Do you have an abundance of actors who want to be involved in your next production? We’ve rounded up a list of 10 favorites that each boast a dozen or more speaking roles so you’ll have plenty of parts to go around.
Great for Community Theatres
Leopoldstadt by Tom Stoppard
Spanning fifty years and multiple generations, Leopoldstadt follows a family’s reckoning with a past it cannot escape and a future it cannot control. A passionate drama of love and endurance beginning in the last days of 1899 through the heart of the twentieth century, Stoppard’s customary wit and beauty shines through the enduring spirit of a family tested to its most extreme limits.
Roles: 14 men, 12 women, 5 boys, 4 girls
Junk by Ayad Akhtar
It’s 1985. Robert Merkin, the resident genius of the upstart investment firm Sacker-Lowell, has just landed on the cover of Time magazine. Hailed as “America’s Alchemist,” his proclamation that “debt is an asset” has propelled him to dizzying heights. Zealously promoting his belief in the near-sacred infallibility of markets, he is trying to reshape the world. What Merkin sets in motion is nothing less than a financial civil war, pitting magnates against workers, lawyers against journalists, and ultimately, pitting everyone against themselves.
Roles: 23 men, 6 women
Chimerica by Lucy Kirkwood
In 1989, Joe Schofield takes a picture of a Chinese civilian confronting four military tanks in Tiananmen Square—an image that would captivate the world for decades to come. In 2012, as China–US relations dominate presidential election debates, a mysterious message linked to the event appears in a Beijing newspaper. In response, Joe vows to uncover the story behind the unknown hero he photographed twenty-three years ago. A deft political thriller as well as a riveting personal journey, Chimerica explores the intertwining fortunes of two global superpowers.
Roles: 16 men, 18 women
Oslo by J.T. Rogers
Everyone remembers the stunning and iconic moment in 1993 when Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO Chairman Yasser Arafat shook hands on the South Lawn of the White House. But among the many questions that laced the hope of the moment was that of Norway’s role. How did such high-profile negotiations come to be held secretly in a castle in the middle of a forest outside Oslo? A darkly funny and sweeping play, Oslo tells the surprising true story of the back-channel talks, unlikely friendships, and quiet heroics that led to the Oslo Peace Accords between the Israelis and Palestinians. J.T. Rogers presents a deeply personal story set against a complex historical canvas: a story about the individuals behind world history and their all too human ambitions.
Roles: 11 men, 3 women
Last Round-Up of the Guacamole Queens by Jones Hope Wooten
In this deliciously funny Southern-fried comedy, the Verdeen cousins of Sweetgum, Texas — Gaynelle, Peaches, and Jimmie Wyvette — are up against the clock as they frantically attempt to produce the ultimate high school reunion before the old building is demolished. But they’ve got a bushel of obstacles to overcome before they can pull off this miracle: Gaynelle is reeling from the humiliating demise of her loathed ex-husband; Peaches’ romantic life has tanked because the older her dates get, the more horrified they are by her job as a mortuarial cosmetologist; and Jimmie Wyvette is trying to live down her on-camera catfight with a local televangelist. To top it all off, the cousins have got to impress a governor’s aide with their party-planning capabilities, so that they can nab the plum job of throwing the governor’s birthday bash — and keep their business afloat. Their scramble to prepare the perfect event is interrupted by the exploits of their beloved Uncle Aubrey, who is in danger of getting throttled by the two octogenarian sisters he’s simultaneously romancing, and by threats from their self-righteous Aunt LaMerle, who is determined to be crowned the final and forever Guacamole Queen of Sweetgum High. And that’s before one of Peaches’ former classmates arrives with a malevolent hand puppet and a score to settle, Jimmie Wyvette hog-ties the sheriff with police tape, the high school gym is blown away, and the desperate battle for Guacamole Queen heats up into an outrageous fight to the finish. Chaos is side-splittingly achieved!
Roles: 4 men, 8 women
Great for Educational Theatre
Laughing Stock (High School Version) by Charles Morey
Laughing Stock is a hilarious backstage farce and genuinely affectionate look into the world of the theatre. When The Playhouse, a rustic New England summer theatre, schedules a repertory season of Dracula, Hamlet and Charley’s Aunt, comic mayhem ensues. We follow the well-intentioned but over-matched company from outrageous auditions to ego-driven rehearsals through opening nights gone disastrously awry to the elation of a great play well told and the comic and nostalgic season close.
Roles: 9 men, 5 women
Merry Wives by Jocelyn Bioh
Set in South Harlem, amidst a vibrant and eclectic community of West African immigrants, Merry Wives is a New York story about tricks of the heart. A raucous spinoff featuring the Bard’s most beloved comic characters, this hilarious farce tells the story of the trickster Falstaff and the wily wives who outwit him in a celebration of Black joy, laughter, and vitality.
Roles: 7 men, 5 women
On the Razzle by Tom Stoppard
Two naughty grocer’s assistants go on a wild spree to Vienna when their master skips town with his new mistress. A free adaptation of the nineteenth-century farce by Johann Nestroy, On the Razzle is a boisterous reimagination of a classic. Adapted from Einen Jux will er sich machen by Johann Nestroy.
Roles: 13 men, 9 women, 1 boy
The School for Scandal by Richard Brinsley Sheridan, adapted for contemporary audiences by Lewis John Carlino
Sir Peter Teazle, a middle-aged, wealthy bachelor, has recently married a pretty maid from the country. Suddenly thrust into London’s high society, the young and frivolous Lady Teazle finds herself a willing member of a vicious, scandal-mongering cabal that spends its time maligning friend, foe and family alike. The leader of this group is Lady Sneerwell who is in love with the young, romantic, profligate Charles Surface and is trying to come between him and Maria, Sir Peter’s ward. Joseph Surface, Charles’ villainous older brother, has his own plans for Maria, or rather for her fortune, and joins Lady Sneerwell in her campaign of slander and deception to achieve his own aims. Sir Oliver Surface, Charles’ and Joseph’s wealthy uncle whom they have not seen since they were small children, suddenly arrives from India and devises a test to determine their true moral character. Joseph Surface lures Lady Teazle to his rooms and is on the verge of seducing her when the arrival of Sir Peter interrupts them, forcing Lady Teazle to hide behind a screen. Charles is announced and Sir Peter, suspecting him of having an affair with his wife, starts to hide behind the screen, as well. Joseph restrains him, telling him a French dressmaker, with whom he is having a tryst, is hiding there. Joseph is momentarily called away and Sir Peter tells Charles about the little “bon-bon” behind the screen. Charles decides to have a look. The screen crashes to the floor, revealing Lady Teazle who confesses to Sir Peter and begs for his forgiveness. Joseph and Lady Sneerwell are exposed. Charles and Maria are reunited. Sir Peter and Lady Teazle are reconciled and happy at last. Truth, love and virtue triumph. All ends well.
Roles: 18 men, 5 women
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (High School Edition) by Jack Thorne, based on an original story by J.K. Rowling, John Tiffany and Jack Thorne
Nineteen years after Harry, Ron, and Hermione saved the wizarding world, they’re back on a most extraordinary new adventure–this time, joined by a brave new generation that has only just arrived at the legendary Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. When Harry Potter’s head-strong son Albus befriends the son of his fiercest rival, Draco Malfoy, it sparks an unbelievable new journey for them all—with the power to change the past and future forever. Prepare for spectacular spells, a mind-blowing race through time, and an epic battle to stop mysterious forces, all while the future hangs in the balance. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (High School Edition) is a special adaptation of the beloved worldwide hit. Tailored for high school theatre productions, it provides young actors the opportunity to play Harry, Hermione, Ron, and all of their favorite characters on their very own stage and bring the wizarding world to life for their communities. Your students will be empowered to conjure the magic through their own creativity, making it a truly exciting and engaging experience for students and audiences alike.
Roles: 16 men, 14 women, 4 any gender
