playS and MuSicalS - Contemporary Drama Service

Shakespeare Shortened
by DAVID R. WELLENS
Five condensed plays for the classroom
Cast: 7 to 14 each play, mixed
Playing time: 5 to 12 minutes each play
Complete playkit with 10 scripts and
rights to reproduce copies: $20.95
Order #R-P1796
Shakespeare’s Macbeth
adapted by ROBERT HEROLD
A student version of
Shakespeare’s classic tragedy
Cast: 27 to 35 roles, mixed (doubling possible)
Playing time: About 90 minutes
Performance rights for stage or classroom
granted with purchase of 15 or more scripts.
Order #R-R137 Script: $5.95
Shortened and simplified from the original, this
adaptation can easily be staged by young student
performers. All of the classic dialog passages and
soliloquies remain, retaining the basic beauty of
Shakespeare’s original Elizabethan version. After a
single reading, students will be able to understand the
characters, the plot and the subplots. Suggestions for
a simplified setting and costumes are included. May be
staged or used as a text for classroom use.
Shakespeare
New!
Five of Shakespeare’s most famous plays have been
condensed into easy-to-understand playlets for classroom
study and performance. Each play is translated into
modern language and abridged so that the characters are
still well developed, but only the key dialogue is retained.
For example, each act and scene of Hamlet is preserved,
but shortened such that Hamlet’s soliloquy ends with “And
by opposing, end them.” All of the important characters,
lines, and action are included to show Shakespeare’s
unique playwriting skills. Plays include: King Lear,
Hamlet, Macbeth, The Merchant of Venice and
Romeo and Juliet. A great way to introduce
Shakespeare and his characters to the classroom.
New!
www.contemporarydrama.com • toll-free 800-937-5297 • toll-free 24-hour fax 888-594-4436
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Super Short
Shakespeare Parodies
by CLIFF JURY
Ten hilarious 4-minute abridgements
of his most famous plays
Cast: 6 to 13 each play, mixed
Playing time: 4 minutes each, 40 minutes total
Complete playkit with 10 scripts and
rights to reproduce copies: $20.95
Order #R-P1798
What a fun way to introduce Shakespeare’s most famous
plays! These extreme abridgements cut right to the chase
by getting through the story and events of each play quickly
and concisely. Elizabethan English is used only occasionally
for comic effect, so that the humorous modern dialogue is
easily understood. The rapid-fire stage action and quick
entrances and exits make these plays fun to perform and
even funnier for the audience. Plays include: Romeo and
Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, The Merchant of
Venice, The Tempest, Julius Caesar, King Lear,
Henry V and Richard III. Even Shakespeare would laugh
at these clever parodies!
The Glory of the Tea Bag
by ROBERT THISTLE
A parody of Romeo and Juliet
in Shakespeare’s language
Cast: 3F, 3M
Age level: High School to College
Playing time: About 30 minutes
Complete playkit with 7 scripts: $20.95
Order #R-P1817
New!
Shakespeare himself opens this spoof where Romeo
Dinkledorf and Basilio Fumblebucket are about to shed
blood over the shape of a tea bag. The playwright brings
forth the fair Juliet to quell the violence. She beseeches her
brother and her love to stay their swords. But Romeo didn’t
study his lines and forgets who she is until she recites her
famous soliloquy. Then the sultry Penelope enters as
Basilio’s poison-bearer and love interest. But lo! Is Romeo
also besotted with Penelope? Even Shakespeare is smitten
by this new lady. He decides to rewrite the play, killing off
the other two guys so he can have her for himself. But
Queen Elizabeth appears, telling him it’s not fair. “Who
said life’s fair?” he replies. Full of funny lines and
humorous asides to the audience. This bawdy spoof has
been performed at Renaissance festivals across the U.S.
Easy to stage with one set, few props.