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Issue-Based Plays

Issue-Based Plays

Step into the world of issue-based plays, where relevant and relatable themes take centre stage.

From everyday challenges to pressing societal issues, these stories spark conversations, ignite empathy, and invite your audience to ponder the world we live in.

Get ready for thought-provoking drama that goes beyond the stage!

Bullying

Ashland Falls

by Steven Stack

Who will pay the price when the real world and the play collide?

  • About 90 minutes
  • 3 M + 11 F
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 82 pages

Baalzebub

by Rachel Atkins

Will they establish civility or fall apart?

  • About 80 minutes
  • 1 M + 11 F, Easily expandable
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 71 pages

Baalzebub - One Act Version

by Rachel Atkins

Will they establish civility or fall apart?

  • About 35 minutes
  • 11 F, Easily expandable
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 34 pages

Bench Warrant

by Bradley Hayward Canadian Author

Three teenage girls have claimed a bench as their very own and routinely chase away all the "losers" who come near it.

  • About 10 minutes
  • 4 F
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools

Body Body

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

Madeline has body issues. So much so that her different body parts are coming to life and talking back. But Madeline is tired of feeling bad about her body.

  • About 60 minutes
  • 2 M + 4 F
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 54 pages

Box

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

A middle school vignette play about the boxes we find ourselves in.

  • About 30 minutes
  • 3 M + 6 F + 9 Any Gender
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for Middle Schools
  • 35 pages

A Box of Puppies

by Billy Houck

We can all relate to feeling small in a big world. The characters in A Box of Puppies share their insecurities, their frailties and how they cope.

  • 2 M + 2 F + 10 Any Gender
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 31 pages

The Bright Blue Mailbox Suicide Note

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

Jake finds a suicide note in his mailbox. Is it real? Is it a joke? Jake is determined to find out but instead learns a secret he didn't want to know.

  • About 45 minutes
  • 4 M + 5 F + 2 Any Gender
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 34 pages

The Burgundy Letter

by Kirk Shimano Canadian Author

Hester90 is publicly shamed and shunned for a racial slur against another student.

  • About 50 minutes
  • 1 M + 2 F + 6 Any Gender, plus 0-100 “The Anonymous” characters
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 39 pages

La Caja

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

A Spanish translation of the middle school vignette play Box.

  • About 30 minutes
  • 5 M + 9 F + 4 Any Gender
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools & Middle Schools
  • 32 pages

Censorbleep

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

The Bleep Bleep Girls know how teenagers are supposed to behave and how to deal with those who don't. An absurd look at censorship and independent thought.

  • About 35 minutes
  • 1 M + 5 F + 5 Any Gender, plus optional extras
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 36 pages

Finishing Sentences

by Scott Giessler

A sharp, funny summer-camp dramedy that looks at bullying from an unexpected perspective: the bully’s.

  • About 35 minutes
  • 4 M + 6 F + 8 Any Gender, Easily expandable
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools & Middle Schools
  • 44 pages

Friend Request

by Bradley Hayward Canadian Author

Thanks to a series of ill-fated friend requests, a doctored photo of a student spreads like wildfire among a group of teenagers.

  • About 10 minutes
  • 3 M + 4 F
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools

Funhouse

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

This middle school play looks at the bullied, the bully, and the bystander through mostly non-verbal vignettes.

  • About 30 minutes
  • 4 M + 16 Any Gender
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools & Middle Schools
  • 33 pages

The Happiness Shop

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

Why aren't middle school students full of smiles, hugs and hi-fives? They’re too young to have problems.

  • About 35 minutes
  • 6 M + 9 F + 13 Any Gender
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools & Middle Schools
  • 43 pages

Huge Hands

by Billy Houck

A scrawny teenaged boy envisions the perfect way to fight back.

  • About 10 minutes
  • 1 M + 1 F + 8 Any Gender
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools

Humbug High: A Contemporary Christmas Carol

adapted by Lindsay Price Canadian Author from Charles Dickens

A modern take on the classic Dickens tale. Eddie Scrooge is a 17-year-old Bah Humbug of a guy. Till one Christmas Eve when three ghosts change his life.

  • About 70 minutes
  • 6 M + 13 F, Expandable to 11M 20F
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 63 pages

Passing Period Purgatory

by Christian Kiley

Sometimes the hardest part of school is getting from one class to the next.

  • About 25 minutes
  • 15 Any Gender + 1 Non-Binary
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 26 pages

Power Play

by Lindsay Price Canadian Author

The realities and the stereotypes of school violence. Not just the school shooting, but harassment and bullying. Violence is about power. So is high school.

  • About 55 minutes
  • 2 M + 3 F
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 38 pages

The Redemption of Gertie Greene

by Taryn Temple

Is Gertie really what everyone calls her: a freak, strange, stupid, clumsy, and mean?

  • About 55 minutes
  • 4 M + 4 F + 8 Any Gender, Easily Expandable
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for Middle Schools
  • 37 pages

The Redemption of Gertie Greene: Competition Version

by Taryn Temple

A competition-length adaptation of The Redemption of Gertie Greene by Taryn Temple

  • About 30 minutes
  • 4 M + 4 F + 8 Any Gender, Easily Expandable
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for Middle Schools
  • 23 pages

Sixteen in 10 Minutes or Less

by Bradley Hayward Canadian Author

The lives of seven teenagers become intertwined in this humorous and oftentimes bittersweet collection of ten minute plays. Multiple lengths available.

  • About 100 minutes
  • 4 M + 5 F + 3 Any Gender, Expandable to 13M+17F+3 Any Gender
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 88 pages

Stereotype High

by Jeffrey Harr

High school is full of stereotypes – or is it?

  • About 105 minutes
  • 9 M + 9 F + 4 Any Gender, Plus onstage crew
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools
  • 107 pages

Teen Plays for Inclusive Classrooms

by Dara Murphy Canadian Author

Two royalty-free plays for your inclusive classroom

  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools & Middle Schools

Tumblefur

by Bradley Hayward Canadian Author

A sweet teenage girl takes her dog for a walk in the park and discovers that there is something exciting around every corner.

  • About 10 minutes
  • 1 F
  • Simple Set
  • Recommended for High Schools

who are we, who we are

by Forrest Musselman

Addresses anxiety and depression in teens.

  • About 30 minutes
  • 3 M + 14 F
  • Simple set
  • Recommended for High Schools