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ChrissieB
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bullet Topic: New Community Theater Play Recommendations
    Posted: 9/02/08 at 7:18pm
I'm trying to start a community theater. I have interest, but I really would like to get started in putting together some performances. I'm looking for a small-cast play, something simple and fun, with a limited amount of set work.

Any suggestions?
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tristanrobin
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bullet Posted: 9/03/08 at 3:18pm
Well, the smallest cast limited set plays I can come up with are "Travelin' Show" by Jane Martin and "Krapp's Last Tape" by Samuel Beckett (both have one male) and The Belle of Amherst (one female).

For a bit larger cast, LOL, "Driving Lessons" by Paula Vogel (3 Characters); "Doubt" (4 Characters); "For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls" by Christopher Durang (4 Characters).

Geesh - LOL - there are so many to choose from!

It might help if you gave us an idea of the genre or type play you're interested in.
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bullet Posted: 9/04/08 at 4:46am
To add to tristranrobin's questions, what sort of audience are you trying to attract? 
The following are "Family Shows" - aimed at a mixed audience of adults and kids, and on the light side - so not appropriate if your target audience is purely adult:-
Three Musketeers for a cast of three people (2M, 1F). Very little scenery as the conceit is that a travelling company has just arrived for the latest date of their tour.
Sherlock's Excellent Adventure a Holmes spoof for a cast of four (3M, 1F)

Stuart
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http://www.lazybeescripts.co.uk read complete play scripts on-line
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KEB54
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bullet Posted: 9/04/08 at 11:34am
I'm involved with a newer CT. Year 1 they did a variety show. Year 2 they did 2 shows with all kid casts.  Year 3 they started doing  shows that had lots of kids as well as a few adults: Annie with lots of extra orphans;  then Joseph with a huge children chorus, then Oliver ...  After that they were "off to the races", ie they could do shows with mainly adults.
 
The thing is they built their base through kids.  Kids wanted to do shows.  The parents got involved. The community wanted to support it.  After a few years the parents were hooked and wanted to do shows of their own.
 
They still try to do a big musical every summer that has a lot of kids.  It brings in big crowds and develops future talent and supporters. 
 
So you might want to consider larger kid casts in your early years.  It is especially nice if you have a play that has the opportunity for many parts like townspeople, merry men, etc. so you can cast all the kids. 
KEB
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belle
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bullet Posted: 9/04/08 at 2:28pm
We started with adults since our directors did not really want to work with children.  It takes special talents to work with kids.  I agree it can build a theatre, but it may not be the direction you want to take at the beginning.
 
We started with family-friendly shows--Bad Year for Tomatoes, Maid to Order (Tom Taggart), God's Favorite, Subject to Change, Play On, Soapy Murder Case, Exit the Body, Steel Magnolias, female Odd Couple, Love by the Bolt (Feydeau), June Groom, Rumors,  Love is Murder, The Butler Did it (and Did it Again), Greater Tuna (using several actors in 2 or 3 roles each) to name a few.  Anything by Pat Cook, Rick Abbot, Tim Kelly has well defined characters and easy sets. 
 
Lend me a Tenor, Moon Over Broadway, Inspecting Carol and Noises Off are wonderful but more challenging.  We grew into them.
 
Jack Sharkey writes good farce but his plays are a bit off color/sexual for kids in the audience.
 
You can't go wrong with Harvey and Arsenic and Old Lace.  They are both men heavy. (We've never done either You Can't Take it With You or The Man Who Came to Dinner--too silly and too dated respectively.)  Other men heavy shows are the See How They Run series--set in England so there are accents.  We did them and the big classic musicals eventually.
 
Early on we did some melodramas in a tent for the local fair.  These were one acts but silly fun.
 
Later we did some reviews and finally musicals, some with children and some without.  We now have a director who will work with children so we do more kids shows.  Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Avonlea, One Foot in Heaven, and I Remember Mama are straight plays that had children and adults and led to some parents getting involved.   A Christmas Carol also has some children.  These have LARGE casts.  We tend to do shows with both kids and adults. 
 
We had (and continue to have) many more women than men so all along we have tried to choose shows that have lots of opportunities for women.
 
We have done some small musicals with both adults and children:  Country Christmas Carol (Dramatic or Dramatists) and Tom Sawyer.
 
We did dinner theatre in the beginning with a local church.  They got the crowd to come to the meal, and we provided the play for so much a person. They also paid for the performance space, advertising, and royalty. We also had them help with the set building at load in and with strike.  Our risk was low.   We didn't make much money, but performing has always been our goal rather than making money.
 
My story about working with another local group in dinner theatre is that when I proposed it to a group--rural fire fighters whose most recent fund raising activity--a garage sale--had made $100.  They agreed to work with us, but one of the guys asked if he could just come to the meal and skip the play if he paid full price for his ticket!  (He had never been to live theatre obviously and was sure he wouldn't like it.)  The happy ending is that he later became one of our biggest supporters.  We worked with the group for several years, and we both made good money each time.
 
Enjoy the ride.  If you make some missteps, just learn from them.
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ChrissieB
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bullet Posted: 9/04/08 at 4:51pm
I come from a small town that is growing rapidly. There is plenty here to occupy children and I would love to incorporate them into group, but my main focus (and current active participants) are adults aged 20 and older. We're going to wait a little while for a musical but I think the general interest is in a comedy or something light. We've had requests for dinner shows and there is also a strong interest in murder mysteries.
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ChrissieB
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bullet Posted: 9/04/08 at 5:02pm
Also, I should mention we've taken into consideration a play called They're None of them Perfect, by Sophie Kerr, since the author was born and raised (and her home is a landmark) right smack in the middle of my town. However, as amusing as the show may be (and being only 6 woman and the option of one man), I don't feel it will appeal to a very broad group. We do plan on performing it and keeping it practiced for special events, but I need something that could appeal to most ages.
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tristanrobin
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bullet Posted: 9/04/08 at 8:30pm
Get a collection of Agatha Christie's plays - make yourself a pot of tea - and settle in for a weekend of wonderful mystery plays.

They're a tad dated - but even that adds to their fun...and the who-dunnit mystery aspects never weaken! You can also put together a very slick looking show with authentic period clothing and hairstyles...Christie shows almost always look good.

They tend to have smaller casts - and one set. And usually the titles are known to audiences.
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bullet Posted: 9/04/08 at 9:07pm
You might try "Star-spangled girl" by Neil Simon.  2M, 1W.  Quite funny and lesser known.  The ending is a bit flat, but the otherwise the comedy is very good.  Old Neil brings in people just with his name...


Good luck!

Brian
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jayzehr
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bullet Posted: 9/05/08 at 12:35am
Originally posted by ChrissieB

. We've had requests for dinner shows.

Which (as someone a lot more experienced than me once said) combines the worst of the restaurant business with the worst of the theater business.
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