Terence Patrick Hughes

A year ago, acclaimed American novelist, John Irwin, and his wife suffered a terrible car crash near their mountain-top home in Woodstock, NY. He survived, she did not. After months of mourning, insurance litigation, and tabloid harassment, Helen’s ghost has returned to constantly haunt John and keep him from writing, sleeping, and staying sober. His daughter, Violet, and her new boyfriend arrive to try and rescue John from his downward spiral, only to be caught up in a wild war of words and wit that reaches far beyond our material world. A comic romp of a ghost story wrapped around a drama about love, death, and family.

‘Lines’ is a tragicomedy about two grave-diggers who work on opposites sides of a line that has been laid down across the middle of a big country, separating blacks and whites. Doc and Bullet are pulled into a chaotic series of events when a black man is stabbed and falls dead on the white side, while a white girl escapes her troubled home and wishes to find refuge on the black side. We soon learn that Bullet is being removed as head coach of the black football team for refusing to play his star athlete, a talented yet violent boy named Ishmael, on the eve of the big game against the whites. While on the other side of the line, Doc must deal with the town’s mayor, who is hatching a plot to have Ishmael shot on the field by his henchmen if the blacks come near scoring their first touchdown since the line was laid down. And in the heavens above, a renegade star attempts to woo a moon away from a dying sun. Inspiration for this play came from an interview the playwright saw on Charlie Rose with August Wilson, just before his death. Mr. Wilson stated that his next play might be about two gravediggers. Unfortunately he never got to add further detail or write the play, so an admirer gave it a shot.

Emily bought a rubber chicken from The Petting Corner and it almost killed her dog. Emily has called The Petting Corner help-line nine times and is ready to kill them. The laws of nature collide with the anarchy of telephone customer service in a play about love, death, and the transcendentalism of chew-toys.

A Chinese dissident arrives at a small New Hampshire college to begin teaching American Literature, when a campus speech by the state’s Governor is interrupted by a minor riot. The backlash that ensues against a troubled student pits politicians against the school’s administration as well as the new, outspoken professor. A play about politics, race, and other absurd conditions of democracy.

Deep in the Catskill mountains, Camps Bluster and Hill-a-Wee are sent into chaos as Theseus arrives to announce that he’s bought the land and must close one of the camps to make way for his new wife’s mansion and horse farm. His son Demetrius and fellow camper Lysander must now lead the boys in a winner take all talent show against the girls, led by Hermia and Helena, to determine which camp must close. All the while, King Oberon is vexed by his queen and sets his trusty aid, Puck, to scatter magic, confusion, and a good dose of laughs across the forest. A Midsummer Camp’s Dream is a very modern adaptation of the Shakespeare classic for kids of all ages, written in free verse with almost 100% new dialogue.

‘Recess (at Our Lady of the Bleeding Heart, Mind, and Spirit – Once Reformed)’ is a short play about teachers, schoolyard romances, and the ever-expanding reach of Catholic guilt. Nancy and Bill are teachers at a co-ed Catholic grade school where on a fine spring morning, they learn brief yet emotional lessons in faith, competition, and the heartbreak that inevitably ensues when you let boys and girls play together.

A highly comic adaptation of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ following closely in modern verse to the Bard’s characters and story while adding a good dose of humor to the political plots of the royals, a bit of clumsy innocence to the romance of Ferdinand and Miranda, and a modern female lead in Prospera, the moody wizard with a heart of gold. Of course, the epic fairy tale would not be complete without Ariel, the feisty fairy seeking freedom, and Caliban, the cursed creature who longs to be human. So, hold on tight while we storm into misadventure on a remote island where one-liners rain aplenty as this take on ‘The Tempest’ is great entertainment for kids of all ages.

At Our Lady of the Bleeding Heart, Mind, and Spirit – Once Reformed, a nun is concerned that a young priest is leading a few 8th grade boys into trouble. As Sister Shelia confronts him with the strict demands of faith and duty, Father Dan stands by his own beliefs in modern spirituality and the healing power of rock & roll.

At a small Catholic school somewhere in tough-town America, Jack is an assistant principal who relies on a unique style when he’s forced to hire a replacement teacher for an unruly 6th grade class. Jill is a recent college graduate and hopeful job applicant, who has absolutely no idea what she’s in for. ‘Stress for Success’ is a short play about employers and job hunters, administrators and teachers, and the strange dance we all partake while in pursuit of gainful employment.

Goodnight Sunshine is a bittersweet comedy about fame, family, and the impossibility of going home again. Jackie and Billy Allen were a big stand-up comedy team in the 1950's and after Billy left for Hollywood; Jackie hit it big on TV...for a little while. In present day 1985, Jackie is on the eve of a big comeback only to be reunited with his daughter, Becky, who was placed in an asylum twenty years earlier and has now written a sordid family memoir.

Oscar is a novelist down on his luck. Cricket is a dealer who sleeps in the shrubs. When the two meet on a bench in Central Park for an exchange of ‘the usual’, their destinies swiftly intertwine even as the transaction and their wits begin to unravel.

A Play About War...Relatively Speaking. A tragicomedy set in the home of a wealthy New England family, circa 1965, who have recently suffered the loss of their eldest son to the war. An absurd twist on the drawing room comedy in the manner of Albee, Wilde, and Coward. ‘…unique from many other plays about the effects of war on families.’ offoffonline.