My eight full-length plays are listed below, ordered roughly from the lightest comedy to the edgiest
drama. Click on any play title to get additional information cast, production history, and audience
reaction.
A Crooked French Affair
Comedy for a cast of ten and ideal for community theatre, ages 14+.Perry, a wannabe playwright/director has written his first play, A Crooked French Affair, ostensibly a dramatic romance set in the royal court of Louis the 15th. When he pitches his play to the dysfunctional Board of Directors of the Pity Falls Community Playhouse, it throws them into a conniption fit. Against all odds, Perry’s play is selected, and now the real work begins with the cast of amateur, inept actors, who work on a set and in costumes designed by recruits from the local junior high school. Complicating everything is an undercurrent due to the affair between Perry’s wife and the husband of Avis, a board member who is recruited to play a part in Perry’s play. On opening night, the production loses its way yet creates a stunning audience reaction and a fortuitous discovery for Perry.
Sliding into Seniorhood
Comedy for a cast of six and ideal for community theatre, ages 14+.The paths of six intriguing characters intersect as they navigate the unpredictable and challenging twists and turns of aging. On the slide into seniorhood, they encounter relationships and experiences, some painful, some sensual, and some just downright silly. When all is said and done, will they find that life has left them with anything more than simple memories?
Tennessee Wet Rub
Drama for cast of five and any theatre, ages 14+.It’s January 30, 1951, and perhaps what is the worst winter storm in Tennessee’s history is burying the state under snow and ice. Roads have been shut down, and people are without power. As the storm rages, Bertha and Hank, an older white couple, huddle in their shuttered barbecue restaurant around a kerosene lantern when 16-year-old Arleta, a white girl, and Dunk, a 20-year-old black male, enter seeking shelter. This eloping couple is breaking the law and tests the values and compassion of Hank and Bertha. Conflict escalates and everything comes to a head when a deputy sheriff arrives to arrest Dunk for kidnapping Arleta.
Mourning Woods Merengue
Dramedy for a cast of four and any theatre, ages 14+.After being forced out of his job, Loren, a resident of Mourning Woods Village, is deeply depressed. Shar, his next-door neighbor, is determined to reanimate and romance Loren. She invites him to partner in a dance contest with the support of Paloma, the earthy, vivacious activities coordinator who ludicrously supports the matchmaking. Adult children jump in and complicate things with their own problems and interference. In the end, will anyone find romance? Will anyone even dance?
Kalispell
Dramedy for a cast of nine and any theatre, ages 15+.The insane dynamics and dysfunction of a western Montana logging family are laid bare over a Thanksgiving holiday. A volatile redneck patriarch, a doting matriarch, and five grown children are forced to confront their biases, and broken relationships with a series of crises that careen between tragic and hilarious.
Five Frickin Winters
Drama/Dark Comedy for a cast of four and any theatre, ages 16+.Roger, a struggling writer, finds his life in a tailspin. He’s dead broke. His best friend’s wife has an out- of-control libido and keeps attempting to seduce him. His friend, oblivious to his wife’s flirting, tries to set Roger up with an inconceivable companion. And worst of all, he’s got no inspiration to write. Will Roger stave off his love-starved neighbor? Will he fall head-over-heels for un unlikely paramour? Will he leave his beloved Florida to endure five frickin winters in Minnesota? Or maybe, just maybe, this wild and wacky scenario will provide Roger with the very inspiration he craves.
Flannel Sheets and a John Deere
Drama for a cast of four and any theatre, ages 16+.Four factory coworkers meet in a cabin in the Northwoods of Wisconsin the weekend before hunting season to prepare for opening day. Hunting preparations are derailed when they discover unnerving truths about each other that spark hostilities and put everyone in jeopardy. How destructive can polarizing values become on a personal level? These four coworkers are about to find out.
Love Lately
Dramedy for a cast of two and any theatre, ages 17+. Requires an intimacy director.The first date between Maeve, a PhD psychologist, and Rob, a blue-collar welder, turns into a weekend whirlwind of sensuality, conflict, and surprises as this unlikely couple explores attraction, compatibility, and love later in life. Their verbal swordplay slices away layers to reveal the inner lives of these vibrant mature characters. At times amusing, other times painful, their banter takes them to a place they could not have predicted and leads to a stunning conclusion.