARK BENCH |
Chris Vervain |
£2.50 |
£18 |
50 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/004 OUT OF THE PURPLE DOOR |
|
£1.75 |
£10 |
25 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/006 WHAT EVERYBODY NEEDS IS
.. |
Chris Vervain |
£2.50 |
£18 |
50 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/007 MOTHERS HAVE NINE LIVES |
Joanna Norland |
£2 |
£12 |
45 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/008 THE FAN |
Jan Harris |
£1.75 |
£10 |
30 mins |
|
Threesome |
1A/03/009 JUST ONE OF THOSE NIGHTS |
David Elliot Brown |
£2.00 |
£12 |
45 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/001 SOMETHING NASTY IN THE
WOODSHED |
Bruce McLaren |
£2 |
£12 |
45 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/002 GAME, SET AND MATCH |
|
£1.50 |
£8 |
20 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/003 IN A SMALL HOTEL |
|
£1.75 |
£10 |
25 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/004 GLIMPSED IN PASSING |
|
£1.75 |
£10 |
30 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/005 DIFFERENT WORLDS |
|
£2 |
£12 |
40 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/006 FAT FRED |
Charles Ford |
£2 |
£12 |
45 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/007 A PEBBLE'S RATTLE |
Jane Beeson |
£3 |
£24 |
70 mins |
|
Foursome |
1A/04/008 THE BOW-LOX FILE |
Charles Ford |
£2 |
£12 |
40 mins |
|
5 Characters |
1A/05/001 THREE TRYING
GRAND-DAUGHTERS |
Bruce McLaren |
£2.50 |
£18 |
60 mins |
|
5 Characters |
1A/05/002 WITNESS FOR THE DEFENCE |
Don West |
£2.50 |
£18 |
50 mins |
|
5 Characters |
1A/05/003 THE STING IN THE TAIL |
Bruce McLaren |
£2.50 |
£18 |
60 mins |
|
6 Characters |
1A/06/001 INSIDE STORY |
|
£1.75 |
£10 |
30 mins |
|
6 Characters |
1A/06/003 SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME |
J.Grange, P.Vincent |
£2.50 |
£18 |
50 mins |
|
6 Characters |
1A/06/004 BURLESQUE |
Jan Harris |
£2 |
£12 |
40 mins |
|
6 Characters |
1A/06/005 GAIETY GIRLS |
Katy Darby |
£2.50 |
£18 |
60 mins |
|
6 Characters |
1A/06/006 THORN'S HAMMER |
David Elliot Brown |
£3.00 |
£24 |
70 mins |
Short and Medium
Length Plays Descriptions
Twosomes
1A/02/001 TWO OR THREE GHOSTS
by Michael Law Scripts £2 perf £12 for one man and one woman (45 minutes)
This thought provoking play examines the complex
nature of relationships, loss of youth and memories of the past. Jack appears
to enjoy his quiet, uneventful life while Rosie is apparently bored to tears
with hers. But why is he so apparently placid and why is Rosie so lethargic?
She appears to be looking forward to the return of her long lost lover. And her
husband participates, even encourages her anticipation. But who was this lover?
A delightful play for two 'middle-aged' actors. Characters, both about 40:
Rosie, demanding, full of herself; Jack, non-descript, servile.
1A/02/002 WALL TO WALL by
Charles Ford Scripts £2.50 perf £18 for one man and one woman (50 minutes)
Beatrice is a determined old lady whose mind is
failing but who resents the intrusion of the Social Services Department. The
Assistant head of the local office is paying her a visit because all the lesser
staff have been turned away with abuse. At one level the play is a sparring
match between her determined will to remain independent and the Social Services
with their seemingly hollow promises. She has neither family nor friends and is
no longer capable of looking after herself. Characters: Beatrice, 82, obstinate
and fiery; Mr Dartington-Kew, 50's, bureaucratic.
1A/02/003 EMPTY AND READY by
David Elliot brown £1.75 perf £10 for two men (30 minutes)
The play is about two drunken vagrants out one
night in the suburbs of Edinburgh. They are hungry and thirsty and looking for
trouble. Their language is obscene and crude and they are putting on a brave
show. But when they find a body they turn out to be not so courageous. Warning:
the crude language may offend. Characters: Tom, known as Tam, and his friend
Tim are both about 30. Tom is a big bully, foulmouthed and boastful. Tim is his
little companion, who needs his protection but is seriously exploited until he
manages to turn the tables. .
1A/02/004 SALLY FACES UP by
David Elliot Brown Scripts £1.75 perf £12 for one man and one woman (30
minutes)
The play is about Sally, who is out at night,
seemingly lost. She comes across an old man who appears to know all about her
and can speak with the voices of those closest to her. She abuses him but,
through his intervention, she faces up to some awful truths about her situation
and makes the right decision. Warning: The crudity of Sally's language may
offend. Characters: Sally is a woman of about 30, alcohol dependent, violent
and abusive who has a tender side, particularly regarding her young
daughter.The secret which she has to face up to concerns her cruel and violent
man and her revenge. Eddy is very old and apparently a derelict street-dweller.
But he is an angel in disguise. He can speak with the voices of Sally's family
and her man and goes into fits when these characters take over. Once he has
persuaded her to face up to what she has done he disappears..
Threesomes
1A/03/001 THE LONGEST DAY by
Don West Scripts £1.50 perf £8 for two women and one man (20 minutes)
Two old people meet in a hotel. She is a resident,
he is 'passing through'. They should make contact but on the face of it he
seems incapable of being the person she needs. Ruth denies her old age, the
Brigadier denies his loneliness. The 'longest day' is the anniversary of her
greatest loss. The discerning audience will find this play both moving and
revealing and it provides a mature actress with an intriguing challenge in the
part of Ruth. Characters: Jenny, 20-30, cheerful and courteous; Ruth, 60-70,
strong; The Brigadier, late 70's, apparently casual.
1A/03/002 POLES APART by
At the insistence of Sandra, her teenage daughter,
Norma has taken her to the funeral of her Grandfather in a bleak northern town.
But Norma has not been back to her home town in nearly twenty years and her
strained relationship with her mother becomes increasingly evident to Sandra.
When Norma finally explodes and walks out in a huff, the youngster gradually
softens the old lady and helps to heal the rift between them. Characters: Amy,
68, northern, embittered; Norma, 38, social-climber; Sandra, 17, public school,
confident.
1A/03/003 THE PARK BENCH by
Chris Vervain Scripts £2.50 perf £18 for two women and one man (playing three
parts) (50 minutes)
Two women are sitting on a park bench. The plot is
internal and the two women may be opposing parts of one and the same psyche, or
perhaps not. In either case the intruding males are deemed in the end to be
redundant. The author clearly delights in language. When the play rambles
occasionally, it does so within defined limits, allowing touches of delicious
humour. This play is both refreshing and rewarding for it resonates with
possibilities. Characters: Minder and Laura, both women , late 30's; Man who
plays gardener, managing director and husband.
1A/03/004 OUT OF THE PURPLE DOOR
by
Tracy, dressed in stylish 'thirties' clothes is
nervously putting the finishing touches to her face while being assured she has
nothing to worry about by Doris. The man she is to meet wants nothing more than
for her to play a part. When he arrives, Stan appears harmless enough. He
certainly insists she is Didi but what is all this about inflatable dolls? And
just what does he really want of her? Quite suddenly she has had enough and
departs. Doris enters and begins to admire the dress Tracy has thrown off. 'It
suits you' says Stan. Characters: Tracy, 28, confident; Doris, 43, willing:
Stan, 59, persuasive.
1A/03/006 WHAT EVERYBODY NEEDS IS .. by Chris Vervain Scripts £2.50 perf £18 for two women and
one man (50 minutes)
This is a surreal comedy. Three people live in a
trunk. A housewife, driven by a remorseless urge to keep everything clean, tidy
and in its proper place; a girl who says she feels 'in the way' and that she
only wants to be useful and an extremely erudite professor who seems driven
almost entirely by a desire for sex. At its core it is a send-up of the female
drive towards cleanliness and order above all things - even sex. Even the
girl's 'boyfriend' turns out to be a vaccuum cleaner which the professor finds
more congenial than either of the women because it doesn't answer back. This is
a 'play with a difference', extreme 'fun' for both cast and audiences.
Characters: Housewife, Girl, Professor.
1A/03/007 MOTHERS HAVE NINE LIVES by Joanna Norland Scripts £2 perf £12 for three young women
or,alternatively,nine grown up women and three children (45 minutes)
"Being the mummy is the best part." Nine
very different women grapple with what it means to be a mother. Gina (20) goes
head-to-head with the social services bureaucracy, demanding a double buggy for
her young daughters. Margaret (36) juggles roles as a hotshot editor and a
"full time overtime" mum. Katherine will stop at nothing to secure
her daughter a place in the Exceptional Students Class. These and six other
women share their experiences in a series of comic and gritty monologues linked
by the role-playing games of schoolgirls who vie with one another for the best
part: being the Mummy, of course. (The actors playing the schoolgirls can play
the mothers too or each role may be played separately.) The monologues also
provide ideal audition material. The play was initially produced off Broadway,
New York and has received professional and amateur productions elsewhere in the
United States. The United Kingdom version has been produced in this country and
this is the version which will be provided unless you specify that you want the
US version. Characters: There are 12 parts which may be taken either by three
young women or by three children and nine adult women with ages from 20 to 45.
1A/03/008 THE FAN by Jan
Harris Scripts £1.75 perf £10 for two mature women (one a spinter, the other a
glamorous has-been) and a young man with a foreign accent (30 minutes, but
longer with songs)
Fran Scott escapes her hum-drum existence by living
precariously through the actions of her cele
1A/03/009 JUST ONE OF THOSE NIGHTS by David Elliot Brown for one woman and two men Scripts
£2.00 perf £12 (45 minutes)
The play is set in a squalid bed-sit which is
home to Tony and Huggins, two unemployed young men. They are holding Sandra
hostage in the mistaken belief that her father is a millionaire. Outside there
are explosions in the road and a fire. Sandra turns out to be a dropout like
her captors and she may be responsible for the fire outside. Huggins is
seriously hurt by an explosion and they realise that they must get out of the
building. Sandra saves the day. This is a low life (very low) comedy in which
some unlovely characters are changed for the better. Warning: There is some
very strong language, which could offend. Characters: Tony (early 30s) is an
aspiring rock guitarist with many prejudices and no talent. Huggins (early 30s)
is Tony's rather dainty companion, who loves him dearly. Sandra (early 30s) is
a feisty young woman who had a private education but is now reduced to poverty
and prostitution..
Foursomes
1A/04/001 SOMETHING NASTY IN THE WOODSHED by Bruce McLaren for
four women (45 minutes) Scripts £2 perf £12
Three unmarried sisters live together. One day
there is a fire in their woodshed and a mysterious tramp figure is burned to
death. The corpse cannot be identified. Who was he? Had he come to stir up
ghosts from the past? The youngest sister hires a private detective to investigate,
but what secrets might she reveal? The dominant Gertrude does her best to
hamper the enquiries but in the end the strange truth comes out. Characters:
Gertrude, 73, strong-willed; Daisy, 71, dominated by Gertrude; Abbie, 63, more
independent; Connie, mid 30's, hard bitten.
1A/04/002 GAME, SET AND MATCH
by
Stephanie is getting ready for an interview. The
Board have asked her to set up the whole thing and she has clearly planned some
surprises, involving various party amusements.When they come in, Stephanie,
dressed in tights and top hat, makes them do silly things, all at the crack of
her whip.At the end she orders them to leave the room, convinced she's blown
the whole thing. Martin comes back, clearly over-awed by her dominant
demonstration, to tell her she's got the job. Characters: Stephanie,
30's,surprisingly authoritative; Martin, 40's; impressed; Wendy, 30's,
automaton; Richard, 30's, also an automaton.
1A/04/003 IN A SMALL HOTEL by
Malc and Barbara are working in menial jobs in a
hotel and desperately dreaming up schemes to make money. They have hit upon an unlikely
confidence trick, where Malc will pose as a kind of guru to extract donations
from the gullible. Their first visitor, Mrs Sandersgate, falls quickly under
Malc's spell and, quite absurdly soon, is agreeing to write him a substantial
cheque, but a Mrs Collins calls to collect Mrs Sandersgate, a patient at her
mental home, and frightens Malc into giving her a donation to her charity. ;
Characters: Malc, 30's, persuasive; Barbara, 20's, naive Mrs Sandersgate, 60's,
1A/04/004 GLIMPSED IN PASSING
by
Young Elizabeth is a bit drunk when she catches
the last tube to . wherever it's going. There are only two other people on the
train, both women, and, strangely, they both have the same first name as her.
Whilst they are from three generations, they are remarkably similar. This train
is no ordinary London Transport service. The ticket collector seems also to be
both driver and steward. This turns out to be not the journey they had set out
upon but an altogether more significant event in three lives -or is it really
just one? Characters: Charity, a cheery Jamaican; Mrs Hinklebotham, elderly;
Bess, early middle age; Elizabeth, a teenager.
1A/04/005 DIFFERENT WORLDS by
Two sisters are living together in their old
age.Sarah's daughter and grand-daughter, Paula and Nancy, are paying them a
visit. Paula's husband is in prison on a trivial matter of principle and Nancy
thinks her husband is being unfaithful. Each receives help and comfort from
Florrie who, to encourage Nancy, reveals a long-kept secret about herself and
her sister's late husband. However, at the very end, when they are alone again,
Sarah springs quite a surprise on her condescending sister. Characters: Paula,
50, on edge; Nancy, 28, modern; Sarah, 75, finicky; Florrie, 78,
1A/04/006 FAT FRED by Charles
Ford Scripts £2.00 perf £12 for two men and two women (45 minutes)
'Fat Fred' is dead. A group of people who appear
to have nothing in common except their willingness to quote and discuss poetry.
have arrived for the funeral. Two are interested in serious modern works, the
other two think poetry that doesn't rhyme is rubbish. Three of them also seem to
detest someone - who may well have been 'Fat Fred'. Not surprisingly, one of
the innocent seeming ladies turns out to be a police woman on the trail of 'Fat
Fred's' murderer. At the end we think she must be on to the truth - but it is
not as simple as that. Characters: Polly, middle-aged, gossipy; Amy, refined;
Crane, well-spoken, aloof; Dick, West country accent.
1A/04/007 A PEBBLE'S RATTLE by Jane Beeson Scripts £3.00 perf £24 for three women and
one man (playing a main character plus three other small ones) (70 minutes)
Min, after reading her poem to an audience,
invites discussion. Julia, Anna and Gabe, respond but the discussion gets
nowhere and Gabe leaves. Min lives alone in their farmhouse most of the time.
Simon is away a lot and their daughter is living in France. Julia, a very
lively person who can make anything that happens entertaining, has recently
come to stay but is having an affair with a married man and goes out a lot. Min
is clearly depressed and not able to cope on her own.She meets Gabe again by
accident They talk and she invites him back to the house where Julia is angry
because they were going to have spent the evening with 'just us two' but her
lover phones and insists she goes to meet him. This leaves Min and Gabe alone
together and the inevitable happens but Min insists he goes on his way next
morning. After Gabe has finally gone, Julia comes back saying it's all over,
'Now there'll be just the two of us'. Characters: Min, 40's, quiet, reserved;
Julia, 40's, ebullient, amusing; Anna, 30's, intense; Gabe, 30's, American,
1A/04/008 THE BOX-LOW FILE by By Charles Ford £2.00 perf £12 for two men and two women
(40 minutes)
Inept Gordon and his long suffering hapless spouse
Lottie, both in their mid-fifties are, not for the first time, at rock-bottom,
both barely managing tosurvive each financial crisis which frequently appear to
crop up with alarming regularity at their drab, sorely neglected, long rented
Victorian terraced abode, now favourably located in a formerly deprived
run-down inner city area but of late, although of little consequence to the
present occupants, enjoying an outrageously inflated revival. Hard up but
unhappy, ill-mannered scruffy unemployed Gordon, who has somehow managed to
secure a part-time school crossing job, appears to sit around most of the time
waiting for something to turn up. Lottie, who has little to look forward to but
is more all about than her idle partner and prepared to take a chance on
anything that looks promising, has managed to drag Gordon along to Sundance
Villas, con merchant retirement home specialists, in the hope of picking up a
free holiday offer by playing them at their own game. Characters: Gordon, mid
50's, scruffy; Lottie, mid 50's, more lively; Kitty, young, well spoken; Dick,
young, also well spoken.
5
Characters
1A/05/001 THREE TRYING GRAND-DAUGHTERS by Bruce McLaren for five women (60 minutes) Scripts £2.50
perf £18
Isabelle, an 85 year old woman, has lived on her
own ever since her husband died during the war. Her three grand-daughters are,
suspiciously, all coming to visit her the same weekend. Their own parents died
years ago in an inexplicable motoring accident leaving Isabelle to
1A/05/002 WITNESS FOR THE DEFENCE by Don West Scripts £2.50 perf £18 for two women and three men (50
minutes)
Mark has been accused of murdering his wife. In
court his defence lawyer relies upon the evidence of Susan, personal secretary
to Mark's boss, as a character witness and upon the evidence of Mark's
neighbour, Jonathan, to prove that Mark was away when the murder took place.
But there is a lot more to Jonathan than appears at first. He knows court
procedure inside out and we gradually begin to realise that is using his legal
knowledge to manipulate the court and clearly knows a lot more about the murder
than he has reported, as Mark also gradually begins to learn. By the end we
discover that neither Mark, his wife nor the secretary, Susan, are quite what
they seem. Characters: Defence Counsel, female, mid 30's, confident; Susan, mid
20's, attractive and confident; Judge, 50's, firm; Jonathan, late 40's,
devious; Mark, 30ish, the key character; Two off stage voices.
1A/05/003 THE STING IN THE TAIL
by Bruce McLaren Scripts £2.50 perf £18 for three women and two men (60
minutes)
Jim and Kath are discussing the coming weekend
in the kitchen. He seems to be behaving a bit strangely. Jim's younger
6
Characters
1A/06/001 INSIDE STORY by
Action takes place in the recreation room of a
women's prison. Five inmates are seemingly getting on together, teasing and
ragging each other. Into their midst comes another girl, Lucy, who says when
asked she's in 'for life'. She is actually a prison officer. But there's
something strange about Lucy, when teased too much she goes off and the teaser
is told it is a year today since her husband and two children were killed in a
car accident. She had been the driver. So who is the real prisoner? Characters:
Peggy, 45, jolly; Ada, 72, sprightly; Susie, 30, attractive and nicely spoken;
Netta, 50, heavily built, Scots accent; Joan, 25, reserved, finding her feet;
Lucy, 30, firm with an underlying sadness.
6
Characters
1A/06/003 SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME by John Grange and Peter Vincent Scripts £2.50 perf £18
for six women (50 minutes)
Julie and her daughter, Emma, are about to go on
holiday. A young travel agent, Denise, has arranged to occupy the house while
they are away. But Denise is not what she seems. She is a criminal and there
are dangers. Luckily for Julie and Emma there are two ghosts in the house,
Julie's mother and grandmother. This means we have characters from four
different generations - with four different dress fashions. The ghosts know
there is a perilous situation but how can they warn the living? They always
know what's going on but cannot make contact. They have to call upon their
ghostly social worker, Mrs Crabtree, to help. There is bad news for the two
ghosts. Only by making considerable sacrifice can they save the living. But
there is a reward. The younger ghosts, Veronica, does begin to make contact of
some kind with her beloved daughter. This is a loving and humorous story
involving six women. Wouldn't we all like someone so caring to watch over us?
Characters: Celia, 63, 30's clothes; Veronica, 37, Dior style; Mrs Crabtree;
middle aged; Julie, 45; Emma, 20; Mrs Gibbins, cleaning lady, annoying laugh;
Denise, young.
6
Characters
1A/06/004 BURLESQUE by Jan
Harris Scripts £2 perf £12 for three men, two older women and a young girl (40
minutes)
Glen, a little over the hill to be impersonating
Cleopatra, makes a meagre living in the seedy clubs of Soho. His life is thrown
into turmoil when he takes pity on Hope a homeless teenager who beds down in
the Naughty Boy Club's doorway. The story involves Glen (and his asp) and young
Hope (a homeless runaway, could be from an ethnic minority group), also the
club owner and club manager, neither of them very pleasant. It is a dark comedy
in which Hope seems to
6
Characters
1A/06/005 GAIETY GIRLS by Katy
Darby Scripts £2.50 perf £18 for two men, one older woman and three younger (60
minutes)
Business is bad at the Blue Lagoon (a failing
"house of ill repute" in King's Cross). What will the ladies of the
night do to make sure they can keep their jobs and their home? The owner
remembers wistfully the opulence enjoyed by her mother, when she was a Gaiety
Girl. The owner's daughter is just back from business school but her ideas
don't seem to be working fast enough. All seems hopeless until Gary, the prodigal
son, comes home with a money-making scheme that could save the place from
closure. Only problem is, the only person he really intends to benefit is
himself. Characters: Maddie the owner (60s),Gary and Sarah her children (30s),
Tom the Doorman (60s) and two ladies of the night: Kara who is in her 30s,
Australian and streetwise and Nicki who is a 20 year old newcomer to London,
sweet but not very
6
Characters
1A/06/006 THORN'S HAMMER by
David Elliot Brown for two men, three women and an animated TV set, Scripts £3.00
perf £24 (70 minutes)
Philip Thorn is spending a weekend in a
bed-sitting room in a boarding house in Edinburgh where building work is in
progress. He is away from his girlfriend, Claudia, in Germany and wants to see
his daughter, Chloe, but is afraid to contact her mother, Morag. Thorn is an
alcoholic and is recovering from a bad night. He feels sorry for himself, is
disturbed by the builder's hammering and has nothing to comfort him but
Television and more alcohol. He is haunted by visions from the past, including
the shooting of his old friend Freddie and has fears for the future, concerning
Chloe, Morag and Claudia. He is in an abject state. Even the TV set starts
picking on him. Eventually Morag comes to see him and gives him good advice and
an explanation of how and why Freddie died. At last Thorn can relax and he
falls into a sound sleep. Warning: the language is uninhibited and very
strong,probably too strong for many theatre-goers. Characters: Philip Thorn
(30s) a failed actor, now a pitiful alcoholic Freddie (30s), his old friend,
who had more success as an actor and in life generally, but who died some time
ago in mysterious circumstances. His ghost comes to remind Thorn of old times.
Morag (40) is Thorn's first love. They were happy when they married and their
only child, Chloe, was born. But then Thorn took to the bottle and so she left
him and took Chloe with her. Telly: the TV set comes to life and argues with
Thorn; it also moves about the room. Its age and sex are not important. The
Girl in the Off Licence (20s) has a small part. The Old Lady in the off licence
(70s)has a small part which could perhaps be played by Morag. There are other
small parts (the Centurion, the Giant Bottle of Vodka and the landlady's voice
offstage) which can be played by members of the cast.