Larry Rinkel

Larry Rinkel came to playwriting after teaching college English and then working as a technical writer, a career from which he retired in 2014. A lifelong devotee of art, theatre, film, and classical music, he has had plays produced all over the United States.

His full-length "A Kreutzer Sonata," about a talented Jewish piano student, was awarded Best Play at the Secret Theatre’s 2017 UNFringed Festival and received its Long Island premiere in December 2019. Other produced plays include adaptations from Chaucer and Dante, a farce about gender-blind casting in Shakespeare, several (mostly gay) romantic comedies, and several 1-minute plays including a very cute one about Chopin’s Minute Waltz.

Scripts

Available for Freelance Dramaturgy

Artistic Statement

Recommended by

Let Me Know If I Hurt You

by Dave Osmundsen

A touching one-man show in which 18-year-old Bob, with a crush on Broadway star Alex Margulies, is at first encouraged and seduced but eventually rejected by the "star" who cruelly gaslights him. I don't know enough about autism to know if Bob meets a clinical definition, but he's obviously confused and unable to make sense of Alex's behavior, leading him to send increasingly accusatory messages and thus scaring his intended lover off. Like others here, I saw a filmed presentation in which Osmundsen played multiple roles - the highly relatable Bob, his mother, his friend Chloe, and Alex...

A touching one-man show in which 18-year-old Bob, with a crush on Broadway star Alex Margulies, is at first encouraged and seduced but eventually rejected by the "star" who cruelly gaslights him. I don't know enough about autism to know if Bob meets a clinical definition, but he's obviously confused and unable to make sense of Alex's behavior, leading him to send increasingly accusatory messages and thus scaring his intended lover off. Like others here, I saw a filmed presentation in which Osmundsen played multiple roles - the highly relatable Bob, his mother, his friend Chloe, and Alex himself.

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DISMANTLING PROSPERO

by Tom Rowan

Tom Rowan knows dance, knows Shakespeare, and knows the culture wars dominating college life today. Plays about dance are rare, and this one will require casting from actors who are also capable dancers. Plays about today's academic environment are perhaps less rare, but Rowan creates a compelling drama in which racism and cultural appropriation dominate this story of an uncompromising college professor determined to choreograph a version of Shakespeare's "Tempest." Although the outcome leads to the destruction of the professor's career, this timely play should lead audiences to question all...

Tom Rowan knows dance, knows Shakespeare, and knows the culture wars dominating college life today. Plays about dance are rare, and this one will require casting from actors who are also capable dancers. Plays about today's academic environment are perhaps less rare, but Rowan creates a compelling drama in which racism and cultural appropriation dominate this story of an uncompromising college professor determined to choreograph a version of Shakespeare's "Tempest." Although the outcome leads to the destruction of the professor's career, this timely play should lead audiences to question all sides of this contentious debate.

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Vegetables are Revolting!

by Morey Norkin

Though I hate the word "veggies" and have never been on speaking terms with an eggplant, Morey Norkin offers a sprightly and very punny tour through the produce section. Read this cute little TYA play and die, con, laughing.

Though I hate the word "veggies" and have never been on speaking terms with an eggplant, Morey Norkin offers a sprightly and very punny tour through the produce section. Read this cute little TYA play and die, con, laughing.
Intricacies, Death and the Oxford Comma

by Scott Sickles

"A horse, a horse, my kingdom ..." As a firm proponent of the Oxford comma and an amused observer of British royalty, I enjoyed Sickles's implication that the royal family is no more worthy of rule than a bunch of equine posteriors. Sickles nails the characters of the poor King who has waited all his life only to be near the end of it, as well as his horsey sister. And he does so in much less time than "The Crown." PS: Note the absence of the Oxford comma in the title, and its presence on page 4 - clever!

"A horse, a horse, my kingdom ..." As a firm proponent of the Oxford comma and an amused observer of British royalty, I enjoyed Sickles's implication that the royal family is no more worthy of rule than a bunch of equine posteriors. Sickles nails the characters of the poor King who has waited all his life only to be near the end of it, as well as his horsey sister. And he does so in much less time than "The Crown." PS: Note the absence of the Oxford comma in the title, and its presence on page 4 - clever!
Leave It

by William J. Goodwin

No doubt we all have fond memories of those dopey 1950s TV sitcoms where the stakes were never more serious than who forgot to clean the dishes that night. With similarities to Bert Royal's Peanuts-based "Dog Sees God," Bill Goodwin brilliantly updates "Leave it to Beaver" to recreate an angry and bitter imaginary meeting between Lumpy and the Beave at the Vietnam Memorial in DC, after Wally's death in the Vietnam War. There is no reconciliation between these two survivors, but watch for the healing touch of Wally's jacket at the end. Perfect punning title too.

No doubt we all have fond memories of those dopey 1950s TV sitcoms where the stakes were never more serious than who forgot to clean the dishes that night. With similarities to Bert Royal's Peanuts-based "Dog Sees God," Bill Goodwin brilliantly updates "Leave it to Beaver" to recreate an angry and bitter imaginary meeting between Lumpy and the Beave at the Vietnam Memorial in DC, after Wally's death in the Vietnam War. There is no reconciliation between these two survivors, but watch for the healing touch of Wally's jacket at the end. Perfect punning title too.

View all 303 recommendations

Larry Rinkel

Scripts

Let Me Know If I Hurt You

DISMANTLING PROSPERO

Vegetables are Revolting!

Intricacies, Death and the Oxford Comma

Leave It