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The Play's the Thing
With over 900 plays and musicals, each uniquely suited for production by schools, churches, community theatre groups and children's theatres, we're constantly hearing great stories about your productions and how you're touching lives through theatre. Many of our more than 300 playwrights also regularly share updates about their new projects and ventures. Follow us here to learn more about our plays, our playwrights and other new happenings at Pioneer Drama Service.
Hot off the Press!
The Fairy Tale NetworkThis hilarious play is wonderfully easy to produce with loads of humor for both kids and their parents. The Fairy Tale Network is a television network that needs to improve its viewership ratings with exciting new programming. The three mice working as creative consultants for the studio each must come up with a story idea to pitch to their new chief, the Cat. And they need to pitch their ideas fast before they become a fancy feast! They retell the well-known tales of Little Red Riding Hood, the Three Pigs, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears, but now with new, unexpected twists. The crew of Busy Bees racing on props and sometimes even becoming the set pieces themselves makes this play fast-paced, super-easy to stage and fun!
With the charm of a fairy tale and a touch of mystery and wonder, Charlie Lovett adds another winner to his ever-popular Wychwood-under-Ooze series of fractured fairy tales. The fun and hilarity center around the town square and the bridge everyone is afraid to cross. While the Bridgites wonder what might be on the other side and hope that one day they will be brave enough to see for themselves, the Anti-Bridgites are having none of it. After all, who knows what dangers exist beyond the bridge? Speaking of the unknown, why is poor Sleepy Trudy always so tired? And where is the missing artifact to unite with the Cone of Mystery and the Unusual Disks? Local legend has it that once the three ancient pieces are reunited, the bridge will open for all to pass. With story characters ranging from the evil witch to the fairy godmother and from Quasimodo to the ever-present Lou the UPS Guy, audiences of all ages will laugh out loud at the wit and humor of this easy to stage, family-friendly delight.
In the Spotlight
Now that it's November, it's time to get serious about having fun this Christmas! It's not too late to start rehearsing a Christmas play to add a festive and fun sparkle to your holiday season. These top-selling Christmas plays are easy to stage with very simple sets and costumes.
Besides the shows spotlighted below, including our latest release, Ho Ho Ho! The Santa Claus Chronicles, check out all of our Christmas plays and Christmas musicals. We also have a wide selection of Christmas Carol adaptations on our website.
JUST RELEASED IN TIME FOR THE HOLIDAY SEASON!
Ho Ho Ho! The Santa Claus Chronicles
Cast: Flexible cast of 8-20, plus optional extras
Set/Time: Bare stage with Christmas decor / About 40 minutes
Ho ho ho! Here’s a fast, light-hearted Christmas play with plenty of small roles to give everyone their moment in the spotlight.
Jingle Bells JuryIf you’re looking for something different, this is the ideal holiday play. Not only is it delightful and entertaining, it is also easy to perform with a role for everybody.
Christmas UnwrappedPerfect for church or Christian school functions, this creative allegory unwraps the true meaning of the season — it’s not about all the gifts, but about God’s gift to mankind.
Black and Blue FridayIt’s the day after Thanksgiving, and all Ellie and her new husband, Jackson, want is to celebrate their first holiday season at home together. But their holiday peace and quiet quickly turns into holiday chaos when they are summoned to the security office at the local mall.
The Baddest Angel BandTeen angels Cherry, Spir and Angelina are about to be expelled from Angel School for playing Frisbee with the teacher's halo and for insisting that thunder is caused by angel burps. This hilarious thought-provoking play will be a high point in your Christmas season and a fun project for all.
The MissionSuitable for all ages, The Mission is perfect as part of a church service or anywhere you desire a humorous skit with a strong Christian message that’s appropriate at Christmas, Easter or any time of year.
Titles Trending This Week
The holidays are upon us. Halloween was last night and it is time to shift gears and focus on Thanksgiving and Christmas. Christmas is now 7 weeks away. It is not too late to order that Christmas play to perform for the holidays. Here are some of our top tending Christmas plays this week.
Everyone’s Christmas Story By: Kara Wilkins 60 minutes - 4 male 5 female and 9 that can be either. Strong religious theme: This is a cute story that comes full circle. The play starts out by taking the traditional Christmas tale and trying to jazz it up. In the end though, it comes back to the tried and true traditional story.
Fairy Tale Christmas Carol By: Flip Kobler and Cindy Marcus 60 Minutes - Flexible cast of 20-31. Fracture Fairy tale meets classical holiday tales. This is a great twist on the classical holiday stories with all the parts being played by your fairy tale characters like the Big Bad Wolf, Jacob Midas and Mother Goose.
Believe By: Faye Couch Reeves 45 minutes – Flexible cast of 33 (parts can be male or female). Has traditional holiday music: This story focuses on getting back to a traditional Christmas and away from the commercial over the top Christmas that we know today.
The Mission By: Karen Jones 20 minutes – 4 male 6 female. Strong religious theme: This show is perfect for learning those lines and putting together a show in just a few weeks. In this tale Jesus has gone missing and the Angels have to find him.
Living Nativity By: Karen Jones 20 minutes – 4 male 4 female. Comical Christmas tale: This story takes place in a courtroom. The nativity scene has become chaos and the members of the church find themselves having to explain themselves to the judge. This is a very funny and cute play.
Holiday Plays to Bring Communities Together
Sometimes the smells of pine cones and holly berries are just the thing to set the mood for Christmas. Or perhaps holiday cookies baking in the kitchen sets your heart a-flutter. The smell of greasepaint when family and friends come together to enjoy a holiday play is also a wonderful way to create holiday spirit. Our Christmas plays and musicals are proven audience pleasers. What better way to end the year and begin a new one?
Besides the shows spotlighted below, check out all of our Christmas plays and Christmas musicals. We also have a wide selection of Christmas Carol adaptations on our website.
All the famous fairy-tale characters take on all of the memorable roles of Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. This fun-filled adaptation stays true to the warmth and heart of the classic.
The Candy Cane Courthouse is now in session, and your audience is the jury! Not only is this show delightful and entertaining, it is also easy to perform with fun, original music, familiar Christmas carols and a role for everybody!
Filled with warmth and brightened by traditional Christmas songs sung by the actors, a choir or even your audience members, everyone touched by this play will find they can truly... Believe!
Come share the magic of this wonderful musical adaptation of Dickens's Christmas classic. Bill Francoeur’s original music beautifully accompanies this uplifting retelling, enriched with ample female roles.
CSI: Christmas Scene Investigators
The cast of a Christmas show discovers that the Santa Claus statue has been stolen! In the end, they reveal just why the true meaning of Christmas is all that really matters.
Enter into the world of make-believe, a place where toys learn to be good toys. A group of toys have come to Toy Camp to hopefully graduate and earn their price tags to be sold at toy stores.
Trending
Are you trying to find a show that will get your kids excited? Why not tap into TV shows for inspiration? This television season is giving us everything from fractured fairy tales (Once Upon a Time, Grimm), to Sherlock Holmes (Elementary) to other modern adaptations of classics (Sleepy Hollow, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland). Of course, we can't forget the superhero genre (Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) and the supernatural (Vampire Diaries, Supernatural). Luckily, we have plenty of plays to match all these genres, including the half-dozen top-sellers featured below.
To find other shows in various genres, try searching keywords such as "vampire," "superhero" or "fractured fairy tale" on our website.
Adventures of a Comic Book Artist
Everyone loves comic book superheroes, so both cast and audience will love this action-packed spoof of the comic book genre complete with hysterical singing superheroes and dancing villains.
The Secret Case of Sherlock Holmes
Upstart detectives Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are hired by a young H.G. Wells and soon find themselves in the 21st century in this clever and funny mystery!
A working mother creates modern and empowering adaptations of Grimm’s classics to tell her daughter, who has picked up some not-so-great lessons from the original fairy tales.
The best — and worst! — of both worlds meet when fantasy meets the harsh reality of school in this toe-tapping, pop musical adventure!
Finally, a version of Romeo and Juliet where your audience won’t know the ending! Older teens will adore the dark humor that turns age-old tragedy into this clever modern comedy.
Adapted from Washington Irving's classic ghost story, here is a spooky show alive with hilarious action, fun, and toe-tapping songs.