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| The Tempest by Geoff Bamber |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 9. Minimum Female roles = 2. Minimum total with doubling = 12. Minimum total without doubling = 12. No chorus. The characters preserve Shakespeare's original, which means that the Naples court is all male. It need not be cast that way. |
| Run Time | Around 40 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | A play originally written by William Shakespeare and completely altered by Geoff Bamber. (This version is in modern, humorous. English. It extends the story back in time to avoid the long exposition speeches of Shakespeare's second act!) |
| Synopsis | Prospero, Duke of Milan and part-time magician, is tricked into undertaking a hazardous sea journey by his treacherous brother, Antonio, who promptly takes over the duchy when Prospero is conveniently shipwrecked in a great storm. Prospero, along with his daughter, Miranda, survives the wreck and finds himself on a desert island. From there he uses his magic powers to gain revenge on Antonio and Alonso, King of Naples, who is unwittingly supporting Antonio under the influence of his own unscrupulous brother, Sebastian. With the principals all gathered on the same island, Prospero sets out to divide and conquer, a task somewhat hindered by the presence of a range of bizarre and possibly deranged supporting characters. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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| A Thirty Minute Twelfth Night by Shakespeare, abridged Bill Tordoff |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 10. Minimum Female roles = 3. Minimum total with doubling = 16. Minimum total without doubling = 16. No chorus. |
| Run Time | Around 40 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | Abridgement of William Shakespeare's 'Twelfth Night', with the original text cut down to around 40 minutes (despite the title!)
(The abridgement is copyrighted, so we charge for scripts and copying rights, but performances are royalty-free.) |
| Synopsis | A comedy of mistaken identity, as the shipwrecked Viola poses as a page boy at the court of the Duke of Orsino, where she falls for the Duke, whilst Olivia, the object of the Duke's affections, is smitten with the handsome page boy! All ends happily, but only after a great deal of confusion, and the arrival of Viola's lost twin brother.
An introduction to Shakespeare for primary schools. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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| A Thirty-Minute Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare, abridged Bill Tordoff |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 8. Minimum Female roles = 3. Minimum total with doubling = 16. Minimum total without doubling = 16. No chorus. |
| Run Time | Around 35 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | Abridgement of William Shakespeare's 'The Taming of the Shrew', with the original text of two hours and more cut down to 30 minutes.
(The abridgement is copyrighted, so we charge for scripts and copying rights, but performances are royalty-free.) |
| Synopsis | A lord wishes his daughters to be married. Bianca is young and beautiful and already has many suitors, but Katherina is strong-willed, hot-tempered and uncontrollable. Their father decrees that Bianca may only take a husband once Katherina is married. Lucentio and his friend Petruchio arrive, and Petruchio is convinced to marry Katherina for her money to allow Lucentio to wed Bianca. However, Lucentio finds his marriage to Bianca is not as idyllic as he would like, whilst Petruchio bends the shrew-like Katherina to his will. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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| A Thirty-Minute Tempest by Shakespeare, abridged Bill Tordoff |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 9. Minimum Female roles = 2. Minimum total with doubling = 11. Minimum total without doubling = 15. No chorus. Like much of Shakespeare, the cast is male-heavy. Don't let that put you off! |
| Run Time | Around 35 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | Abridgement of William Shakespeare's 'The Tempest', with the original text of two hours and more cut down to 30 minutes.
(The abridgement is copyrighted, so we charge for scripts and copying rights, but performances are royalty-free.) |
| Synopsis | Prospero, the exiled duke of Milan, has raised his daughter Miranda alone on an island with nobody else around but Caliban, a deformed creature Prospero treats as a slave. Using his magic to wreck a ship carrying the usurping Duke of Milan and his entourage, Prospero aims to awe the noblemen, reassert his right to the throne of Milan, and find a match for his daughter. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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Three Characters in Search of a Verdict by Sue Gordon
Production by Newton Stewart Players won The Fullarton Trophy (Best Stage presentation) and the Tom Clement memorial Trophy (Best Moment of theatre) in the Stewartry District of the SCDA festival, 2018. |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 4. Minimum Female roles = 7. Minimum total with doubling = 15. Minimum total without doubling = 23. No chorus. Fairytale characters, including a wolf and three bears. Optional Jury (non-speaking, but murmuring occasionally!) |
| Run Time | Around 40 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | Courtroom comedy for kids! Single set, simple props. |
| Synopsis | Fairytale characters get their day in court - after an episode involving a beanstalk, Jack's mother is being done for receiving stolen property, whilst Goldilocks has been arrested for criminal damage and a wolf for the attempted murder of Red Riding Hood's Granny. With three pleas of 'not guilty' the courtroom is in for some surprising twists to familiar stories. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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Three Women and Shakespeare's Will by Joan Greening
2022 Edinburgh Fringe production received a 5-Star review from Arts Reviews Edinburgh. |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 0. Minimum Female roles = 3. Minimum total with doubling = 3. Minimum total without doubling = 3. No chorus. |
| Run Time | Around 40 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | Quick-witted one-act comedy. Single set requiring only a few items of furniture. |
| Synopsis | After the death of William Shakespeare, Anne Hathaway is visited by two women with shocking revelations. Both claim to have known her husband intimately, and each want a piece of Will's will. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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| Tiddley Pum by Frances Bartram |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 3. Minimum Female roles = 3. Minimum total with doubling = 6. Minimum total without doubling = 6. No chorus. |
| Run Time | Around 35 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | One-act comedy play. Minimal set (an ante-room for an audition, no particular requirements). Well-drawn characters and sparkling dialogue. |
| Synopsis | Six characters meeting each other for the first time as they gather to audition for a television show. Their talents are as disparate as their personalities. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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| Time To Move by Iris Winston |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 2. Minimum Female roles = 2. Minimum total with doubling = 4. Minimum total without doubling = 4. No chorus. The characters are written as ninth graders (14- to 15-year-olds), but could be played at other ages. There is an option for an on-stage band, and possibly other extras. |
| Run Time | Around 35 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | One-act play for school kids. |
| Synopsis | It's the night of the big school dance, but Kim has something besides getting the gym ready on her mind. She's just found out she might be moving, and is scared to leave all her friends behind. A one act that examines the pros and cons of moving while young. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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| A Toll Of Bells by Patricia Gay |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 4. Minimum Female roles = 5. Minimum total with doubling = 9. Minimum total without doubling = 9. No chorus. |
| Run Time | Around 32 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | A one act drama with a single setting. |
| Synopsis | With action jumping between time zones and crossing three generations, the play depicts people who are faced with huge events that are beyond their control. They must, however, continue the quest for survival in their more mundane lives. The three generations depicted in the play react in different ways to accomplish that goal. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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A Train Ride Away by Frank Gibbons
Performance by Aiken High won The Garcia Theater Project, North Augusta 2010. |
| Roles | Minimum Male roles = 3. Minimum Female roles = 3. Minimum total with doubling = 6. Minimum total without doubling = 10. Chorus. Characters are mainly adults with one young child. Could all be played by children. The chorus is optional, but there are several scenes where crowds would create atmosphere. |
| Run Time | Around 35 minutes. [Estimated!] |
| Music | None. |
| Style | One-act play. Intended to have figurative sets (possibly just lighting transitions), rather than realistic depictions of the locations. Props could be real or indicated by mime. Includes mild swearing. |
| Synopsis | The story of a family of Hungarian Jews being transported to Auschwitz-Birkenau in the holocaust of 1944. |
| Price | For scripts and live performance rights, please click on the Price Link to find the cost. For scripts and lockdown videos/streaming rights, click here |
| Click here to read the script or Click here for more details. |
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