WHY WE HAVE DAY AND NIGHT by Barbara Winther
Middle Grades, 14 female or male; 30 minutes.
Flying animals are pitted against land animals in this Australian Aborigine tale that points out the foolishness of pride and war.
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A JOURNEY TO THE STARS by Mary Satchell
Middle Grades; 3 female, 3 male, 3 female/male, and 12+ extras; 30 minutes.
A Reader’s Theater: The inspirational story of Cuban singer Celia Cruz, who rose from poverty, fled Communism in Cuba, and rose to the top of the music industry and beloved throughout the world as the “Queen of Salsa.”
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A HALLOWEEN SLEEPING BEAUTY by Jane Tesh
Middle and Lower Grades; 4 male; 4 female; 14 male and/or female; 15 minutes.
A ghoulish twist on the original fairy tale--where it's a curse to be beautiful!
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THE GOBLINS AND THE GRAVEDIGGER by Craig Sodaro
Upper and Middle Grades; 6 male, 8 female, 3 male or female; 19th-century England; 30 minutes.
Goblins help to connect the meanest man in town with three loving orphans who desperately need a home, in this heartwarming Christmas tale.
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THE FASTEST THIMBLE IN THE WEST by Claire Boiko
Middle Grades, 15 female and 21 male, 30 minutes (cast may play more than one role). A rollicking, large-cast musical melodrama complete with orphans, an evil lawyer, poetry-loving cowboys, and a long-lost sea captain, all set in the Old West.
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BALANCING ACT by Christina Hamlett
Upper and Middle Grades; 5 male, 1 female, 8 male or female; as many male and female extras as desired. 30 minutes.
High above the streets of New York City, Native American construction workers connect the giant steel beams that create the City’s skyscrapers, while telling stories about the Iroquois Nation and its culture.
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SHIRLEY CHISHOLM: "UNBOUGHT AND UNBOSSED" by Mary Satchell
Upper and Middle Grades; 11 female, 7 male, and 20+ males or females; 30 minutes.
Scenes from the inspirational life of Shirley Chisholm (1924-2005), the first black woman elected to the U.S. Congress and an outspoken advocate for the rights of women and minorities.
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THE PRESIDENTS' DAY IN COURT, by Kathy Applebee
Middle Grades; 7 male, 3 female, and 5 male or female, plus as many extras as desired; 20 minutes.
When Patty O’Phurniture’s date with Jim doesn’t meet her expectations, she sues in court for breach of contract, and is confronted by the historical feats of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Susan B. Anthony, and others who are pictured on American coins.
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THE WHITE SPIDER'S GIFT by Jamie Turner
Middle and Lower Grades; 9 female, 7 male, 1 male or female, and extras; 20 minutes.
A South American folktale in which kindness is rewarded when a boy helps a spider in distress and the spider returns the favor in a very special way.
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RALPH BUNCHE, MAN OF PEACE by Mary Satchell
Upper and Middle Grades; 7 male, 4 female, 25 male or female; 30 minutes.
The inspiring story of Detroit-born Ralph Bunche (1904-1971), the first African-American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize (1950) for his work with the United Nations to help create a cease-fire in the Middle East.
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TWO ISLAND TALES by Barbara Winther
Middle and Lower Grades. Battle Between Sun and Sky: 4 male or female and as many extras as desired; 10 minutes. How Coconuts Came to Samoa: 2 male, 2 female, 2 male or female, and as many extras as desired; 10 minutes.
Two short stories from the Pacific Islands that help explain the ways of nature.
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THE KING'S CREAMPUFFS by Martha Swintz
Middle and Lower Grades; 5 male, 4 female, many male and female extras; 30 minutes.
Wicked witch steals the royal creampuff recipe, upsets the King, and causes havoc in the royal kitchen.
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A KWANZAA STORY by Claire Boiko
Middle Grades; 10 female, 8 male, 9 male or female; 40 minutes.
An appreciation of Kwanzaa comes to a girl who tries to boycott her family's celebration because she's in a snit; mad about something she can't even remember!
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A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S SLEEPOVER by Elizabeth Boiko Burdick
Middle Grades; 3 male, 3 female, 17 male or female; contemporary; 20 minutes.
Perfect for a large cast, this modern retelling of one of Shakespeare's greatest comedies is full of love and romance, mischievous dealings, and intrigue.
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SNEAKY SAM IN SUNNY JUNCTION, by Ellen M. Eleder
Middle and Lower Grades; 3 male, 2 female, 1 male or female adult or gifted reader for Narrator; 20+ male and female. 1880s; 15 minutes.
Sure-to-please large-cast melodrama with the usual dashing hero, moustache-twirling villain, and sweet heroine named Sue. . .but this one also has plenty of audience participation, songs and choreography.
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SARAH AT SEA by Lisa Swarbrick
Middle Grades; 11 female, 6 male, 8 male or female; 40 minutes.
Spunky 1830s English girl flees her demanding guardian by impersonating a boy so she can find work on a ship bound for New York — and an uncertain future in a new country.
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RAINFOREST TRIO by Barbara Winther
Middle and Lower Grades. Three plays in one: Play 1, Crocodile Gives Monkey a Ride, 2 male or female, 10 minutes; Play 2, Trapping the Jaguar, 1 male, 2 male or female, 15 minutes; Play 3, Wild Woman, 4 male, 3 female, 7 male or female, 20 minutes.
Set in different types of rainforests, three folktales of mystery and magic, featuring characters with pluck, ingenuity, and common sense.
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WAY, WAY OFF BROADWAY by Betty Tracy Huff
Middle Grades, 5 male, 6 female, 6+ male or female; 30 minutes. A fun melodrama featuring the poor but honest Daisy Cornball, the villainous Count Von Cliché, and the rich society lady Mrs. Smythe-Dashington, in search of wealth and fame on the stage. Be still, my thumping heart!
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CSI: MOTHER GOOSE LAND, by Jane Tesh
Middle and Lower Grades; 7 female, 6 male, male or female for Cat, King's Horses, King's Men; 10-15 minutes.
Did Humpty Dumpty fall. . .or was he pushed? A large-cast mystery featuring a host of familiar fairy tale characters.
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FREEDOM RIDERS, by Tom Quinn
Upper and Middle Grades; 12 male, 6 female, and male and female extras. 35 minutes.
A story of the struggle and heroes of the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 60s, with reference to the basics of human dignity: riding a bus, using the restroom, eating in a restaurant, and going to school.
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ROWDY KATE by Claire Boiko
Middle Grades; 14 male, 6 female; the Old West; 35 minutes.
When the Mayor invites schoolmarms to town to help bring respectability to a small corner of the old West, the good old boys have plenty to say about it. It turns out that if anyone is going to get married around these here parts, Rowdy Kate is goin' to be the first!
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MOTHER GOOSE HAS TALENT by David Ely
Middle and Lower Grades; 34 male and female; 25 minutes.
A wonderful spoof of a make-believe television show—complete with funny advertisements—with nursery rhyme characters participating in the competition and solving the mystery of the missing sheep.
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MOTHER JONES, RABBLE-ROUSER by Renée C. Rebman
Middle Grades; 8 male, 6 female, extras; 25 minutes.
The story of Mother Jones, a courageous woman who helped lead the fight for the right of American workers—men, women, and children—to join a union, have safe working conditions, and a decent wage.
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CUPID'S WEBSITE by Liz Boiko Burdick
Middle and Lower Grades; 6 male, 7 female, 8 male or female; 20 minutes.
Will web designer's plans take all the charm out of boy-meets-girl?
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THE ANCESTORS' BOX by Christina Hamlett
Upper & Middle Grades; 13 female, 3 male; 35 minutes. A large-cast play that tells part of the story of Japanese-American internment camps created in World War II, through the eyes of a high school girl who was sent off and her best friend, who stayed behind.
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THE MIRACLE OF SPRING by Helen Hanna
Middle & Lower Grades; 3 male, 6 female, 19+ male or female; 15 minutes. A large-cast play to welcome Spring and learn about the environment. Petulant King Bartholomew bans Spring, only to realize in a dream courtroom drama that he has upset the cycles of the seasons and destroyed the food supply.
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GREEK PEEK by Carol D. Wise
Middle Grades; 13+ actors: 7 female, 4 male, 2 male or female, as many male and female as desired for Chorus; 30 minutes.
The myth of Persephone, and how the seasons came to be, told two ways: one traditional, one in rap.
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MOUNT RUSHMORE by David LaBounty
Middle and Lower Grades; 8 male, 4 female; as many male and female extras as desired for Other Students; 15-20 minutes. Four presidents have a little fun with visitors to a national memorial.
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