Christmas Every Day
written with Jenny Sternling · Adapted from the story by William Dean Howells
3-13 Actors · 20mins
There once was a little girl who loved Christmas very, very much. She loved it so much that the little girl wished for Christmas to come every day! And so, with the help of the Christmas Fairy, she soon finds that her wish has been granted - from now until forever, it will be Christmas every day! At first, nonstop Christmas is exciting and fun! But trouble soon begins and the girl realizes that no wish comes without great cost. With the help of The Christmas Fairy, the little girl finds the courage to set things right and discovers, at last, what the magic of Christmas truly means.
Script and rights available by contacting Dano here.
Character Descriptions
JENNY, aka, Narrator 1 (use name of actor playing the role)
JOHN, aka, Narrator 2 (use name of actor playing the role)
DANO, aka, Narrator 3 (use name of actor playing the role)
LITTLE GIRL
FATHER
SANTA CLAUS
OLD CHRISTMAS FAIRY
EXPRESSMAN
TURKEY DEALER
TOOTH FAIRY
BILLY
BOBBY
AUNT LUCY
POLICE OFFICER
MOB
Drop
2M, 1F · 45 mins
Winner of The Kennedy Center's National Short Play Award
Winner The Anchorage Press Theatre for Youth Playwriting Award
Orflong and Zip are the lone dwellers on the planet Gavanuuy. They hunt Kalakazula worms with their sucknas (plungers) and play Gerfle, an infinite game. When Drop appears, they are fascinated by this English-speaking creature and the games she brings. The closer Orflong and Zip get to Drop, the more estranged they become from each other until they can no longer communicate. Drop presents a unique challenge as it is scripted in the Gavanuuyian language spoken by Orflong and Zip.
Published by Samuel French Inc. Purchase script or production rights here.
Productions:
Davidson College, Davidson, North Carolina
The College of Idaho, Caldwell, Idaho
Fullerton College, Fullerton, California, 2002
Missouri Southern State College, Joplin, Missouri
Boise State University, Boise, Idaho
Planet Dwellars
ORFLONG
ZIP
DROP
Ella
3M, 2F · 45 mins
Ella is on the run after a life-changing tragedy, desperate to leave her past behind. She is an artist who no longer knows how to sculpt. Can a nineteen-year-old, white, gator- hunting farm boy named Cutter help her get her life back on track?
Published in Best American Short Plays 2009-2010 (Applause), available here.
A monologue from the play is published in In Performance: Contemporary Monologues for Men and Women Late Teens-20s (Applause), available here.
A monologue from the play is also published in Best Monologues from Best American Short Plays: Volume Two (Applause), available here.
Rights and individual copies available by contacting Dano here.
Productions:
Kinsella Magnet School of the Performing Arts, Hartford, CT
Fordham University Theatre Program, NYC
Rutgers Theatre Company, New Brunswick, NJ
Character Descriptions
ELLA, African American, 29
MATTY, African American, Ella’s ex-husband, 30
VANESSA, Ella’s sister and a student at the University of Washington, 22
CUTTER, a white Florida farm boy, 19
CHARLES, a student at the University of Washington, 22
Frankenstein Paper
2 W, 1M
Gabrielle is the best tutor at Tomorrow’s Child of The Future Tutoring Services. A last- minute, emergency client, forces a confrontation about what exactly it means to tutor an uber-rich teenager in 2019.
Staged reading, id Theater, NYC
Script and rights available by contacting Dano here.
Character Descriptions:
DANE, 16, dreams of lacrosse glory
TINSLEY, 52, Dane’s mother, always nearby
GABRIELLE, 33, African American, a tutor with dreams
The Calling of Caravaggio
2F · 15 mins
A short-play inspired by Caravaggio’s painting The Calling of St. Matthew and the final, mysterious moments of the painter’s life.
Commissioned by the Northwest Playwrights Alliance
Premiered by Rutgers Theatre Company.
Script and rights available by contacting Dano here.
Character Descriptions
MICHELANGELO MERISI CARAVAGGIO, a famous Italian, 39
GIULIANO, a young and beautiful man, 18
The Save
2F, 1 M · 15 mins
An ordinary day for two little league moms is upended when an unkempt stranger arrives to watch their children play baseball. Worried for their children's safety, the women try to have the stranger removed, only to realize that the game they take for granted offers peace of mind and simple reassurance to this troubled war veteran.
Commissioned and premiered by Mile Square Theatre in Hoboken, NJ
Published by Playscripts, Inc. in The Baseball Plays: 7th Inning Stretch. Purchase script or production rights here.
Character Descriptions
JULIE, 29, a Little League mom, streetwise
COURTNEY, 28, a Little League mom, learning the ropes
ZENDER, 30, a stranger with candy
Whitman’s Brooklyn (and beyond)
2M, 2F · 45 minutes
Inspired by and utilizing the life and works of Walt Whitman. Commissioned and premiered by the Artful Conspirators in Brooklyn, NY.
Script and rights available by contacting Dano here.
