Full-length Plays

BRING YOUR AUTHENTIC SELF TO WORK DAY
Dark Comedy
Cast size: 3 W, 1 M
The man plays multiple characters

Three corporate women fight to save their jobs when an amoral CEO in a hoodie unleashes a hostile takeover of the company via Zoom. In this dark comedy, employees are asked to show up in a costume representing their authentic selves to save their jobs. Their battle for security pits them against A.I. and threatens to undermine their sanity.

Reading at The Bechdel Group, 2023.

This play was written thanks to a commission from Kathleen McGee Treat.

DAKOTA DU NORD
Drama
Cast size: 3 W, 2 M

When her only brother dies, Audrey makes a final visit home, a place she once fled. What she doesn’t expect are the fruits of her brother’s overlooked artistic talent, the reappearance of an old flame, and a young Sioux native who arrives and awakens Audrey’s connection to the nearby Native American reservation. As Audrey wrestles with where she belongs, her own husband and daughter want nothing to do with her journey. A drama as American as it gets.

Reading at Playhouse 46, St. Luke’s Play Reading Series, under previous title DAKOTA, directed by Lisa Milinazzo, 2023.

Developed as an artist resident at Nancy Manocherian’s the cell theatre in February 2020 (Kira Simring, artistic director).

Previous readings at the Culture Project’s Summer Reading Series (Lisa Milinazzo, director) and Abingdon Theater.

CHAPTER 3000
Dark Comedy
Cast size: 3 W, 2 M

In this dark comedy, after a family flees the city and moves to the countryside, their two children take drastic measures to demand that they return to their urban environment.

Scene presented in New York City in 2021at Dramatists Guild event: It Starts with A Word: Dramatists in Times Square. Featured: LeeAnne Hutchison and Grant Neale.

TV IN MY BONES
Comedy Sixteen actors (7 W, 9 M) or 8 with doubling (3 W, 5 M)
Running time 90 minutes

The play is a series of related shorts, guided by a narrator who is like a late-night TV show host. This comedy reflects TV's ability to unite us, divide us, pervade our culture, suck our time, and by all means entertain us.

Note: Great for colleges and universities.

Produced by Tribes Players at Theater for the New City, New York City, directed by Stephen Cedars. Phoebe Mar and Katelyn Pearce were co-producers. Cast: Devon Caraway*, Phoebe Mar, Jason Nuzzo*, Peter Oliver*, Katelyn Pearce, Michael Pettey, Alexander Stine, Gabriel Wright*

BroadwayBox.com listed the play in its “August Editor's Picks: Five Shows To See Before Summer Is Over” (Aug. 2, 2017).

DEVELOPMENT: Its first reading was at Saint Luke’s 2nd Monday Play Reading Series in New York City, thanks to founder Richard Sterne. It was directed by Lisa Milinazzo.

* Courtesy of Actors' Equity Association

CHARLES WINN SPEAKS
Comedy
Cast size: 1 M, 1 W

Produced Off Broadway at The Cherry Lane Theatre by Living Image Arts (Peter Marsh, Artistic Director and Mia Vaculik, Executive Director) in 2011. It was directed by Lynn M. Thomson. It starred Chris Kipiniak, along with Lindsay Gates. The play was inspired thanks to a commission from America-in-Play.

Produced off Broadway at the Cherry Lane Theatre, directed by Lynn M. Thomson.

THE ETRUSCAN LOVERS
Comedy
Cast size: 3 W, 4 M

Mimi’s obsession with the long-lost Etruscan culture strains her marriage, gets her fired from her job as a museum curator and leads to criminal acts. In the romantic comedy The Etruscan Lovers, Etruscan ghosts inspire lessons about love, marriage, work, and the difficulty of letting go. The play asks questions about the value of art and addresses current-day challenges of repatriation in the art world.

Developed at Ensemble Studio Theater in New York City.

Read in Ensemble Studio Theater’s Oktoberfest.

Two readings at LaMaMa, directed by George Ferencz.

LOOK AT ME (RUFF, RUFF)
Dark Comedy
Cast size: 2 W, 3 M

Susan and Rusty have been living the good life until...he starts barking like a dog and a former student follows her home and doesn't want to leave. This couple is melting down, right along with the economy, the American dream, and all that they once thought was as solid as the wedding rings on their fingers.

PRODUCTION: The Three Leaches, Denver, 2015, directed by Melissa Leach.

DEVELOPMENT: The Lark Play Development Center in New York City, Lake George Theatre Lab, and Nomad Theatrical.

THE LEAK
Tragicomedy
Cast size: 2 W
Available as a full-length and as a one-act

At 39, Bea is leaving home to marry a man her mother has never met. Set in the rainy town of Anacortes, Washington, the play explores loss so deep it makes this family create a fantasy world that's hard to escape. Home might be a scary place, but what if leaving is even scarier?

DEVELOPMENT: Readings at Ensemble Studio Theatre, The Barrow Group, New Jersey Repertory Theatre, Innovative Stages, Playwrights and Actors Collective Theatre.

HONORS: Honorable Mention, Stage 3 Theatre Festival of New Plays, Sonora, CA, 2004; Finalist, Southwest Theatre Assn. New Play Contest, 2004; semi-finalist, PlayLabs Festival, The Playwrights Center, 2005; Moondance Film Festival, semi-finalist, stage plays category, 2006. Cast size: 2 women

THE PHOTO ALBUM
Interactive theater project, multiple characters; audience participation.
By The Story Gym
Writers: C.S. Hanson, Holly Hepp-Galvan, Daniel Ho, Jack Karp, Lisa Reinke
Director: Lisa Reinke

Hundreds of faded photos are discovered in a crumbling Brooklyn Victorian. What memories did they capture? Special thanks to the people in Ditmas Park who showed me their wonderful neighborhood and inspired me with their stories: Babs Gold, Maddy Jacobs, Paul Catalanotto, and Laura Rozos.

PRODUCTION: New York International Fringe Festival, 2014

DEVELOPMENT: The Brick, 2014

Short Plays

In Stalk Me, Baby, what does it take to get someone’s attention in this crazy world, especially if you think he’s a really nice guy? Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

Developed by At-Hand Theatre in New York City (Dan Horrigan, artistic director).

Published by Smith and Kraus in its “Best Ten-Minute Plays” anthology, Lawrence Harbison, Sr. Ed.

The play has been performed on college campuses throughout the United States. It has been produced in venues large and small from Canada to Australia and many places in between.

Available in Spanish, French, Japanese, and Braille, thanks to:

Translated to Spanish by Vivian O’Shaughnessy, James W. Silver, and José Enrique Arrioja

Translated to French by Sébastien Aurillon

Translated to Japanese by Sulei Ly

Translated to Braille by Vivian O’Shaughnessy.

In Lockdown with Pinky, a tough 18-year-old girl and a sensitive cross-dressing teenage guy grapple with everything from Miranda rights to Britney Spears to what to wear for Halloween. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PUBLICATION: 25 10-Minute Plays for Teens, Applause Theatre & Cinema Books, Editor Lawrence Harbison.

Prick Perfect takes place in the laboratory of Victoria Frankenlove, Ph.D. When Dr. Frankenlove makes a robot with the brain of a dolphin, does she create the perfect lover or a monster? Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTIONS:

Theater for a New City, (George Ferencz, director). Featuring Jason Howard and Jenne Vath.

Estrogenius Festival Choice Award Winner 2017, Produced by Deb Long and Michael Bordwell at The Kraine Theater. Directed by Ashley Griffin. Starring Raechelle Egan and Micah Taylor Stratton.

DEVELOPMENT: Commissioned by The Experimentals (George Ferencz, artistic director).

Charles Winn Speaks is short monologue play in which a Wall Street hotshot tries to win back the woman he loves by making a video recording. Comedy (1M)

PRODUCTION: Produced by Living Image Arts at the Lion Theatre, New York City, directed by Lynn M. Thomson, in 2009. Chris Kipiniak performed the role of Charles Winn.

Double D/Dr. Darling is a screwball comedy in which a scientist wants Double D, his home-built female robot, to fly his home-built spaceship to outer space, but she has a different plan. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTION: Theater for a New City, (George Ferencz, director). Featuring John-Andrew Morrison and Jenne Vath.

DEVELOPMENT: Commissioned by The Experimentals (George Ferencz, artistic director).

Get Mom finds 13-year-old Duncan being visited by an angel who encourages him to live authentically and indulge in his inclination for cross-dressing. Yeah, it’s twisted, which is probably why Naked Angels presented it for its Twisted Christmas Reading Series. Comedy (1 W, 3 M)

Presented by Naked Angels, at Theatre 80 in New York City, on December 17, 2019, as part of the Tuesdays@9 "Twistmas" special. Thanks to Artistic Director Jean Marie McKee and Creative Directors Michael C. O’Day and Arya Kashyap. The cast featured Theresa Rose, Frankie Prozenzano, Erik Svendsen, and Matt W. Cody.

Published in the anthology "She Persisted: 30 Ten-Minute Plays by Women Over 40," Applause Theatre and Cinema Books, edited by Lawrence Harbison with preface by Jacquelyn Reingold and introduction by Theresa Rebeck.

Under My Box Spring opens with Olivia hovering over Bug, about to squash him to smithereens. And then the sweet talking begins. Is he a parasite or just what she needs? Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTION: The Three Leaches (Bryce Alexander, director).

In Combat Dating, sexual attraction becomes deadly. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTIONS: Estrogenius Festival (Annie G. Levy, director; extended to encores series); Theatre for the New City (George Ferencz, director); At Hand Theatre (Sara Sahin, director); Curan Repertory Theatre.

Heideman finalist.

Published in “EstroGenius 2009,” by Manhattan Theatre Source, and available at Amazon.com

In Apologies to Vietnam, a plate of vegetables and rice lead a grad student and a Vietnamese woman to a startling revelation about what it means to be American. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTIONS: Metropolitan Playhouse; Samuel French Festival.

In Falutin, a flutist and trombonist discover whether love can overcome an orchestral divide. Based on a comedy inspired by Cornelius Logan's The Vermont Wool-Dealer (1838). Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

DEVELOPMENT: Falutin was developed thanks to a commission from America-in-Play, Lynn M. Thomson, founder and artistic director. Stage reading: America-in-Play, Tribeca Performing Arts Center.

PRODUCTIONS: City Theatre of Miami; Theatre for the New City, New York City; 3Graces, New York City.

Heideman finalist.

To read what the critics say, see Reviews and Press.

The Art of the Interview is about a teenage "Valley girl" who goes to a farm in the Midwest to interview her great uncle for a term paper. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

DEVELOPMENT: Developed thanks to a commission from America-in-Play, Lynn M. Thomson, founder and artistic director and included in a staged reading of "Crossing Over: A Medicine Show Entertainment.

Finalist, National Short Play Contest, City Theatre of Miami (reading directed by Elizabeth Price)

Heideman finalist.

Available as a 10-minute and as a 20-minute comedy.

The Sabbatical is a four-character black comedy about a man who decides to put his wife in a storage locker. Comedy (2 W, 2 M)

PRODUCTION: Pittsburgh New Works Festival.

Workshop: Manhattan Theatre Source.

To read what the critics say, see Reviews and Press.

Out There is about a mother who tries to protect her daughter, Tulip, from the real world by entrapping her in a cave. Absurdist comedy (2 W)

Staged reading: Intentional Theatre Company, Waterford, CT.

Extremes is about a couple who are trying to make their way in the world after separating . . . on a day when they must be together. Drama (1 W, 1 M)

Developed at Ensemble Studio Theatre (Curt Dempster).

PRODUCTION: The Source in Washington, D.C. (Derek Goldman, director).

Heideman finalist.

To read what the critics say, see Reviews and Press.

Answers finds Valerie facing the biggest decision of her life without the usual help of her Magic 8 Ball. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTIONS: Polaris North and Theatrix; finalist, Turnip Theatre Festival.

In Sacred Space, Will comes home to find Xenia throwing out the stove to make room for her home office. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTION: Polaris North.

The Vision takes places in a rundown hotel in the Catskill Mountains, where George tells wife, Stacy, that he has bought the place. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTION: The Theatre-Studio.

EST Marathon finalist.

In Becoming Becoming, Mitzi and hairdresser Jerry come together on the day when each is about to enter into a lifelong commitment with a less-than-ideal partner. Comedy (1 W, 1 M)

PRODUCTIONS: Muse of Fire; semi-finalist, Sam French One-Act Playwriting Contest.

Guatemalan Babies finds friends Sylvie and Peter dealing with loss in surprisingly different ways. Drama (1 W, 1 M)

Staged reading at First Stage/L.A.