The Bremen Town Musicians

One-Act
Cast: 13 flexible, opt. extras
Performance Time: Approximately 30 minutes, 28 pgs.

CLASSIC/COMEDY. Three traveling minstrels arrive at a town where everyone hates minstrels. With nothing but their own shoes to eat, the minstrels have to come up with a story entertaining enough to earn their supper. The minstrels decide to tell the villagers the story of an aging donkey, dog, cat, and rooster who run away from their masters and head to the Town of Bremen to become famous singers and musicians. Along the way, the animals encounter a tiny house hidden in the woods where a band of dimwitted thieves are hiding out with piles of stolen treasure and an abundance of food. With their “beautiful” singing voices, the animals manage to scare off the thieves, enjoy a grand meal, and live out their lives happily ever after. Audiences of all ages will adore this humorous version of the classic tale by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm.

Available through Big Dog Plays.

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The Emperor’s New Creme Brûlée

One-Act
Cast: 3 M, 6 F, 8 flexible, opt. extras (Doubling possible.)
Performance Time: Approximately 45 minutes, 40 pgs

COMEDY. Inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” An English biscuit manufacturer has its sights set on stealing the dessert recipes of the most celebrated Parisian restaurant so that they can develop the desserts into mass-produced snacks sold in gas stations around the world. Two British con artists arrive at Emperor’s Restaurant and pretend to be world-renowned French chefs who have discovered the secret to the making the world’s finest crème brûlée while studying with monks in Tibet. They convince the restaurant’s owner and staff that their recipe is so divine that only a true connoisseur can taste or see their masterpiece. Delighted to offer such a heavenly dessert on the menu, the restaurant’s owner invites only the most prestigious Parisians to sample the dessert. When the patrons arrive, they are proudly presented with empty dessert dishes. The patrons eagerly “taste” the crème brûlée and offer rave reviews. It is only Emile, the restaurant’s lowly dishwasher, who realizes something is fishy…and it isn’t the bouillabaisse!

Available through Big Dog Plays.

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Dummling and the Golden Goose

One-Act
Cast: 3 M, 9 F, 5 flexible (Doubling possible.)
Performance Time: Approximately 45-60 minutes, 45 pgs.

COMEDY. Audiences of all ages will enjoy this wacky adaptation of the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale, “The Golden Goose.” It’s Queen Phillipa’s birthday and she is too busy with royal decrees, paperwork, and meetings to have fun, celebrate her birthday, or spend time with her daughter. An unemployed jester looking for a good dental plan arrives and convinces the Queen to take a break from her tedious castle duties and listen to a story. In the story, a King and his Advisor have tried everything to get Princess Muriel to laugh, including silly jokes, silly noises, silly faces, silly dancing, and even silly walking. Desperate, the King decides to Tweet and Facebook citizens in surrounding kingdoms to find someone who can make his daughter laugh. Meanwhile, Dummling encounters a hungry stranger, gives her some of his stale bread, and is rewarded with a magical golden goose. While on his way to the city, Dummling runs into his stepmother, three milkmaids, a damsel, and a knight who soon find themselves hopelessly stuck to Dummling’s golden goose. When Dummling and his entourage arrive at the King’s palace, Princess Muriel only has to take one look at this ridiculous spectacle before she bursts out laughing!

 

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The Grateful Beasts

One-Act
Cast: 4 M, 4 F, 17 flexible, opt. extras (With doubling: 3 M, 2 F, 17 flexible)
Performance Time: Approximately 45-60 minutes, 49 pgs

COMEDY. Inspired by the story “Stone Soup.” In this play within a play, a crafty traveler with a flair for storytelling arrives at a village and has to persuade some stubborn farmers to contribute a few of their prized vegetables to his soup pot. The traveler tells the farmers the story of Lionel, a charitable farm lad who saves the lives of five unfortunate animals. Determined to seek his fortune in the big city, Lionel ventures forth with five silver coins his mother gave him for his journey. Along the way, Lionel buys a loyal hunting dog, a faithful horse, a cat with an attitude, a blues-singing nightingale, and a bear who hates puns, saving them from a certain death. When Lionel reaches the city, he discovers that an evil ogre has transformed King Percival into a rat, taken over the kingdom, and has his sights set on marrying Princess Bianca. It is up to Lionel and his animal friends to recover a magic wishing ring and save the kingdom from the clutches of the selfish ogre.

Available through Big Dog Plays.

Read a free preview here.