Short Plays For Older Actors These plays are aimed at actors aged 18 and above, because of ages of characters and more mature content and references. Licensing for public performances, online or onstage is $40USD per performance. DICPIC Do nice guys send Dic Pics? Four girls, stuck in Isolation, during a late-night Zoom call, discuss the unsolicited phenomenon. Download Script Inspiration Two frustrated housemates trick their writer blocked roomie into finding the inspiration he needs for his latest play. Download Script My Grandmother's Dress A freeloader takes home his one night stand, only to discover that his Grandad has already welcomed his actual girlfriend into their home. Download script

Licencing QUEENS Stage Partners - https://www.yourstagepartners.com/products/queens ​ QUEENS (One Act) Stage Partners - https://www.yourstagepartners.com/collections/plays-for-high-schools/products/queens-one-act-version THE MARVELLOUS MELLOW MELODRAMA OF THE MARRIAGE OF THE MISLAID MINOR YouthPLAYS - https://www.youthplays.com/play/the-marvelous-mellow-melodrama-of-the-marriage-of-the-mislaid-minor-by-kristen-doherty-659 ​ Licencing for the following plays includes: * Share scripts digitally for free. * Livestream using whichever platform works for you. * Record and post online. ​ THE DREAM SHAKESPEARE BACHELOR THE CURSE OF MACBETH TEEN BULLY! Australian Plays Transform - https://apt.org.au/author/?authorinfoid=1119 ​ Please contact Kristencmdoherty@gmail.com for licensing for the following plays: ​ Short Pieces $80AUD/$60USD per performance: TEN MINUTE MACBETH TWENTY MINUTE ROMEO AND JULIET GHOST STORY INSPIRATION MY GRANDMOTHERS DRESS One Act $115AUD /$80USD per performance: BOTTOM'S DREAM THE CURSE OF MACBETH (One Act version) BULLY! (One Act version) TEEN (One Act version) Full Length - $150AUD/$100USD per performance: THE REAL STORY OF ALICE IN WONDERLAND A CHRISTMAS CAROL BULLY! TEEN * There may be a slight difference in price depending on exchange rates, publishers royalties etc. Queens 90 minutes, 10-30+ roles. Girl Heavy, Gender flexible. The Dream 70 minutes, 8 to 20+ roles. Gender flexible. Shakespeare Bachelor 60 minutes, 12 characters (2 boys 10 girls) The Curse of Macbeth 60 minutes, gender flexible. Two versions - 19 characters and 38 characters. Twenty Minute Romeo and Juliet 8-25+ roles. Ten Minute Macbeth 8-30+ roles. Teen 60 minutes (flexible) 22 scenes and over 60 characters. Bully! 50 minutes (flexible) 24 scenes and over 70 characters. The Marvellous Mellow Melodrama of the Marriage of the Mislaid Minor 60 minutes, 10-19 actors. A Christmas Carol 70 minutes, 10-60 roles, girl heavy, gender flexible. Ghost Story *Middle School - 10-15 minutes, 14 characters (flexible) Monologues Free to copy and use. Link to Monologues

Reviews Queens On behalf of HHS Theatre, thank you so much for supporting the HHS Theatre Program and working with us to perform the second-ever US production of Queens! Getting to hear from you as we underwent the rehearsal process and working alongside you to adapt the script was an unforgettable experience, and we truly appreciate your expertise and assistance in navigating the production. The script was phenomenal and the experience of performing something outside of our usual comedies was educational and enjoyable. We would also like to thank you for allowing us to make edits to the original casting of the show, such as splitting the roles of the Fool and Dream Henry. This allowed for more of our performers to be a part of the production and develop their acting skills with your script. We appreciate you trusting us with this show, and we truly enjoyed bringing your vision to life. We hope to work alongside you again in the future! The Dream Expertly written, The Dream an engaging and relevant script for any modern audience. Inspired from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Kristen has cleverly interweaved aspects of the original while re-writing other sections to create a script that left our audience deeply satisfied. For a high-school director, the script enabled me to work in-depth with actors to create complex, multi-faceted characters while improving their ability. It also allowed beginning actors to connect with the character written in the script. All of the roles are well thought out, pushing the actors an appropriate amount, it is adaptable for any cast. The breakdown of scenes worked perfectly to support the actors’ transitions while continuing to develop the story and keep the audience engaged. Kristen was excellent to work with and provided many site-specific solutions to ensure the script was fully suited to my cast. Feedback from our production was they loved the physical approach by the actors, while clever dialogue helped them to connect with the classic Shakespearean storyline. Teen and Bully! My Middle school. recently performed a one-hour version. 6-8 graders, 21 kids in show, combined Teen and Bully into our own unique piece. The students loved the play. Loved your words Loved the message It changed them. They found their voice and became powerful. I’m really proud of our little version of your two beautiful pieces.. I hope we did you proud too. Ten Minute Macbeth I used Ten Minute Macbeth this year and LOVED it! My students got so into it and we had a blast! I got props like foam swords and branches and ketchup, used a huge plastic bin as a caldron, and a volleyball for the last scene (haha). It was an amazing day! Thank you!!! Shakespeare Bachelor As someone who is a huge Shakespeare fan and love his work, I found myself laughing aloud while reading every line. As far as I am concerned, this was such a genius idea and so well written that I think it would easily translate to an American stage. The part about it being the "Australian Bachelor" could easily be replaced with whatever country is producing it. Shakespeare is Shakespeare. He was a master of his craft. Therefore, all the allusions that you provide to his characters and their individual backstories should make sense to anyone who has read his plays. And, for those who haven't, it still comes off witty and relatable as all of the female roles drama queens in their own right. I would have loved to have seen Portia from The Merchant of Venice, but I'm amazed at how many of his strong female roles you managed to line up. Also, I love the bravado and humor from both the Shakespeare and Osher characters! Bravo! Marvellous Mellow Melodrama of the Marriage of the Mislaid Minor During the depths of lockdown we were incredibly fortunate to come across Kristen Docherty's absolutely delightful melodrama. With students working from home and via virtual platforms this wonderful play was exactly the tonic we needed. Containing larger than life characters, farcical plot lines and dramatic dialogue the play provided a superb vehicle for students to both learn and laugh together. As a radio play our design students were also able to enjoy experimenting with adding both music and sound effects to enhance the production. With an audience of listeners, the pressure to learn lines was removed for the young actors enabling them to focus instead on vocalisation. A tremendous treat of a play! Teen and Bully! I read the two plays, TEEN and BULLY... they are amazing. I love the language and the simple clear instructions about directing the scenes. I am a math teacher in Greece who also uses theatre for instructing and career guidance, esp. Drama in Education. I am a member of the Panhellenic Network for Theatre in Education and we read and comment upon and prepare directions and activities for playing various theatre texts for young adults and teenagers. I will try to use some of your scenes at my school in collaboration with an English teacher - or else I will translate them into Greek if you permit so. I loved the abstract way of introducing notions and ideas and characters. Very strong text. Theatrical, really. Thank you again for sharing. Ten Minute Macbeth and Ghost Story. Kristen, my middle schoolers are LOVING your plays! You make the stories fun and accessible, which I appreciate. It's a tough in-between age where it's hard to hit that appropriate content in an engaging way. We are just starting on Shakespeare and we just started reading Ten Minute Macbeth in my 7th grade classes. Ghost Story was also a huge hit! Marvellous Mellow Melodrama of the Marriage of the Mislaid Minor I was desperately looking for a play for my small class that we could safely do in COVID time. I had thought that a radio play might be the thing. Kristen sent me the link for her script; I immediately fell in love with The Marvelous Mellow Melodrama of the Marriage of the Mislaid Minor. (took me a week to get that title straight) The dialogue is so funny and perfect for my middle school drama class. The female characters are fierce and powerful, the male characters are devious and funny. Lots of juicy parts, not just two or three leads. Run time was about 60 minutes. We are a small Montessori school in Massachusetts and every year our 7 and 8 graders put on a full play, soup to nuts, auditions, costumes, makeup, lights and stagecraft. We managed to attend school in person last year and for this show, we had each student stand in front of a microphone to deliver their lines. We could keep the 6ft apart rule. Actors wore period costumes and because we are only 13, the show was easily double cast. We used a projector for scenes like the railroad tracks, illuminating actual scenery. We had fun finding all the sound effects and running them during the show. With the popularity of podcasts, the students understood the importance of voice work and the audience had no problem understanding the story. I felt we did a great job adapting to fit the constraints of the pandemic, credit also goes to the show for that flexibility. All in all, I cannot recommend the show enough and would love to do it again, either as a traditional radio show OR as a traditional play. Even though I am very proud of the show we did!! Twenty Minute Romeo and Juliet You sent me this wonderful version of Twenty Minute Romeo and Juliet recently. I wanted to let you know that my students LOVED it and really honed in on some important themes, etc. Even my most reluctant students were having a great time and begging me to do this again with other Shakespeare plays. BRAVA!!! ​ ​ I read this with a class of 7th and 8th graders who are not into theatre and they LOVED IT. Ghost Story I can verify it is a FANTASTIC story to work on with kids! I did a class project around this play last year w my middle schoolers. They did all the design with sound cues and light cues, sleeping bags, tents and slippers. It’s a GEM. Five stars. Highly recommend! The Real Story of Alice in Wonderland My students and I LOVE your rendition. As a matter of fact, they are more engaged and enthusiastic. Your play has totally changed their perspectives about play reading in general and we are only up to scene 5. I have over 40 student begging me to perform this in May. Queens Review of Brookings High School's (South Dakota) production of Queens in Broadway World 1-On-1 With My Small Business Name National News

Monologues Free Monologues from my large cast plays to download and use. Please click on picture for the Monologue and link/contact for the play. SINGING LADY MARMALADE From Bully! Female/Any Gender Link to Bully! NICK From The Dream Male Link To The Dream CONFUSED From Teen Female Link to Teen KATHRYN HOWARD From Queens Female Contact Kristen for Licencing JULIET From Shakespeare Bachelor Female Link to Shakespeare Bachelor THE FRIENDS From Teen Female/Any Gender Link to Teen POACHED PEARS From Teen Male Link to Teen KMART NIKES From Bully! Male/Any Gender Link to Bully! OPHELIA From Shakespeare Bachelor Female Link to Shakespeare Bachelor ANNE BOLEYN From Queens Female Contact Kristen for Licencing WEIRD TREE KID From Bully! Any Gender Link to Bully! REGRET From Teen Male/Any Gender Link to Teen HELENA From The Dream Female Link to The Dream JANE SEYMOUR From Queens Female Contact Kristen for Licencing ANGSTY From Teen Any gender. Link to Teen BETRAYED From Teen Female Link to Teen

Kristen Doherty Playwright. Screenwriter. Director. Educator. Kristen Doherty is a nine-times published and internationally produced playwright, who has been a writer, director, theatre maker and drama teacher for more than twenty years. Over the past three years, there have been more than four hundred productions of her plays in schools and theatre companies all over the world, as well as every state of Australia. ​ On this site you will find monologues, one act, full length and short; large cast, flexible, female heavy/gender neutral plays for primary, middle and high schools, universities and theatre companies The plays span multiple genres and styles including, Shakespearean, Epic Theatre, Magical Realism, Adaptation, Naturalistic, Comedy, Parody, Melodramatic and Educational Theatre (with a good amount of angst that teenagers love so much ;) Brand New Play THE PLAYHOUSE A time travelling romp around Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. ​ One Act, 40 minutes. Girl heavy but very flexible. 21 ++ (10 with doubling/tripling) Synopsis: On a school excursion to the Globe Theatre, five wayward students slip away from their teacher and find themselves backstage. Unable to resist the lure of the costume rack, they try some on, but are spotted and chased into the tiring house, where a portrait of Shakespeare proudly dominates the space. The Globe’s motto emblazoned on the frame - Totus Mundus Agit Histrionem - The Whole World is a Playhouse. The teens recite the iconic words and are suddenly thrust back-in-time to Shakespeare’s original Globe Theatre in 1599, where they are mistaken for actors, costume mistresses, nobility and groundlings (stinkards) The befuddled students are engulfed in the very first production of ‘As You Like It’ and thrust out on the street of Ye Ole London Town. The group need to find their way back to each other and Shakespeare’s portrait if they are ever to return to their own time. The casting for this play is very flexible. The lead roles are written for 4 girls and 1 boy, but I have given them mostly gender neutral names so cast according to your cohort. There are 21 speaking roles. 16 who are ensemble, (some quite large roles) but I have designed so you are able to double up down to 9 or 10. (running!) Alternately there is a huge ensemble potential with the crowd scenes in the theatre, and streets of Ye Olde London Town. The script is rich in Shakespearean factual information, text excerpts, and historical context, play references and actual historical theatre identities of the time. (Hopefully all cleverly hidden away so students won't even know they're learning. ) every site. Request perusal copy ONE ACT PLAYS 40 minutes, or less, competition length QUEENS (One Act Version) 40 minutes, 9-30+ roles. Girl Heavy, Gender flexible. THE REAL STORY OF ALICE IN WONDERLAND 40-50 minutes. 13-30+ (unlimited) roles. King Henry VIII is trapped in purgatory and bound to his throne by a sinister Fool, and the ghostly Women in White. Here in his gilded cage, he is forced to relive the sins he committed against his Queens, mistresses and people, over and over again for an eternity. ​ The staging of Queens incorporates physical theatre, specifically Frantic Assembly techniques. The script integrates a multitude of original source documents; letters, eye-witness accounts, 16th century children’s rhymes and song lyrics. Read Excerpt/Licence Read Excerpt/Licence We all think we know the Real Story of Alice in Wonderland, but was Alice really the sweet little girl the story books make her out to be? Or, was she actually a nasty piece of work? Two narrators battle it out, as they show the audience contrasting versions of Lewis Carroll's beloved classic. BOTTOM'S DREAM 35-40 Minutes, 8-14++ actors A group of wayward teenagers venture into a forest to rehearse A Midsummer Night's Dream, in an authentic setting. Little do they know that the forest is enchanted and they are about to be caught up in the magic of the Dream. A comedic, magical-realism retelling, integrating contemporary characters inspired by the originals, spliced with Shakespearean characters and dialogue. ​ Bottom's Dream is a one-act cut of my full-length play, The Dream. I have extracted the lovers and re-focussed on the Mechanicals and Fairies storyline. Request perusal copy THE CURSE OF MACBETH 40 minutes, 19 roles, gender flexible. When the Drama Club discover that their teacher is away for the rest of the term, they are dismayed to be stuck with her replacement, ‘the Beck’; the impudent and cynical PE teacher, overdue for long service leave, with a great dislike for Drama kids. The Beck soon leaves them to their own devices, with one rule, it has to be Shakespeare. Despite fearing the legendary curse the students decide on ‘Scenes from Macbeth’. Unconcerned that his heart belongs to another, mean girl, Monique, is crushing on Declan. Determined to make him fall in love with her, she resorts to invoking the curse of Macbeth to cast a love spell. Meanwhile the rehearsal for the most epic Five-Minute Macbeth rages on. Do Shakespeare’s words really make people fall in love or is it just a bored PE teacher, messing with the theatre’s technical equipment? Request perusal copy SHAKESPEARE BACHELOR 12 actors, girl heavy. William Shakespeare has entered TV’s Bachelor Mansion in the search for his one true love, the greatest character he’s ever written. Guided by loveable host, Osher, the ten Shakespearean Bachelorettes; Lady Macbeth, Ophelia, Titania, Juliet, Cordelia, Beatrice, Viola, Katherine, Tamora and Cleopatra fight for the glory of Will’s Final rose and will stop at nothing to win his heart. Request perusal copy SHAKESPEARE SHORTS TEN MINUTE MACBETH 8-30 roles. The entire play of Macbeth jammed into ten minutes, super quick and lots of silly fun but will also give the actors an excellent crash course in the major plot points, themes, key quotes and characters of Macbeth. (Extracted from the Curse of Macbeth) Request perusal copy TWENTY MINUTE ROMEO AND JULIET 8-25+ roles. Twenty Minute Romeo and Juliet is fast, silly and funny, but also integrates all of the major characters, plot points, key lines and themes. The use of narrators who comment on the action, make it a really comprehensive retelling of Shakespeare’s original. ​ Request perusal copy FULL LENGTH PLAYS QUEENS 90 minutes, 10-30+ roles. Girl Heavy, Gender flexible. King Henry VIII is trapped in purgatory and bound to his throne by a sinister Fool, and the ghostly Women in White. Here in his gilded cage, he is forced to relive the sins he committed against his Queens, mistresses and people, over and over again for an eternity. ​ The staging of Queens incorporates physical theatre, specifically Frantic Assembly techniques. The script integrates a multitude of original source documents; letters, eye-witness accounts, 16th century children’s rhymes and song lyrics. ​ ​ Read Excerpt/Licence THE DREAM 70 minutes, 8 to 20+ roles. Gender flexible. A teenage rom-com, Shakespeare style. On a hot Saturday morning on the grounds of St Athenian’s High School, rehearsals are underway for a Shakespearean Gala – ‘Scenes from A Midsummer Night’s Dream’. The boundaries between fantasy and reality blur when the actors' lives start to parallel those of their namesake characters as they are swept up in a tale that is more than 400 years old - How can Helena rewrite her story? ​ ​ Read Excerpt/License THE MARVELLOUS MELLOW MELODRAMA OF THE MARRIAGE OF THE MISLAID MINOR 60 minutes, 10-19 actors. A One Act comedy in the style of a traditional British Melodrama. Penelope Kerslake has returned home from boarding school to tell her beloved father, The Major, of her impending marriage to Gilroy Gladheart, unfortunately he has already promised her hand to another, the villainous Dirk Dastardly. Can Penelope escape this fate worse than death, be reunited with her one true love, foil the villain and save the day? ​ Featuring all of the traditional stock characters, the moustache twirling villain and his idiotic sidekicks, the bumbling police department, the stupid handsome hero and his long suffering manservant and the Damsels in distress, who end up kicking butt. Read Excerpt/Licence BULLY! 60 minutes (flexible) 24 scenes and over 70 characters Bully! is an Epic Theatre genre play which consists of vignettes of short scenes, monologues and duologues which revolve around the issue of bullying; themes include school yard bullying, cyber bullying, racism, exclusion, peer group pressure, frenemies, bystanders. Bully! Is the companion piece to Teen. Both plays are designed for large casts with each actor playing multiple roles with the option of scenes being omitted and students also writing their own to integrate into the text and create their own unique production. The inclusion of musical numbers, physical theatre and dance pieces is also encouraged. Every scene is based on real life accounts and events; some funny, some challenging, some heartbreaking, but all real. ​ . ​ Read Excerpt/Licence TEEN A CHRISTMAS CAROL 60 minutes (flexible) 22 scenes and over 60 characters. Teen is the companion piece to Bully! It consists of monologues, duologues and vignettes of small group scenes and examines social and emotional issues faced by contemporary teenagers. Teen is written within the genre of Epic Theatre so issues such as bullying, body image, peer group pressure, jealousy, unrequited love, anxiety, friendship struggles, sexuality, relationships with parents are explored. Teen has 32 scenes and over 60 characters so it lends itself to large casts playing multiple roles, with the option of scenes being omitted and students also writing their own to integrate into the text and create their own unique production. Read Excerpt/Licence 70 minutes, 10-60 roles, girl heavy, gender flexible. Ebenezer Scrooge, is a wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, old miser. Until one Christmas Eve when he is visited by the ghost of his old business partner Jacob Marley, who tells him that he will be visited that very night by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Future. The spectres take an unwilling Scrooge on a journey through time where he is forced to see the error of his ways, and comes to appreciate his fellow man and revel in the joy of Christmas. ​ A full-length, non musical adaptation of Charles Dickens beloved classic masterpiece which uses Narrators to weave Dickens' beautiful narrative into the dialogue. Request perusal copy Subscribe to get exclusive updates Email Join Our Mailing List Thanks for subscribing! As a Drama teacher of 23 years, I understand the difficulty and complexities in finding engaging, smart, challenging and fun plays that also suit our diverse classes, so I am really happy to help and be flexible with script edits. Email me with and questions or to be sent perusals (or links to) of any of my scripts and keep an eye on my website for future updates and more information. EMAIL ME Contact kristencmdoherty@gmail.com +61 403544266 Watch Now Facebook Twitter Pinterest Tumblr Copy Link Embed Video Link Copied