The Lady Robyn: Runs about an hour. This is a new musical spin on the legends of Robin Hood. The flexible cast of 28 characters follows Maid Marian as she resurrects "Robin Hood" to avoid an unwanted marriage to an evil duke. Most of the songs and some of the dialogue is taken directly from the medieval folk ballads. There is humor and action as Marian elicits the help of Little John, Friar Tuck, and Will Shakespeare?.
Cloudy Visions: Runs about an hour. Involves a cast of at least 10-15, but spanning infinitely: if you want to be crazy enough to try hundreds you could. I did it with a cast of 65 middle-schoolers. The Plot: Two kids having a hard time standing up for themselves, in different ways, are transported to a cloud world, and meet up with some crazy, Ancient-Greek like, characters from Aristophanes' The Clouds. There is a Greek-style chorus, as well as contemporary slang spiced in. It's a comedy that teaches kids that words can be power, and to listen to themselves first. There is a theme of bullying, but it doesn't beat them over the head with it.
Selfish Paul: A short, rhyming play that is speckled in humor and deals with being selfish. Good tool for kids to create their own characterizations. Cast of 4 kids, flexible gender with name changing.
Star, Child: A two person short, rhyming play. Child and mother. Good for beginning performers. Cute, sentimental.
Bully : A cast of 8 with gender flexibility show that there is always a bigger bully. Under 10 mins. Dark comedy with a moral.
Below are works originally created for Encore (E.T.A.P.), which I might collaborate on with the right song-writer to become full, self-sustaining musicals for a family audience. The stories have been conceived and dialogue created, but original songs and re-structuring could be added. If you're a composer, drop me a line.
Broadway, show-within- a show type stuff, all comedies:
The Show Must Go On: 5 Speaking roles. (3 female, 2 flex) Three would-be Divas get locked in a theatre, seemingly by a crazy person, and are told to create a musical. They are given an unwilling book-writer and composer to help. It's a comic nightmare.
Broadway Who?: 9 speaking roles (7 female, 2 flex) An aging Diva is supposed to host the Tony Awards, but get's a high-kick to the head which wipes her memory clean. Can a production assistant with her job at stake save the day? Can a Diva with a new look at life show the up-and-comers how to play nice?
Broadway's Calling: 16 speaking roles. (1 male, 15 female, some could be changed) Most people know that certain words bring bad luck when said in a theatre, but what if that was just a clever ploy created to protect a secret? See what happens when a down-and-out producer stumbles on a magic portal into the Land of Broadway Characters and tries to kidnap a leading lady for his own play. Is our leading lady hiding a secret of her own.
Stepping Out: (2 males, 3 females, 5 flex) The legendary Broadway diva, Channing Peters, has hit somewhat of a lull in her career, and seems to be steppin’ out of the theatre biz. Budding young talent, Emily Sutton, is looking for her opportunity to be noticed as she tries to step her way in. What better time is there for a couple of opportunistic reality TV producers to extend a helping hand, or at least make money? What they might not have counted on was the ability for people to actually be just, plain, nice. Find out what happens when you mix the stage and screen, and see whose “reality” becomes the reality in this farcical look at what happens behind the scenes but on the camera.
Christmas Shows for the Holiday Season, again, all comedies. Also, all large casts, flex casting, male and female roles:
Santa Got FrostBite: Jack is back and he is once again bringing his “Frosty” side to Christmas. This time he is able to cause a slick situation at the North Pole, and Santa loses himself. What will become of Christmas as we know it? Can Mrs. Claus save the big day? And, what is her first name anyway? Although it turns out to be no fun for the First Lady of the North Pole, "Santa Got Frostbite" promises to be Christmas chaos that is fun for the whole family. (Could be a sequel to any of the others, especially Rudy and the CC Stocking.)
The Tale of Two Santas: It was the best of times, it wast the worst of times, it was the age of nice and the age of naughty, the season of Lights and well, drab really. Everyone has heard the story of jolly old Saint Nick and the North Pole elves, but how many have heard much about what happens down at the South Pole? Come find out what happens when the daughter of Kristoff Kringle and her gang of not-so-merry, coal-shoveling elves get tired of taking care of the naughty list. Will the Claus family line lose control of Christmas, or will the spirit of Christmas calm an arctic family feud?
Rudy and the Candy Cane Stocking: Jack Frost is up to no good, meanwhile the reindeer are trying to win the North Pole dance competition. Rudy, he gets caught in the middle while trying to gain acceptance. Can Frost freeze Christmas Spirit and make Santa fade away? Why can't we stop looking at those stockings?
The (Not-so) Christmas Elf: Ever wonder what happens to an elf when they drink coffee? Well, they turn into a Christmas-hating imp of course. Can the other elves save the day, or will they ask the big guy for help before it's too late?
Over the North Pole: A Christmas rif on The Wizard of Oz.
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year: Santa wants to pass his legacy to his grandson, only problem is: Nick likes Haloween and doesn't believe in Santa. The big guy has to deliver some interesting news and try and save Christmas as we know it.
