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The Gift

The Gift

by Lindsay Price inspired by O. Henry

Kymberdee has gone through a transformation. Her family life has been turned upside down and because of that she has changed from a selfish materialistic hollow human being to someone who puts people ahead of things. She’s changed her name, her friends, her outlook.

But what are the events that have lead to this transformation? And when given an opportunity to return to her materialistic friends, has she changed enough to resist? And why are those foreign exchange students wandering west looking for Meester Staaahr?

Inspired by the short story The Gift of the Magi.

Dramedy Character Study Holiday

Recommended for High Schools

Running Time
About 90 minutes
Approximate; excludes intermissions and scene changes
Cast
22 Characters
4 M | 13 F | 5 Any Gender
Set
Simple set
Length
96 pages
Free Excerpt

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Performance Royalty Fees

Royalty fees apply to all performances whether or not admission is charged. Any performance in front of an audience (e.g. an invited dress rehearsal) is considered a performance for royalty purposes.

Exemption details for scenes and monologues for competition.

22 Characters
4 M, 13 F, 5 Any Gender

Characters in this play are currently identified as male or female. Directors are welcome to assign any gender (binary or non-binary) to any character and modify pronouns accordingly.

Kim [F] 155 lines
16. Trying to change. Ex best-friend to Malinda.
Kymberdee [F] 210 lines
15. A past version of Kim. Best friends with Malinda. Shallow and materialistic.
Malinda [F] 144 lines
16. The biggest fish star in a very small pond. Shallow – a straw man surrounded by crows. Ex best-friend with Kim.
Bob [M] 87 lines
17. Brother to Kim. Real name is Killoran, which he hates. Easygoing and very giving.
Laura [F] 94 lines
17. Cousin to Kim. Has cancer. Facing her situation. Sarcastic.
Paige [F] 130 lines
16. Girlfriend to Caleb. Grounded.
Caleb [M] 107 lines
16. Goes by Cal. Boyfriend to Paige. Friendly and more perceptive than he seems.
Wyatt [M] 49 lines
16. Seems to be a star-struck snob, but really is opportunistic.
Swan [F] 46 lines
15. A star-struck snob, and will learn that it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.
Erica [F] 65 lines
15. Not so secretly desires to be Malinda’s friend.
Dixie [F] 93 lines
15. Not so secretly desires to be Malinda’s friend. Has an odd home life.
Harper [M] 40 lines
15. He is in constant misery because Dixie is sort of blackmailing him.
Tanner [A] 51 lines
16. A fraternal twin with Taylor.
Taylor [A] 49 lines
16. A fraternal twin with Tanner. These twins can be two guys, a girl and a guy, or two girls.
Blue [F] 3 lines
16. A somewhat silent secret weapon.
Ceecee & Ceelee [F] 20, 15 lines
15. Two girls who are essentially ‘crows.’ They flock around Malinda, agree with everything she says and constantly croon for shiny things.
Bal / Gas / Melchi [A] 3, 4, 5 lines
17. Three foreign exchange students. They sometimes appear to speak very little English and sometimes appear to be quite wise. As in the three wise men. And they always seem to be searching for something…
Kandace [F] 48 lines
Kim’s mother. Used to be quite like Kymberdee but has changed.
Ms. Gullickson [F] 41 lines
Known as Ms. G. The drama teacher.

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From the Drama Teacher Learning Centre

Theatrefolk’s Top 10: Cross-Curricular Plays

Theatrefolk’s Top 10: Cross-Curricular Plays

Theatrefolk’s Top 10: Plays About Friendship

Theatrefolk’s Top 10: Plays About Friendship

Drama Teachers: Solving problems within play production

Drama Teachers: Solving problems within play production

Theatrefolk Podcast: Is it the Show or the Performance?

Theatrefolk Podcast: Is it the Show or the Performance?

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