What’s hot at Broadway Licensing Group? Check out the top trending titles of the week from Broadway Licensing, Dramatists Play Service, and Playscripts.
Wait Wait…I Can Explain by Christa Crewdson
THE STORY: Madcap, chaotic hilarity ensues when Jason hires a troupe of local actors to play the part of a perfect family to impress Sheila, his new girlfriend. This elaborate ruse nearly goes as planned, only to backfire when Jason’s real family comes home unexpectedly. The actors remain in character and do their best to keep their act together, but things quickly unravel. From overhearing a murder plot to meeting the “ghost” of General Washburn, Sheila decides she’s seen enough of Jason and his families.
We Are The Sea by Laura Lundgren Smith
THE STORY: Norah, Una, and Iseult set sail from Ireland to escape the ravages of hunger, only to find a new set of dangers on their ocean voyage. The so-called “coffin ships” are full of illness, squalor, and grief, and the passengers can rely only on one another and their memories for comfort. When a cruel, angry sailor refuses to show them mercy, it seems like even their stories might be lost. But they don’t know that the sea that swirls around the ship is listening. The sea remembers everything. And the sea demands justice. A poetic and striking historical drama with a hypnotic ocean chorus.
Clue: On Stage (High School Edition) by Sandy Rustin
THE STORY: Based on the iconic 1985 Paramount movie which was inspired by the classic Hasbro board game, Clue is a hilarious farce-meets-murder mystery. The tale begins at a remote mansion, where six mysterious guests assemble for an unusual dinner party where murder and blackmail are on the menu. When their host turns up dead, they all become suspects. Led by Wadsworth – the butler, Miss Scarlet, Professor Plum, Mrs. White, Mr. Green, Mrs. Peacock and Colonel Mustard race to find the killer as the body count stacks up. Clue is the comedy whodunit that will leave both cult-fans and newcomers in stitches as they try to figure out…WHO did it, WHERE, and with WHAT!
Bell, Book and Candle by John Van Druten
THE STORY: Gillian Holroyd is one of the few modern people who can actually cast spells and perform feats of supernaturalism. She casts a spell over an unattached publisher, Shepherd Henderson, partly to keep him away from a rival and partly because she is attracted to him. He falls head over heels in love with her at once and wants to marry her. But witches, unfortunately, cannot fall in love, and this minute imperfection leads into a number of difficulties. Ultimately, the lady breaks off with her companions in witchery, preferring the normal and human love offered her by the attractive publisher. But before the happy conclusion of the romance, Gillian comes very near to losing him—but doesn’t.
The Learned Ladies (Wilbur) by Molière, translated into English verse by Richard Wilbur
THE STORY: Clitandre seeks the hand of Henriette, a match heartily approved of by her father, Chrysale. However, his wife, Philaminte, has other plans for her younger daughter—namely marriage to Trissotin, a foppish wit who panders to Philaminte’s intellectual pretensions. Further complications are introduced by Armande, Henriette’s older sister, who once rejected Clitandre but now resents his attentions to Henriette; by Bélise, Chrysale’s sister, who believes (erroneously) that all men are wildly in love with her; and by Vadius, a scholar jealous of Trissotin’s hold on Philaminte. Needless to say the course of true love does not run smoothly, as the pseudo-intellectual posturings of Philaminte and her coterie clash with the struggle between Chrysale and Philaminte over who shall ordain the disposition of their daughter’s hand. But happily, and thanks to the maneuvering of Chrysale’s brother, Ariste, all is set right in the end, with hypocrisy exposed and true love made triumphant.
All Because of Agatha by Jonathan Troy
THE STORY: Cartoonist Duff and wife Joan choose to live in a historic Salem house, inhabited annually by a mischievous witch, Agatha Forbes. They decide to throw a farewell party for Agatha, inviting neighbors and a newspaper reporter. Chaos ensues when Agatha casts a spell making everyone temporarily become their secret wishes. Joan, with her wits, finds a solution to free Agatha from her haunting obligation, relieving everyone of the mayhem.
Fire in the Hole by Robert Schenkkan
THE STORY: 1920. Its coal tipple standing where once there were trees, the Blue Star Mining Company owns the valley. If coal is king, the people of the town are peasants, working like slaves in dangerous mines, paid in script, indebted to the Blue Star for life. Mary Ann Rowen, married to Tommy Jackson, has buried 4 sons and does not want to see her only remaining boy go into the mines. A stranger, Abe Steinman, tries to organize the miners into a union, but is betrayed by Mary Ann’s husband during the strike. Abe is hanged and the miners lose heart. Spurning her husband, Mary Ann takes her son Joshua and leads the miners to victory.
The Minotaur by Anna Ziegler
THE STORY: A present-day version of a classic Greek myth, THE MINOTAUR is a contemporary take on love, honor, and human connection. With refreshing originality and wit, it explores how we break out of history in order to shape new stories for ourselves.
Bad Seed by Maxwell Anderson, from William March’s novel
THE STORY: The scene is a small Southern town where Colonel and Christine Penmark live with their daughter, Rhoda. Little Rhoda Penmark is the evil queen of the story. On the surface she is sweet, charming, full of old-fashioned graces, loved by her parents, admired by all her elders. But Rhoda’s mother has an uneasy feeling about her. When one of Rhoda’s schoolmates is mysteriously drowned at a picnic, Mrs. Penmark is alarmed. For the boy who was drowned was the one who had won the penmanship medal that Rhoda felt she deserved.
Rex’s Exes by Jones Hope Wooten
THE STORY: In uproarious Texas farce, Verdeen cousins face disaster as Gaynelle refuses 50th birthday, Peaches plans unwanted surprise party turned funeral, Jimmie Wy deals with her boutique’s success. Chaos ensues with a returned husband, a bounty hunter, a jilted bride, and Aunt LaMerle’s revenge plot. Hilarious family mayhem!
