Kim E. Ruyle

Kim E. Ruyle

Kim E. Ruyle is a playwright based in Wisconsin. He is a member of The Dramatists Guild of America, The Playwrights’ Center, Chicago Dramatists, and is an alumnus of the Kennedy Center Playwriting Intensive and the Producer Development & Mentorship Program Master Class through Theatre Resources Unlimited. Tennessee Wet Rub is a winner of AACT’s 2024 NewPlayFest. A Crooked French Affair was produced as...
Kim E. Ruyle is a playwright based in Wisconsin. He is a member of The Dramatists Guild of America, The Playwrights’ Center, Chicago Dramatists, and is an alumnus of the Kennedy Center Playwriting Intensive and the Producer Development & Mentorship Program Master Class through Theatre Resources Unlimited. Tennessee Wet Rub is a winner of AACT’s 2024 NewPlayFest. A Crooked French Affair was produced as part of World Premiere Wisconsin. Kim’s plays have garnered numerous awards and multiple productions. Playwriting is a second career for Kim. He had a career as a human resource executive and leadership development consultant before focusing on writing for the stage. Kim’s academic credentials include three master’s degrees and a PhD.

Plays

  • Yeah, Art Figures
    [One-Act]
    Frank, a math teacher distraught over the ignorance of his students, encounters and unloads on Joni, a substitute teacher, in the teachers’ lounge. In conversation with Joni and other teachers, Frank discovers that his ignorance, in some ways, surpasses that of his students.
  • Flannel Sheets and a John Deere
    [Full-Length]
    Woke meets reactionary when four factory coworkers meet in a hunting 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.
  • Mourning Woods Merengue
    [Full-Length]
    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...
    [Full-Length]
    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?
  • A Crooked French Affair
    [Full-Length]
    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...
    [Full-Length]
    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.
  • Tennessee Wet Rub
    [Full-Length]
    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 two young people, a white girl and a black male enter seeking...
    [Full-Length]
    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 two young people, a white girl and a black male enter seeking refuge. The values and compassion of Bertha and Hank are put to the test when a deputy sheriff arrives hunting for something or someone.
  • Love Lately
    [Full-Length]
    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...
    [Full-Length]
    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.
    NOTE: THIS PLAY WAS PREVIOUSLY TITLED, SENIOR SWORDPLAY
  • Five Frickin Winters
    [Full-Length]
    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...
    [Full-Length]
    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.
  • Sliding into Seniorhood
    [Full-Length]
    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?
  • Kalispell
    [Full-Length]
    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.
  • He Ain’t No Stephen Adly Guirgis
    [10-15 Minutes]
    During an early rehearsal of Just Kill It, a dark mystery-horror mashup, an actor struggles with the shitty script she’s been given. She confronts her director which leads to surprising insights for both.
  • Va-Va-Vicarious
    [10-Minute]
    A pair of mismatched writers on a layover happen to meet in an airport frequent flyer lounge. As they discuss their approaches to living, loving, and writing, they reach a surprising conclusion.
  • It's Not Blood
    [10-Minute]
    Jimmy and Danny consider the past, the future, and their obligation to the family legacy as they prepare for their younger brother’s funeral.
  • Thalia's B&B
    [10-Minute]
    An emerging playwright and his wife explore the source of inspiration with the proprietors of a B&B.
  • Claire's Invisibility Monologue
    Claire’s Invisibility Monologue is one of a series of ~2-minute monologues inspired by Kalispell, a full-length play by Kim E. Ruyle that follows the insane dynamics of a dysfunctional logging family from Montana.