Please prepare at least one side from any of the first three plays (Wake, Baby Talk or The Pickle Shop) AND one side from A Brief History Of The Earth And Everything In It.
Wake – by Jill Blevins
Synopsis: Ruth and Craig return home from their father’s wake. Craig got a trust fund and the Lexus. Ruth got an urn with their father’s remains. Why was Ruth cut out of her father’s will?
RUTH – Headstrong and focused, she is the only one in the family who has a job.
CRAIG – In a band. Lives off Mom and Dad.
MOM – Withdrawn, with secrets.
Read Sides from Wake
Baby Talk – by George Brant
Synopsis: Paul and Lisa have the perfect baby. The only problem is, the baby might not be theirs. Ann shows up to prove the baby is hers. The only problem is, her husband Joshua thinks she’s insane. Paul and Lisa will do whatever it takes to keep the perfect child.
LISA – Paul’s partner. Wanted to be an author – now writes copy for catalogs.
PAUL – Lisa’s partner. Wanted to be a photographer – now takes wedding photos.
ANN – Married to Joshua. Supremely in control.
JOSHUA – Married to Ann. Nice and bit stuffy. Elitist but not too bright.
Read Sides from Baby Talk
The Pickle Shop – by Rob Grace
Synopsis: An elderly Polish woman finds herself back home running the family shop while caring for her ailing husband. The play examines what we give up for love when we get on with the business of living our life.
THE LADY – Owner of the Pickle Shop. Once had dreams of revolution. Now tries to pay the bills.
BILL – Her husband. Suffering from Parkinson’s.
Read Sides from The Pickle Shop
A Brief History Of The Earth And Everything In It - by Dave Rabinow
Synopsis: Five 3rd Grade students from Ms. LoPiccolo’s class perform a musical evolutionary history of the earth in a religious-leaning middle school in Missouri. Hi Jinx and religious reinvention ensue.
PRINCIPAL MARSDEN: Rarely seen, usually heard over the school’s PA system; folksy and terrifying.
MS. LOPICCOLO: A first-year 3rd Grade teacher; a believer in her students’ talent; easily manipulated.
DEREK PALOMINO: A 3rd Grade student; student body president; passionate, focused, and persuasive.
MAYA VON HOOGEN: A 3rd Grade student; ambitious and driven; Derek’s girlfriend.
MITCHELL MAXWELL “MAX” HOROWITZ: A 3rd Grade student; lapsed Reform Jew; loves Jay-Z and Buddy Hackett in equal measure.
PRESLEY TURTLEDOVE: A 3rd Grade student; home-schooled until this year; she is given to acting on impulse.
TURNER MCKENZIE: A 3rd Grade British transfer student; befuddled and frustrated by the educational system in his adopted country; prone to raising his voice to make his points.
SPACE JESUS: Jesus, but without all the magical bullshit.
PLEASE NOTE: The 3rd Grade students can be played by actors of any age.
Read Sides from A Brief History Of The Earth And Everything In It
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