Claudia Haas

Claudia Haas

Claudia focuses on theatre for young audiences and inter-generational audiences. She is a recent winner of American Alliance for Theatre Education’s ‘Distinguished Play Award” for “My Brother’s Gift.” She was an O’Neill Conference semifinalist for her 9/11 play Making Some Noise. Her plays have been widely produced in all fifty states as well as on six continents. Her youth plays have been developed through...
Claudia focuses on theatre for young audiences and inter-generational audiences. She is a recent winner of American Alliance for Theatre Education’s ‘Distinguished Play Award” for “My Brother’s Gift.” She was an O’Neill Conference semifinalist for her 9/11 play Making Some Noise. Her plays have been widely produced in all fifty states as well as on six continents. Her youth plays have been developed through NYU’s New Plays for Young Audiences - Steinhardt, The Growing Stage Children's Theatre (NJ), The Bonderman Symposium (now called “Write Now”), Purple Crayon Players (Northwestern University), the Playwrights-in-our-Schools grant and the Old Miner’s Children’s Playwriting Contest (Utah Valley University). Her adult plays have been work shopped with The William Inge Short Play Festival, Workhouse Theatre, Little Lifeboats and Theatre Pro Rata. Honors include winner of the Aurand Harris Memorial Playwriting Award, Anna Zornio Playwriting Competition, AATE’s Unpublished Play Reading Project, University of Central Missouri’s Children’s Playwriting Competition, East Valley Children’s Theatre Playwriting Competition, Jackie White Memorial Playwriting Contest and others. Fifty of her plays are published. She is a member of the Dramatist Guild of America, the Playwright’s Center of Minneapolis, Honor Roll Playwrights, and the American Alliance for Theatre Education. Claudia is currently finishing her States Anthology: short plays that take place on every state of the union designed for teens and young 20-somethings for use in the classroom.

Plays

  • Margot Chose Anne
    This play is a re-imagining of Margot’s brief life based on newly-surfaced photos of her. Rather than the depressed, “head always in a book” snapshot of Margot, the photos show an athletic, fun-loving teen enjoying the company of friends. It is always noted that she was a brilliant pupil which tells us that there was a very good intellect at play. So while the play is by no means a scholarly look at the life of...
    This play is a re-imagining of Margot’s brief life based on newly-surfaced photos of her. Rather than the depressed, “head always in a book” snapshot of Margot, the photos show an athletic, fun-loving teen enjoying the company of friends. It is always noted that she was a brilliant pupil which tells us that there was a very good intellect at play. So while the play is by no means a scholarly look at the life of Margot Frank, I hope I captured her spirit. And maybe moved her out of the shadow of her famous sister just a bit. I hope she doesn’t mind. Margot never sought the limelight. Looking to develop.
  • The United Plays of America - Louisiana - We Were Amazing
    A teen tourist bored with sightseeing encounters a spirit from another time and finds out that history is not all dates and dust. Some of it is amazing.
  • The United Plays of America - Alaska, Moose Lips
    The magic of moose lips...
  • The United Plays of America - Texas - Invasion of the Tumbleweeds
    A town near Lubbock, Texas found themselves surrounded by huge tumbleweeds - some so big that they couldn't leave their homes. Was it an invasion?
  • The United Plays of America - Iowa - Crashing Tulips
    Tulips and marriage, tulips and marriage go together like a horse and carriage... maybe.
  • The United Plays of America - Maryland - Under the Boardwalk
    BARRY tries to hook up his best friend STUFFY with CALLIE. CALLIE tries to hook up her best friend CAKE with BARRY. Oh. And they are all crabs.
    With a huge thank-you to WHEN HARRY MET SALLY.
  • The United Plays of America - Kentucky - Burgoo
    What makes the Kentucky dish "Burgoo" authentic? Maybe it's the eye of Newt.
  • The United Plays of America - Virginia - 1,000 Oysters
    They say if you eat 1,000 oysters, you'll find a pearl. Virginia's on a mission to see if that's true.
  • The United Plays of America - Alabama
    About a monkey and a proposal. Part of The States Collection of very short plays from every state in the USA.
  • The United Plays of America - Arizona
    A flight around the Grand Canyon. Appropriate for Zoom.
  • The United Plays of America - Connecticut - Flying Reindeer
    Santa's arrival on a tugboat in Mystic Seaport leaves one young person unimpressed.
  • The United Plays of America - Delaware
    Casey lives in a state where there are 200 chickens for every person. That worries her. A brief, silly play - because - chickens.
  • The United Plays of America - Idaho - Craters of the Moon
    One could commit the perfect murder here. Only, of course, if one is a murderer.
  • The United Plays of America - Indiana - All You Need is Love
    Another proposal by the famous "Love" statue in Indianapolis. At least, we think it's a proposal.
  • The United Plays of America - Kansas
    It's a twister. Time to take shelter. But Gayle has other ideas. She wants to go to Oz.
  • The United Plays of America - Montana - Where the Buffalo Roam
    It turns out that buffalo are NOT fond of the tourists at Yellowstone National Park.
  • The United Plays of America - Nebraska
    Xan is a corn farmer. Dan is a corn farmer. But something strange is happening to Dan. Can he be turning into an ear of corn? Part of a collection of very short plays set in every state in the USA. East to do outside, via zoom and with social distancing.
  • The United Plays of America - Nevada - The Loneliest Road in America
    Beth and Letia are on Highway 50, dubbed "The Loneliest Road in America" on a mission to scatter their mother's ashes. And that's when the fun begins.
  • The United Plays of America - New York
    SYLVIA makes her regular visit to Monet’s Water Lilies at the Met. She puts herself in the garden. MILLER is painting a replica of Monet’s masterpiece. He only sees the garden from afar.
  • The States Collection - Oregon - Fa La La La Llama
    Oregon may have the largest collection of llamas in the United States, but with climate change, the llamas (at least one llama) is starting to worry.
  • The United Plays of America - Rhode Island - I Want to be Brave
    13 year-old Maddie visits the lighthouse and home of Ida Lewis a lot. Maddie's hoping that Ida's bravery rubs off on her. Maddie really needs to be brave. Part of The States Anthology of short plays designed for classroom use by teens and young 20-somethings.
  • The United Plays of America - South Carolina
    A maybe once-in-a-lifetime trip to the beach. Part of a collection of fifty short plays taking place in every state in the USA.
  • The United Plays of America - South Dakota
    Two sisters scatter their mother's ashes in a sunflower field. Part of a collection of fifty short plays taking place in every state in the USA.
  • The United Plays of America - Washington State - December 26
    Leavenworth, WA tops every list as one of the prettiest Christmas towns in the USA. But what happens on December 26?
  • The United Plays of America - Wisconsin
    A poet and a duck meet on a bridge in Milwaukee. Appropriate for Zoom.
  • We Interrupt This Broadcast
    Guns. Only in the USA.
  • Ritual
    It's the day of the First Holy Communion. Eve knows things that Adam doesn't know. (Characters may be 8 years old but should be played by adult actors).
  • After the Garden
    On their 300th anniversary, Adam has a surprise for Eve.
  • Quarantined with Human
    I had a silly attack and wrote a one-minute play about a cat. It's always all about the cat. Super easy to do with zoom or social distancing.
  • 7 Weeks, 3 Days
    Emma visits her friend after 7 weeks and 3 days apart. It's awkward. She's awkward. Everything is awkward. Easy to do via zoom or social distancing.
  • Wish You Were Here
    It's Ashley's last evening in Paris. It's Jean-Louis's first evening back in Paris. Anything can happen when the street lights come on. It was published in an anthology Of "Bests" where I kept the rights. It has been updated. It takes place outside and easy to do with social distancing. It's also easy to do via zoom.
  • Just in Case Texts
    Ellie shares her texts with her best friend. Things are not always as they seem. A very, very short play.
  • Twenty Below
    A frigid walk around White Bear Lake, MN reveals a hidden mission.
  • A Kiss is Just a Kiss
    EVA blurts out that she would like JAKE to kiss her and all goes topsy-turvy with recollections of childhood and a possible love found – and lost.
  • Alice, Pursued by a Bear
    Alice has worked at keeping her anxiety at bay. But the more she hides it, the bigger BEAR gets. ALICE finally has to face BEAR.
  • A Tale of Two Ornaments
    Two ornaments on a Christmas tree are terrorized by a kitten. A short holiday play for teen actors. Easy to do via zoom and with social distancing.
  • It's Special
    A mother proudly shows her daughter all the "back-to-school" stuff she bought her. Very, very, very short play.
  • Sunday Sauce
    Giancarlo has died. Anna and Emilia run to Tess’s side to help her through this difficult time. But Tess is amazingly calm. Is the make-up of a family blood? Bones? Pasta and opera? If you’re Italian – it probably is.

    The play was written to address the waste of “fine wine” actresses (over 40) that are too often absent on the stage these days.
  • Letters from Lisette
    There is a story that Kafka found a young girl weeping in a park. He tried to console her, but she was bereft. She had lost her doll and would never get over it. Kafka announces that he has a letter that he found and he wonders if it could be from her doll. It was! And so began a three-week correspondence where Kafka wrote daily letters for the girl from her traveling doll. Her doll was not lost. She was merely...
    There is a story that Kafka found a young girl weeping in a park. He tried to console her, but she was bereft. She had lost her doll and would never get over it. Kafka announces that he has a letter that he found and he wonders if it could be from her doll. It was! And so began a three-week correspondence where Kafka wrote daily letters for the girl from her traveling doll. Her doll was not lost. She was merely traveling to see the world. The story might have gone something like this…
  • Almost Mary
    Newly edited version to expand the cast to twelve or more. Mary Anning is considered the first female paleontologist. She lived in Lyme Regis which is still a hotbed of fossils. She learned to find fossils at her father’s knee. After her father died, she continued to find fossils and sell them to help her family earn a meager living. This play chronicles her first big discovery at the age of twelve: an...
    Newly edited version to expand the cast to twelve or more. Mary Anning is considered the first female paleontologist. She lived in Lyme Regis which is still a hotbed of fossils. She learned to find fossils at her father’s knee. After her father died, she continued to find fossils and sell them to help her family earn a meager living. This play chronicles her first big discovery at the age of twelve: an ichthyosaur (fish lizard). Mary had little schooling but was a learner. She read incessantly, carefully chronicled and drew all of her findings. Her thirst for knowledge began at an early age (and was attributed to being hit struck by lightening although that is more lore than fact).

    Mary’s brother Joseph found a large (4 feet) fossil head. Mary believes that the entire fossil could be found and the play is about her efforts – against all odds – to do so.
  • Bound by Stardust
    Fourteen year-old Miranda dwells in the past. Any past – as long as the world is prior to her father’s death 2 years ago. Reeling from her mother’s remarriage, Miranda spends a week with her great aunt and acquaints herself with an ancestor from her father’s past – the Russian Polar explorer Otto Schmidt.

    In the confines of Elsie’s apartment, Miranda travels back and forth to the North Pole...
    Fourteen year-old Miranda dwells in the past. Any past – as long as the world is prior to her father’s death 2 years ago. Reeling from her mother’s remarriage, Miranda spends a week with her great aunt and acquaints herself with an ancestor from her father’s past – the Russian Polar explorer Otto Schmidt.

    In the confines of Elsie’s apartment, Miranda travels back and forth to the North Pole gleaning information about the nature of the universe, loss and ever-lasting presence. As Miranda visits Otto in the past, Elsie is struggling to maintain the equilibrium she is barely holding to since her sister’s death. Trying to keep her crushing anxiety at bay, Elsie tries to give Miranda remembrance and closure.

    But Miranda will have none of it. She turns to the stars and devises a physics theory that she thinks will bring her face-to-face with her father one more time. But it's problematic - in order for it to work you need to travel faster than the speed of light. During her debates with Otto about the origins of the universe, Miranda carves a way to bring her back into the world.
  • Soundscapes
    NOTE: The play has just been (beautifully) developed at NYU Steinhardt's New Plays for Young Audiences. A one-act version will be up by end of June.

    SYNOPSIS: Iris has synesthesia. She has no idea. She thought everyone saw colors and shapes when they listened to music. As she enters the tween years, she learns that it is not true and that others find her weird or wildly imaginative. As Iris...
    NOTE: The play has just been (beautifully) developed at NYU Steinhardt's New Plays for Young Audiences. A one-act version will be up by end of June.

    SYNOPSIS: Iris has synesthesia. She has no idea. She thought everyone saw colors and shapes when they listened to music. As she enters the tween years, she learns that it is not true and that others find her weird or wildly imaginative. As Iris tries to downplay this trait, she finds herself at war with herself over what is natural to her.
  • Making Some Noise
    Juliana, Emma and Nell see Nazis and terrorists around every corner. This is noted as the three sisters gather yet again for the anniversary of their mother’s tragic death on 9/11. What is the make-up of a life? Is it reduced to belongings and haphazard memories? They have basically been sitting Shiva every September 11th terror attacks. Juliana’s grieving tradition has taken a toll on her marriage. Emma who...
    Juliana, Emma and Nell see Nazis and terrorists around every corner. This is noted as the three sisters gather yet again for the anniversary of their mother’s tragic death on 9/11. What is the make-up of a life? Is it reduced to belongings and haphazard memories? They have basically been sitting Shiva every September 11th terror attacks. Juliana’s grieving tradition has taken a toll on her marriage. Emma who is always quick to please anyone is ready for a change. Things are turned upside down when Nell returns home and no longer wishes to continue the grieving tradition. The full length version was an Eugene O'Neill Semi-Finalist. 20 minutes.
  • Not in Our Town
    **This play is offered royalty-free for the 2022 Holiday Season. Message me for details.**
    A brick is thrown through a bedroom window of a five-year old boy. Someone was offended by a decal of a menorah in the window. The boy's parents are told to take down the decal and keep their menorah out of the window to stay safe. This does not sit well with the family or as it turns out with the townspeople...
    **This play is offered royalty-free for the 2022 Holiday Season. Message me for details.**
    A brick is thrown through a bedroom window of a five-year old boy. Someone was offended by a decal of a menorah in the window. The boy's parents are told to take down the decal and keep their menorah out of the window to stay safe. This does not sit well with the family or as it turns out with the townspeople of Billings, Montana. A true story of what happens when a town comes together to fight hate. The story of the transformation of the Skinhead is also true. The play offers the early days of the "Not in Our Town" movement which continues today. Play has been worked to comply with the rules of the High School One Act Play Contest: minimal set; 35 minutes; flexible cast of 7
  • My Brother's Gift
    SYNOPSIS: Anne Frank’s family and Heinz Geiringer’s family were neighbors in Amsterdam. After both Heinz and Margot were “called up” to work in a Nazi Labor camp, they went into hiding at roughly the same time. Anne Frank left a diary showing the difficulties of growing up in hiding. Heinz Geiringer left over twenty paintings and a book of poetry which show us both his hope for the future and the terror of the...
    SYNOPSIS: Anne Frank’s family and Heinz Geiringer’s family were neighbors in Amsterdam. After both Heinz and Margot were “called up” to work in a Nazi Labor camp, they went into hiding at roughly the same time. Anne Frank left a diary showing the difficulties of growing up in hiding. Heinz Geiringer left over twenty paintings and a book of poetry which show us both his hope for the future and the terror of the time. Heinz loved the arts. A trained musician, Heinz turned to painting and poetry to utilize his time. He painted on tea towels, pillowcases and any surface that he could find. During the play, we witness his artistic growth through his paintings, poetry and his sister’s remembrances. The paintings vary from a nostalgic love of the life he once led to the fears that were now part of his everyday existence. . From the tender age of fifteen to seventeen, Heinz created a body of work that exists to this day. The play covers the power of art under unconscionable circumstances and how art is part of our collective humanity to cope, to heal and to hope. A one-act version for the One Act High School Play Competition is also available.
  • Dear Anne, From Nina
    In 1940, a young Iowa farm girl picked the name of a pen pal out of a hat: Anne Frank. Their correspondence was brief but heartfelt. The play highlights the lives of four young girls as they come of age during the same time period but in vastly different circumstances. While Nina and Jeannie dream of escaping their Iowa farm home, Anne and Margot long for a world where they could live without restrictions and...
    In 1940, a young Iowa farm girl picked the name of a pen pal out of a hat: Anne Frank. Their correspondence was brief but heartfelt. The play highlights the lives of four young girls as they come of age during the same time period but in vastly different circumstances. While Nina and Jeannie dream of escaping their Iowa farm home, Anne and Margot long for a world where they could live without restrictions and hate. A one-act version appropriate for the High School One Act Competition is also available.
  • A Paper Forest
    Gary is sent to help Lucy plant a forest. But the forest is planted and Lucy needs art – fast-food art – to keep the deer from eating her fledgling-forest. This could be the last forest planted in Minnesota because the forest really wants to move into Canada. A tale of climate change and clinging to hope. Ten-minutes.
  • Fossil Lady
    In spite of discovering some of the more extraordinary fossil finds of her time, Mary Anning finds herself dismissed by scholars and in such dire straits that she is selling all her worldly goods.
  • Frosty the Rogue Man
    A short play about a catcalling snowman and the woman who tames him.
  • Of Butterflies and Roses
    The memorial service for CLARA and LAUREL’s mother is done. The last guest has left and LAUREL and CLARA are now picking up the last pieces of comfort they can muster in their newly-orphaned world.
  • Smile, Baby
    Karma on the street. Another very, very short play.
  • Fumble and the Fairies
    Fumble may be a bee but he is definitely not a "worker bee." When he meets Flutterby-the-Butterfly he decides to become her dancing partner and has a glorious summer dancing with the fairies. But then winter comes and Flutterby goes south and the fairies disappear. And the bees scorn him for his laziness. What's a non-working bee to do?