Brent Alles

(One act play, roughly 25-30 minutes. 1M, 1F, 1E.) Martin Reynolds has one of the most unusual jobs on campus. Tucked away in a forgotten office, he spends his days helping the college maintain a sense of humanity in an increasingly automated world. But when an unexpected visitor arrives at his door, an ordinary afternoon becomes an exploration of literature, memory, loss, and the connections that shape our lives.

In October 1926, a hunting expedition ventures deep into Michigan’s Upper Peninsula in search of game. Led by the experienced woodsman Joseph Defago, Dr. Cathcart, his nephew James Simpson, and their companions enter the remote Black Pine region, a place whispered about in old Ojibwe stories. As strange cries echo through the wilderness and an unseen presence begins calling Defago by name, the hunters find themselves confronting something far older and more terrifying than any animal.

(One act play. Approximately 20-25 minutes. Also have 10-minute version.) When four present-day middle school students open a 1996 time capsule during a sparsely attended school assembly, they accidentally transport themselves back to the Nickels Middle School Homecoming Dance of 1996. While trying to recover a mysterious time-travel device from a cocky “cool kid” and his wannabe hip-hop hype man, the students must survive the Macarena, Surge soda, awkward slow dances, and the terrifying possibility of disrupting the timeline forever.

*SOON TO BE PUBLISHED BY NEXT STAGE PRESS! OCTOBER 2026* PLEASE REACH OUT TO PLAYWRIGHT IN THE MEANTIME IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN PUTTING ON A PRODUCTION OF THIS PLAY.

(Full length, two acts.) After the death of her second husband, 91-year-old CHRISTINE EVIGAN moves in with her estranged 71-year-old daughter EVELYN FOSTER. The comic friction starts immediately as we watch the trials and tribulations of these ACCIDENTAL ROOMMATES.

**NOW PUBLISHED WITH NEXT STAGE PRESS! Please use the link to see a sample of the script, order it there, or inquire about licensing. Thank you!**

(Full length play, 2 acts, roughly 90 minutes RT.)

It's a day like any other day for 13-year-old Jennifer "Jenny" Robinson: go to school, try to pass a test, and then come home and do her homework while trying to avoid her annoying kid brother. Except today is actually NOT like any other day, because today... is the LAST day... of the planet Earth! Jenny will survive thanks to her best friend Duncan Hines and then learn that the END of the world is only the BEGINNING of the adventure. Murderous teddy bears, panicked robots, and feline space pirates are only some of the wild things Jenny will encounter as she deals with the fact that she just may be THE LAST KID IN THE UNIVERSE.

**NOW PUBLISHED BY NEXT STAGE PRESS! Please use the link to go there for the script and licensing!** (Full length play, two acts.) MATT LOCKE lives a great life. He has a funny, beautiful wife - ABBY - and two smart, rambunctious kids - JIMMY and SAMANTHA. He's trying to run his own bed and breakfast, a lifelong dream of his. He even puts up with the well meaning but annoying next door neighbor TOBY whenever he barges in. However, all is not as it seems, as we learn the secret behind MATT LOCKE's life and what might bring the Locke Inn crashing down around him.

**NOW PUBLISHED BY NEXT STAGE PRESS!** (Full length play, two acts.) It's 1944 in Brooklyn, and while World War II rages overseas, back on the homefront, aspiring artist May Macy wants to break into the comic strip business. Her sister Ellen has a husband who's fighting in Europe. Ellen has a precocious 12-year-old son, Billy, who serves as May's latest inspiration. May's hoping her reporter friend Johnny Foster will be able to convince his boss Mr. Patson to give her comic strip a chance in his paper, the New York Daily Post. Then, one fateful day, aspiring pinup Betty Bump storms into May's life and changes everything.

(Full length play, roughly 90 minutes.) As Saint Francis of Assisi Parish in the small town of Remus, Michigan, prepares for its annual "Festival of the Saints," tensions rise, tempers flare, and everything that can go wrong... does. There's a no-nonsense nun running the pageant, a good-natured priest praying for a promotion, and a few unexpected sparks of romance between the parishioners. All that as the parish scrambles to pull off a minor miracle when a most unexpected visitor arrives. A heartfelt farce about faith, friendship, and finding grace in the chaos.

(Full length play, roughly 75-85 minutes, no intermission, 3F, 3M, 1-2 ANY, extras possible.) Five former child television stars reunite at a nostalgia convention, each carrying the weight of fame, failure, and unfinished history. When a sudden and mysterious crisis erupts inside the convention center, old rivalries and buried wounds must be set aside as the unlikely team is forced to rely on one another in ways they never have before.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Days 12-14 - CHILD STARS, YOU CHOOSE, SECOND CHANCES

(Full-length play, roughly 80-90 minutes with no intermission.) Longtime friends reunite for a (hopefully) relaxing getaway at a lakeside cottage only to have their plans unravel in unexpected (and comedic) ways. Awkward surprises, bizarre encounters, and escalating tensions send the weekend spiraling into revelations and ridiculousness. As the group confronts external threats and their own buried truths, will their friendship survive the madness? Or are they doomed to the horror of a weekend gone wrong?

(Full length play, two acts. Roughly 90 minutes, intermission possible between acts. 3M, 5F.) On the lonely American frontier, a family shelters in their isolated prairie cabin as night settles across the vast plains. But the darkness outside feels wrong, and strange signs begin to suggest they may not be as alone as they thought. As fear creeps in, the family must decide what they believe... and what they are willing to face before morning comes.

(Full length play in two acts, approximately 2 hrs.) For over 20 years, former NCAA football player Mike Davis has served as an assistant coach at Maplewood High School to beloved and successful Coach "Bud" Thompson, who sadly and unexpectedly passed away. Mike is subsequently hired as the head coach, and then the "fun" really begins. Mike not only has to satisfy an uptight, anxiety-ridden athletic director but also has to try to collaborate effectively with a newly hired (and slightly controversial) offensive coordinator and a defensive coordinator who just happens to be the son of the former head coach. Beyond that, Mike has to deal with his ex-wife and his estranged son. The latter plays on the team but doesn't exactly have his dad's aptitude for the sport. Throw in a star quarterback with troubles of his own, a head cheerleader who is determined to succeed at all costs, and an earnest "water girl" who loves the sport more than any of them and you have the slightly messy recipe for a seriocomic look at living up to expectations, what happens when we don't, and the complicated relationships between fathers and sons and sons and fathers.

(Full length play. Approximately 90 minutes. No intermission.) In an unremarkable Midwestern town, five actors (and many characters) confront the same extraordinary rumor: the world may be ending. As headlines grow stranger, sirens draw closer, and certainty slips through their fingers, each character wrestles with a different emotional response to the possibility of extinction (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance) though not always in that order, and never in the way you expect.

(Full length play.) For 11-year-old Danny Trooper, it's a new start at a new school after the devastating loss of his father in an overseas conflict. Danny will quickly make new friends and a few enemies at his new school, but none more important than Janet Starr, who will show Danny a portal into a world where myth is made real and the inspiration for everything that children love exists. Can Danny defend all that is good from the forces of evil and still make it home in time to catch the school bus?

(Full length, three acts.) It's been two years (in the "real" world) since young Danny Trooper first discovered ModMyth, the world where the inspiration for everything that kids love and fear exists. Now, it's time for Danny's father, the heroic G. I. Maxx, to keep a promise and take him to the "older" realms of mythology, specifically the Norse realms, the Hall of Valhalla, home of Odin, king of the Norse pantheon! Little does Danny know that the old trickster Loki has plans to bring down Asgard, but nothing will be as it seems as the forces of good and evil battle against each other with the multiverse in the balance.

(Two act play, approximately 2 hours.) DAN TROOPER is just your normal 25-year-old trying to live a normal life. He's got a promising job, a beautiful fiance', and overall a pretty comfortable existence. (If he can just remember to call his mother on occasion.) However, all that is about to be fractured as Dan is unexpectedly confronted by the adventures he had in childhood, adventures he can't seem to remember for some reason. But he needs to, or all of reality itself may be at stake. The adventure continues in DANNY TROOPER IN THE FORGOTTEN REALMS!

(Full length play, two acts, approximately 90 minutes.) Eight years ago, the unthinkable happened and the world forever changed. Now, the children of the earth sail the seven seas in majestic ships. Some sail for the light, others stay in the dark. Captain Alexander Kidd is going to use his "last great adventure" to find out what can be done about the state of the world. He and his crew on the Sea Sparrow will face great danger, not the least of which comes from the crew of the Black Thunder, lead by the Dread Pirate Declyn. Will Captain Kidd be able to make the greatest discovery ever? Or will he go down with the ship? Find out in the exciting adventure for all ages, THE FINAL VOYAGE OF CAPTAIN KIDD!

(One act play. Approximately 40 minutes.) "Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Support Group?" is a fast-paced one-act comedy that reimagines classic fairy-tale wolves as reluctant members of a modern support group, all trying (sometimes unsuccessfully) to overcome their infamous reputations. When a new wolf nervously joins the meeting, the group begins sharing their “true” stories, revealing that history, as recorded by villagers and fairy-tale newspapers, may not be entirely accurate.

(One act play, roughly 20 minutes.) Eli is ready to celebrate 4/20... National Stoner Day. Or is he? He is about to be visited by three... spirits... of a sort. Will he be able to find the true love of the bud in his heart?

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 1 Prompt: Opening Line “This [insert any holiday here] is going to be different

(One act play, approximately 25 minutes.) ANACHRONISM is a comedic noir stage play about Harvey Jacobson, a 1940s private eye who starts slipping between his own era and another after a mysterious accident. As he tries to solve a missing person case, he’s plagued by a wisecracking Inner Monologue that won’t stop narrating his every move and often gets him into trouble. Blending classic detective tropes with surreal humor and time-bending twists, the play explores memory, identity, and the absurdity of living in two worlds at once.

(Audio/radio play. Roughly 25-30 minutes.) In a world known as "The Zones," there are different "Eras," each one representing the pop culture and style of a decade in the Twentieth Century. In the Forties, a private detective known as HARVEY JACOBSON is about to get his next case. It's going to be much more than he ever bargained for.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 19 Prompt: NOIR
SUBTHEME: Use the line “EVERYTHING ABOUT HER WAS A LIE” somewhere in the work.

(One act play, approximately 20-25 minutes.) It’s the end of the world, and a scientist has created an artificial life form, B.E.A.U.T.Y., to try to keep what was beautiful about humanity alive after the species itself has apparently expired.

Set inside a fading video store, "Be Kind, Rewind" follows two people whose relationship becomes inseparable from the place where it begins. On the shop’s final day, an unexpected reunion triggers a series of rewinds through pivotal moments in their shared history, from first shifts and inside jokes to long nights spent surrounded by flickering screens and unwatched dreams. As the world shifts from tapes to streaming, the store transforms from workplace to sanctuary, and the line between past and present begins to blur. A love story about timing, endurance, and what it means to hold onto something long after its moment has passed.

(One act comedy. Approximately 50-60 minutes.) A blizzard shuts down I-75 in northern Michigan on Christmas Eve, stranding a mismatched group of travelers in a small-town truck stop, diner, and motel. Between a weary waitress, a washed-up cover band, and guests who never planned to spend the holiday together, unlikely connections form as the storm rages outside. Equal parts heartfelt and hilarious, "Christmas Eve at the Snowflake Falls Diner" is a one-act comedy about finding warmth, laughter, and maybe even love when plans go off the road.

(One act play, approximately 25-30 minutes.) In a plague-scarred future where survivors live deep underground, a restless young dreamer longs to see the surface and feel the sun. Their forbidden rituals of memory and play strain against the rules of a hardened elder and the fears of a reluctant friend. "I Dream of Sunrise" is a lyrical one-act about hope, loss, and the fragile light that survives even in the deepest dark.

(One act.) David goes out snowmobiling in a blizzard and finds his way to a bar that’s strangely open despite the conditions. He’s about to learn the secrets of why “It’s Dead in Here on Tuesdays.”

(One act audio play, approximately 30-40 minutes.) MI5 agent Dominic Sinclair is tasked with investigating a peculiar incident that recently occurred in the town of Sussexville. Teacher Gottfried Plattner found himself in a most unusual situation and is now sharing his story. In the end, Sinclair may not wish to hear it. (Based on the short story "The Plattner Story" by H. G. Wells.)

(One act play, roughly 30 minutes.) It begins with the funeral of John's mother. From there, we soon learn just what else happened in his life to drive him to the brink. Some will try to help him. Others will not. Can he ultimately find redemption? Time will tell.

TRIGGER WARNING: This play depicts attempted suicide. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please call 988 (in the United States) or text 741741 to speak to trained crisis counselors.

**Published by Lazy Bee Scripts. There is a link to obtain the play on this page. Performance rights can be negotiated with them as well. **

(One act play.) In the 1930's, the famous Linguini Brothers Circus travels from town to town, thrilling people with its fabulous acts. Chief among them is the great lion, Lionel, whose roar thrills and chills crowds wherever he goes. Lionel's young son, Barry, unfortunately, cannot roar like his dad, and he needs to find what he can do to be a "star" on his own. He'll make friends with a miming monkey named Marceau, a pygmy elephant named Chendra, and a sad clown named Canio, as they all try to find their own "star talent" to perhaps be the next circus star.

(One act.) They are the galaxy's greatest heroes, and they even clean their own litter box. CAPTAIN KAYATO (tabby) leads his motley crew of SAM ANTHA and DEAN NAH, twin sister tuxedo cats; "BIG" BILL, a large orange cat; and the human RIKKI ROCKET, a young girl who the Catsairs rescued from the evil Osaverans when they had abducted her and her parents. Together they traverse the galaxy, stealing back whatever the Osaverans have taken and giving it back to the rightful owners. Tune into the latest adventure of CAPTAIN KAYATO... AND THE CATSAIRS!

(One act play.) Inspired by the “Little Nemo in Slumberland” comic strips of Winsor McKay, this is the story of Nemo, who dreams himself into Slumberland at the request of Somnus, Lord of Slumberland. Oomp, an imp, helps Nemo begin his journey, and along the way Nemo will meet many fascinating characters, including Midori (a green kangaroo), Pokoko (a jester), and Cheecaumo (a fairy). His ultimate mission will be to save Somnus and his daughter the Dream Princess from the evil of Phobetor (ruler of the Nightmare Realm) and his minions Nyx and Erebus. Hopefully Nemo will find the courage... and the ability to fly in his dreams... to defeat the forces of nightmare before it's too late!

(One act play.) They are known throughout the land of Olympia: Zeus, Hera, Hades, Demeter, Amphitrite, Hestia, and Aphrodite. The Pantheon! Every year, they add one more to their ranks via Olympia's hottest "reality" TV challenge show: THE ULTIMATE PANTHEON CHALLENGE. This year the field of contestants is stronger than ever - Ares, Hephaestus, Hebe, Apollo, Artemis, Hermes, and even Dionysus - but there's one "dark horse" that may be able to win it all: "Kid" Heracles. A fun and funny spoof of reality television combined with Greek mythology can be found in KID HERACLES AND THE ULTIMATE PANTHEON CHALLENGE!

(One act play.) A loving homage to the “Dick Tracy” comic strip that’s run from the 1930’s until present day. The characters in this can all be played by young actors, however, as it's an alternate world where all the heroes and villains are kids! Thrill as Lake City's top "gumshoe" and his allies try to take down "Little Brat" Alfredo Caprese and his gang once and for all!

(Audio play, roughly 30-40 minutes.) A loving homage to the “Dick Tracy” comic strip that’s run from the 1930’s until present day. An audio play version meant for five actors playing multiple characters. Thrill as Lake City's top "gumshoe" and his allies try to take down "Little Brat" Alfredo Caprese and his gang once and for all!

(One act play.) A tabby cat. A brown howler monkey. A basset hound. And a lovable little lab mouse. Fate brought them together, and perhaps it will allow them to save each other. Escape from the prison that holds them is only the beginning of the adventure for the young mouse Sully and his new friends Jerry, Nina, and Margie. Along the way, they'll face mutated ravens, demonic feral cats, and the ever present specter of the lab they escaped from as they try to make it to "The Safe Place"... before it's too late. SULLY'S JOURNEY begins with a single step into darkness but ultimately shines with the light of the power of friendship and community.

(One act play.) Brian, Lilly, and their mom Julie travel to a cottage on a lake in Northern Michigan. Brian is at first bored but while participating in some "forced fun" by his mother, he encounters Wendy, a girl who lives next door and seems to harbor a dark secret. The rest of the week will bring other surprises as Brian and Lilly discover just what exactly is going on... with the Little Girl Down by the Lake.

(One act play.) A tragedy strikes Superior City as its main superhero team, the Superior Society, vanishes from the face of the planet in a battle with their archnemeses, the Sinister Squadron. They leave behind their able sidekicks: Sparrow, Van and Vanna (the Extra-Terrestial Kids), Mighty Mutt, Micro Kid, and Sammy "Snap" Smith. However, the villains left behind their minions - Sykko Fant, Castor and Pollux (the Gemini Twins), El Maton, E-22-9-12, and Merry Andy. Sykko is going to try to lead the minions into new villains... will our sidekicks be able to rise to the challenge and stop them before it's too late? A fast and funny homage and loving spoof of Saturday morning superhero cartoon shows and an examination of what it means to "move up" in the world.

(One act, approximately 30-40 minutes.) Based on the short story by Rudyard Kipling, this is the story of one brave young mongoose, RIKKI TIKKI TAVI, and how he overcomes personal loss and manages to become the supreme protector of a human family and all the animals that live in the garden around their house. Squabbling but loving Tailorbirds DARZEE and DARZINA and a cowardly but sympathetic muskrat CHUCHUNDRA become friends to RIKKI as he battles the likes of NAG, NAGAINA, and KARAIT, snakes in the garden that would like nothing more than to see the mongoose GONE... one way or another. A fun and exciting telling of the Kipling tale (tail?) for all audiences.

(Short play, 1-2 minutes.) A PLAYWRIGHT reaches the end of a very long journey... 28 days, to be exact. His SPOUSE is ready for it to be over as well, but for very different reasons.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 28 Prompt: FINAL LINE: “I don’t believe you.”

A human experiment in folding.

Written as part of the Playwrights Thriving Playwright's Delight 2025 Event.

(10 minute play.) In the early 1990s, theirs was the love story that set the pop music world on fire. Every magazine and tabloid in the world seemed to have them on their covers at some point in time. Paula Abdul… and M-C Skat Kat. Everything was magical… until it wasn’t. On this "episode" of Rockumockumentary: “Opposites Attract… the Aftermath.”

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 3 Prompt: "OPPOSITES ATTRACT - A TWO HANDER"

(10 minute play.) CHARLIE and MARY prepare to celebrate their “special” Valentine’s Day together at the Italian ristorante.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 14 Prompt: HORROR/PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER

(Short play, 1-2 minutes. 1M, 1F.) Time for Mara's annual review. And Greg's, strangely enough.

Written for Facing February 2026: Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 22 - Power Shift

(10-minute play.) EMMA, a new recruit to Midvale University and their Women’s Gymnastics Team, meets her new roommate, KARA, an experienced member of the team and someone who definitely has some new perspective to share.

(10 minute play.) Young Beth has her first visit to the dentist’s office. Her mother Mary accompanies her. She must be brave.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 6 Prompt: BRAVERY

Lieutenant Jenny Robinson of Star Force awakens from stasis on a trip to Mars only to discover that nature is going to have its revenge… even in space… where no one can hear you scream.

(Ten minute play. 2F, 1M. For Young Audiences and Performers.) After a hard day at school, young Beth meets Chester the Nightfly: a wisecracking, magical visitor who helps her discover courage, confidence, and the strength to use her voice. A warm and whimsical short play for young audiences about bravery, kindness, and being heard.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge: Day 20 - Youth Play

(Short play - 7 pages, approximately 5-7 minutes.) Brett and Camilla go for a walk in the park. Camilla more willingly than Brent.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 13 Prompt: A BENCH PLAY

(Short Play, Approximately 3-5 minutes.) UNCLE is back again with his niece BETH. Last time, it was Barbies. This time? World domination.

Written for Facing February 2026: Play a Day Playwright Challenge – Day 9 - RISK

(10-minute play) LARA STEELE, famous for playing "Commander Zeta" on the sci-fi show _Chance Encounter_, finds herself trapped in an elevator with her biggest fan, MARK. She could perhaps indulge his fandom... but she may indeed rather prefer plunging to her death.

(Short play, approximately 3-5 minutes.) EDDIE and MARGIE are closing up the diner for the night. Time for their usual ritual.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 25 Prompt: DANCE

(Audio play, 10 minute.) A police deputy takes an author out into the northern Michigan wilderness on a cold winter night. The unexpected then occurs.

(10-minute play.) EMMA, a young woman, is fleeing from a masked killer, "MAD" MARTY", in the woods. All is not as it seems, however, and "MAD" MARTY is about to find out just why EMMA is the "Final Girl."

(10 minute play. 1F, 1M.) Emma is back and once again in the clutches of a mad serial killer. But will she be able to turn the tables once again? TIME... will tell.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 23 - One Hour to Midnight

(10 minute play. 2M, 1F.) "Erstwhile" imagines a fictional late-1970s meeting between aging former film actress Mary Anderson and a counterculture filmmaker who arrives to interview her about roles she once played. Along the way, she reminisces about the career she believes she should have had. As their conversation unfolds, Mary clings to an idealized version of her Hollywood past while the irreverent director unintentionally punctures her carefully curated mythology. A comic yet slightly melancholic exploration of memory, ego, and the stories artists tell themselves to survive time’s passage. And maybe smoke some weed.

Written for 2026 Playwrights Thriving Playwright's Delight - Erstwhile!

(10 minute play. 2M, 1F.) "Erstwhile (Cat Version)" imagines a fictional late-1970s meeting between aging former film cat-ress Mary Anderpurr and a counterculture filmcatter who arrives to interview her about roles she once played. Along the way, she reminisces about the career she believes she should have had. As their conversation unfolds, Mary clings to an idealized version of her Meowlywood past while the irreverent director unintentionally punctures her carefully curated catology. The encounter becomes a comic yet slightly melancholic exploration of MEMORY (ALL ALONE IN THE MOONLIGHT...), ego, and the stories artists tell themselves to survive time’s passage. And when it's time, indeed, to clean the litterbox.

Written for Facing February 2026 Day 2 - Cats!

(10 minute play.) Henry holds a rummage sale of his most precious things. Unfortunately, everything must go.

(Short play, approx. 2-3 minutes.) A MAN and a WOMAN discuss beauty and art.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 4 Prompt: "BEAUTY"

(Short play, approx. 10-12 minutes.) Five individuals are chosen for a unique focus group for marketing research. No idea is a bad idea… even in the worst of times, right? They're about to find out. Hopefully they'll be able to... FOCUS.

(10 minute play.) Out on a date, BECKY takes a drunken BOBBY to her grandparents’ fallout shelter. Bobby thinks he’s about to get lucky, but he’s about to find that his luck is indeed about to change as Becky reveals just why she brought him to “shelter.”

A couple choose to spend their twentieth anniversary by traveling the complete length of the fabled Route 66. They stop for gas at a filling station that looks like it's right out of the 1960s. That quaint discovery turns dark very quickly, and Jerry and Karen are going to have to fight for their lives against a couple of guys who are just looking to get their "kicks."

(Short play, roughly 3 minutes.) A HUSBAND and a WIFE have a brief conversation... about a list.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 23 Prompt: LISTS

(10 minute play. 3F, 1M.) On Christmas Day, Margaret and her three adult children retreat to the kitchen for their long-running “Kowalski Gift Exchange,” a private family tradition filled with humor and history. When a familiar gag gift reappears, it revives years of family folklore tied to moments of unexpected change. We're left with one final question, perhaps: when do we let traditions go?

Written for FACING FEBRUARY PLAY A DAY CHALLENGE 2026: Day 1 - Family Folklore

(One minute play. 7 characters - any gender.) Mmm... pudding.

(10-minute play.) DEB is tasked to direct the annual Talent Show at the Sunny Haven Senior Living Facility. Chaos ensues.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 18 Prompt: AGING

(Short play. Approximately 5 minutes. Three characters - any gender, any background.) A modern rumination on Kahlil Gibran's "On Religion." Starring the poet himself. And a priest. And a young person seeking guidance. Wrestling with angels.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Challenge - Day 4 - Religion

(One act play, approximately 15 minutes.) Terry has to start the cleaning process after the death of her husband. As she does, she discovers some secrets that she may not be ready to face.

NOTE FOR READERS: This play deals with issues regarding suicide but does not depict the act of suicide. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please call 988 (in the United States) or text 741741 to speak to trained crisis counselors.

Hamlet and Ophelia have an unexpected meeting.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 10 Prompt: OPHELIA

(One minute play. 1M, 1F, 1E.) "You don’t understand what this does to a person. You don’t understand how small it makes me feel. And maybe one day you’ll realize how unfair this all is. But right now? Right now… you just don’t GET IT."

Written for Facing February 2026 - Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 8 - Last Line: "So… that went well."

(10 minute play.) An UNCLE has some unexpected conversation with his NIECE while they both play with her Barbie dolls.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 16 Prompt: WOMEN'S MENTAL HEALTH

An exploration of family dynamics and loss, "Rocking in 4/4 Time" centers on an eccentric father who believes his
trusty rocking chair can propel him through time, much to the exasperation of his grown children, Mary and Brett. The
siblings attempt to manage his antics while grappling with their shared grief over their mother's absence. Ultimately, the family finds solace in the simple passage of time and the steady rhythm of togetherness.

(Short play. 5-10 minutes. 2M, as many EMUS as you like)

War is hell. Especially against the emus.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 15 - HISTORY

(10 minute play. 1F, 1M, 1E.) In a correctional facility, two strangers meet for a restorative justice session that challenges both to confront the aftermath of violence. The play explores grief, accountability, and the struggle to find hope and meaning in the face of tragedy, set against an all too regular occurrence in contemporary America.

TRIGGER WARNING: Discusses (but does not depict) school shootings.

Written for Facing February 2026: Play a Day - Day 3 - America

(10 minute play. 1M, 1F. One M voice that can be prerecorded.) Late one night, a man awakens to discover his smart devices behaving in unsettling and inexplicable ways, responding before he acts and revealing things they should not know. As the night unfolds, the boundary between technology and identity begins to blur, forcing him and his partner to confront a chilling question: in a world shaped by constant "optimization," what does it truly mean to remain yourself?

(One minute play.) A "cultural exchange" activity. What will happen?

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 11 - SONG: Der Weg by Herbert Gronemeyer

(10-minute play. 1F, 1M, 1E.) A short dramatic portrait of disco era icon Evelyn “Champagne” King at the moment her signature song is born... and then the long echo that follows. Beginning in the recording studio as “Shame” takes shape, the play moves through key moments of Evelyn’s life and career, tracing the tension between early promise, industry upheaval, and the quiet resilience of an artist who never stopped singing. The fact that she never hit #1? That certainly is... a shame.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge: Day 6 - Shame

15-MINUTE PLAY. Sir Jay and Sir Kay are Knights of the Realm who find themselves holed up in what's left of a castle with a dragon bearing down on them. But all is not as it seems...

(One minute play. Three characters.) Tensions escalate at a Tim Horton's one morning.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 21 - An Apology

Spring Break (Forever) is a darkly comedic horror play that follows four college students who take a wrong turn and end up stranded in Marrow Bay, a strange beach town that doesn’t appear on any map. They quickly meet a group of overly friendly spring breakers who seem stuck in the 1960s. As the students discover the town’s sinister secret, they must choose between joining the eternal party or facing a dark fate. Blending retro beach movie tropes, 60s surfer slang, and creeping dread, "Spring Break (Forever)" builds to a chilling, chant-filled finale that leaves one terrifying question hanging: "To chug or not to chug?"

(1-2-minute play.) JAKE attends an Indian wedding reception with his date PRIYA. Nervous at first, he gets over his cultural shock with the help of the guests.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 5 Prompt: BOLLYWOOD - Salaam-E-Ishq

(10-minute play.) BRETT and CAMILLA have been married for 20 years. They're on summer vacation, and unfortunately for JENNY, a perky server at popular winery Chateau Chateau, they've decided to do some wine tasting. Thus begins JENNY's quest to provide something sweet enough for them to remember this vacation fondly... or at least to leave her alone.

(10-15-minute play.) A man and a woman have an unusual living arrangement in which they go on dates and then come home and tell each other about them, whether they want to hear about them or not. More will be revealed as they both delve into the wonders and horrors of the latest dating app: "Look-Up Hook-Up." Will their living arrangement survive?

(10 minute play.) BRIAN and his mother-in-law CHARLOTTE have a conversation. Just like they always do on Thanksgiving. Only this year... something's different.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 27 Prompt: DEATH AND GRIEF

(10 minute play.) In a scenario that probably WON'T be adapted by Disney, here is the tale of four brave socks in a sock drawer: TOBY, ARGYLE, STRIPEY, and LONE NO-SHOW. Learn about the hard life of being a sock and what hardships they might face. This play definitely puts its best foot forward. (We're very sorry.)

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 26 Prompt: INANIMATE OBJECTS

(10 minute play, approximately 9-10 minutes.) The Midvale Student Council meets for the first time after their new president was elected. Heaven help them.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 7 Prompt: ABUSE OF POWER

A group of teens gather in a suburban living room in October 1988 to celebrate an annual tradition. But when one of them insists on watching a "classic" horror film, the night takes an unsettling turn as friendships, obsessions, and urban legends collide in a darkly funny tribute to 1980s horror.

Inspired by "John Carpenter’s Halloween" for the 2025 Playwrights Thriving Spooky Writing Challenge

TRIGGER WARNING: Discusses (but does not depict) self-harm. Reader discretion advised.

(2M, 2F, 1E. One act play, approximately 15 minutes.) On what may be the last night on Earth, four scientists and a bartender gather in a nearly empty bar to reflect on the work they devoted their lives to and the ideas that ultimately failed to save the world. As they share drinks, regrets, and moments of dark humor, they confront what it means to try, to fall short, and to face the end together.

(4 person version also available in "Script Sample.")

(10-minute play.) A women finds herself in a strange posh hotel staffed by a concierge. Is he helpful? Harmful? All will be revealed as the woman confronts her past, present, and possible future.

(10 minute play.) CHARLIE GRUMBLEBOTTOM, a now retired gnome schoolteacher, resides in a nursing home for fairy tale characters: Sunnybrook Haven. Every day, Charlie makes his “rounds” around the halls of the home, but today will be a very different day as he discovers… The Last Wish.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 17 Prompt: MYTHICAL CREATURES, LEGENDS, AND FAIRYTALES

(One minute play.) A MAN creates an incredible model of one of our most well known cities. We'll see if it survives.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 20 Prompt: RANDOM PHOTO

(10-15 minute play.) Hockey fans Bret and Rob get into comic mishaps, misunderstandings, and mischief at the good old hockey game.

(10 minute play. 1M, 1F. 1 offstage voice.) DAN and MARA are staying at a "quaint" motel in northern Michigan. They're thinking of ordering some room service. Maybe they'll try... the House Special.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge: Day 24 - MOTEL/HOTEL

EVAN and LENA have their first date. But time... is running out.

(TRIGGER WARNING: Brief mention but no depiction of assault.)

ALEX is determined to beat the NYC Subway Challenge world record time but is about to have a meeting with JAMIE: a friendly, easygoing stranger who’s about to present a major crossroads.

(10-minute play) A man finds himself in another realm and having to make an impossible choice. Which way will he choose? And will we find out what happens to the giraffes?

10-minute play. A chance encounter between Mark, a grocery delivery person, and Nina, seemingly a creature of the night. What dark secrets are held in her dance? Can Mark save her... from herself?

(One act play, roughly 10-15 minutes.) Five strangers wake up in a strange room. Filled with regrets. There will be... A RECKONING.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 22 Prompt: GUILT AND REGRET

(10 minute play. 2M, 2F, 1E.) Corporate drones gather outside a room with an ominous and/or mysterious sign. What's the buzz all about anyway?

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 28 - THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENED

(10-minute play.) BETH finds herself in detention. Her teacher, MR. MIDDLETON, is willing to cut a deal with her. Actually pay attention to Shakespeare's Sonnet 130, try to understand it, god forbid APPRECIATE it, and he'll end detention early. We'll see if BETH is able to endure some Shakespearean interpretation and if the teacher can actually learn something from the student for once.

(Short play. Roughly 7-10 minutes. Four characters - two men, two women.) In a shadowed space between memory and truth, two selves of a man and two selves of a woman face the love that bound them and the fractures that broke them. As past and present collide, they search the wreckage for forgiveness, wholeness, and a way to live with the people they once were. And the ones they remain.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 17 - Who I Used to Be

(Short play, approximately 5-10 minutes. 2M) MICHAEL contemplates an important discussion and gets counsel from FATHER THOMAS. While in the refracted light of a stained glass window.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 27 - The Window

(10-MINUTE PLAY) George, trying to "kill time" while his wife shops, finds himself alone in an interesting store on the outskirts of the mall. The shopkeeper of this particular establishment offers potables... very intriguing potables indeed. If George chooses to imbibe, he might just find out that he's in for more than he ever expected. Are some things better left unlearned? George just might discover the answer to that when he learns about TIME IN A BOTTLE.

(11-13 minute play. Also available as audio play - see "Script Sample" for that.) RACHEL, a recently divorced mother of two - BEN and MARY - is forced to take her kids to the truck stop restaurant on Christmas Day for dinner, as nothing else is apparently open. While there, they meet a long-suffering server at the restaurant, LINDA, who can definitely use some festive Christmas cheer.

(One act play, roughly 15-20 minutes.) "Unbelted" takes place backstage at Madison Square Garden on Christmas Day, moments after a high-stakes professional wrestling match. An aging fan favorite confronts the reality of losing his long-held spot in the spotlight, while his wife (a former wrestler herself) urges him toward a different kind of future. As a young champion revels in his victory and a tech-billionaire promoter pushes for the next big storyline, the older wrestler faces a deeply personal choice about who he is and what comes next. "Unbelted" explores legacy, identity, and the pull between the life we’ve built and the life we dream we still have left.

Written for the 2025 Playwrights Thriving Secret Santa Title Exchange

(10-minute play.) It's 4:30 a.m., and that means it's time for the morning news at station WKUP in Grand Rapids, MI! MYLA CHESLOCK and TED BONNICK are your anchors, JERRY FINE is the floor news director, the nine months' pregnant ABRIL DESIR covers weather and traffic, and MIRANDA LOKA covers local interest stories. There's a lot that can go wrong at 4:30 in the morning, and pretty much everything does in WAKE UP WITH WKUP.

(10 minute play. 2M.)

A man is coached by the Ghost of Doctor John. Or is he?

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 26 - Wrong Room Wrong Time

(Monologue. Approximately 3-5 minutes.) A man recounts how he got to know Nick Nolte much more... intimately.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 10 - Photo Prompt

Use the words assigned to you to describe your current existence, they said. All right. Here goes.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 11 Prompt: MAGIC FIVE

(Monologue, approximately 2-3 minutes.) Ground control to Major Tom... it's time for your last meal.

A speaker ponders his life at various points in time, all at Lookout Point.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 15 Prompt: SHORT FILM INSPIRATION

(Monologue, approximately 6-9 minutes.) A MAN reflects on a friendship of his from many years ago. Reflects on what he lost back in those days. And hopes to God he doesn't lose again.

TRIGGER WARNING: DIscussion of suicide (no depiction).

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 2 Prompt: "COMING OF AGE"

(Monologue. Approximately 1-2 minutes.) A person discusses how bad weather managed to take care of something that bothered them for quite a while now. If only there were some sort of... sign... that could have predicted that.

Written for Facing February 2026 - Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 7 - FIRST LINE: “Before you ask... yes, it was an accident, but no, I don’t feel bad.”

(Monologue. Roughly 3-4 minutes.) A speaker shares their new diary experience.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 24 Prompt: DEAR DIARY

(Monologue. Roughly 1-2 minutes.) Two cups... always two.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 5 - Haunting

(Monologue. Approximately 3-5 minutes.)

The whistle is truth. The whistle is life. The whistle is... EVERYTHING.

Written for Facing February 2026 Play a Day Playwriting Challenge - Day 25 - Whistle Blower

A speaker wrestles with the concepts of Yeats.

Facing February: Writing Prompts for Playwrights - 2025
Day 21 Prompt: WRITE A MONOLOGUE (BONUS POINTS: WRITE FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF AN UNRELIABLE NARRATOR)