Open Forum

 View Only

  • 1.  Play ideas for next year

    Posted 07-11-2024 08:20

    I teach at a fairly small parochial high school. We just graduated a big chunk of our drama students, several of them gifted. For next year, I'm looking for a play, probably a comedy, that would 1) work well for a cast that includes many inexperienced actors, 2) has more female roles than male ones or lots of gender-flexible roles, 3) would not be likely to offend the fairly conservative audience that usually shows up to our plays.

    Suggestions?



    ------------------------------
    Cliff Dolph
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: Play ideas for next year

    Posted 07-12-2024 12:15

    "This Lite of Mine"

    Anti bullying comedy.



    ------------------------------
    Ron Matthews
    director
    ------------------------------



  • 3.  RE: Play ideas for next year

    Posted 07-16-2024 12:40

    Hi Cliff,

    I've got a few suggestions for you.  The first is that we publish five plays by Joe Calarco (https://www.theatricalrights.com/author/joe-calarco/) written specifically for high school theater programs.  They're one-acts, running an hour or less, and featuring lots of parts.  The five plays are 12 MILLION FOOTSTEPS, 295N, SMILE LINES, THE SPOKEN WORD and UNRESIGNED.  They cover lots of topics from historical pieces to current day dramas, and they're well worth checking out.

    You might also look at my comedy called JOURNEY TO THE POLES OF INACCESSIBILITY.  It has up to 15 characters and all the parts are gender flexible.  It's a fantastical, romantic comedy, with a flexible cast, that premiered last December at the Unicorn Theatre in Kansas City.  It's an epic journey around the globe to the to eight "Poles of Inaccessibility," the world's most remote places, in search of the last remnants of magic.  Sort of like a modern version of Around the World in 80 Days.  https://www.theatricalrights.com/show/journey-to-the-poles-of-inaccessibility/



    ------------------------------
    Craig Pospisil
    Vice President - TRW
    TRW - Theatrical Rights Worldwide
    New York NY
    ------------------------------



  • 4.  RE: Play ideas for next year

    Posted 07-17-2024 05:48

    Maybe a TYA show would be a good fit?  We do one every year as part of our season and it's a big hit.  Check out Beware the Jabberwork, Tinker Bell, and Choose Your Own Oz.



    ------------------------------
    Jessica Shaw
    MVHS Theatre Arts Teacher & Director
    Mount Vernon High School
    VA
    ------------------------------



  • 5.  RE: Play ideas for next year

    Posted 07-22-2024 13:32
    You may want to check out Brother's Grimm Spectaculathon and The Greek Mythology Olympiaganza both by Don Zolids. These are both a lot of fun and have very flexible casting. They were a hit with our audiences.

    Around the World in 80 Days by Mark Brown is very flexible casting (5-39 actors depending on how much you want to double). I used 8 actors, some played the same role the entire show while others had to switch roles, sometimes every scene, which was half the fun and a great challenge for the more experienced actors.

    The Rules of Comedy & Appropriate Audience Behavior are also great and may fit what you are looking for. These are both one acts but I performed them back to back with an intermission in between to make a fuller evening of performance. 

    Check Please may work for you as well. This show actually comes as three separate one acts, Take 1, Take 2 and Take 3. They can be performed separately or together in any fashion to create a full evening of theatre.

    Good Luck!

    --
    Blessings,
     

    		Jillian Lietzau | Head of Theatre Department, Registrar
    jillian.lietzau@lhsparker.org

    Lutheran High School
    (303) 841-5551 ext 200
    11249 Newlin Gulch Blvd Parker CO 80134
     www.lhsparker.org




    Original Message


Related Content