Jumping the Wind by Tara Meddaugh: 10-minute play for outdoor theater

October 02, 2020 by Tara Meddaugh in children, Children's theatre, comedic, dark comedy, dramatic, gender neutral casting, one-act plays, outdoor theater, Plays, socially distant theater, Teen, ten-minute plays

Have you ever seen a play about pollen before? I’m not talking documentary-style. I’m talking about pieces of individual pollen, with their own hopes, dreams and fears. In my allegory, Jumping the Wind, you meet two pieces of pollen, Pollen V-6 and Pollen K-10. The flower on which Pollen V-6 and Pollen K-10 have lived their entire lives has wilted and is dying. If they do not make a dangerous jump to a fresh flower, Cat will destroy the flower and any remaining pollen that night. All other pollen have already made the jump to presumed safety, but Pollen V-6 has been too frightened to leave. She doubts the tales that anything better lies beyond. The leader, Pollen K-10, has remained behind with her, and has to decide how long he will stay to rally her before his own safety is in jeopardy. Jumping the Wind is a story of leaving the familiar, taking risks for the promise of something better. It’s the story of facts versus hope. And a story of friendship and trust.

Here are seven (7) reasons why Jumping the Wind is a memorable (and practical!) play to produce:

10-minute dramatic monologue play: Marsopa's Tale by Tara Meddaugh

October 01, 2020 by Tara Meddaugh in dramatic, fairy tale, monologue for female acto, Monologues, mystical creatures, one-act plays, outdoor theater, socially distant theater, Teen, ten-minute plays, Zoom plays, mermaids

Mermaids are the subject of many tales and legends around the world. In my 10-minute one-person play, Marsopa’s Tale, Marsopa, a mermaid herself, confronts the myths surrounding mermaids, as she makes a choice to be more than simply folklore.

Marsopa is the lone mermaid of her sea, but enjoys the company of her best friend and water-sister, a dolphin named Stone. But when Stone considers starting her own family, Marsopa faces the idea of being truly alone. That is - until she makes eyes with an intriguing fisherman... Now Marsopa must call into question the truth of mermaid and human legends, and decide what she is willing to risk for the possibility of creating her own fate.

Ruby and Millie & The Old Chemical Plant by Tara Meddaugh: A One-Act Play for 2 female actors

September 17, 2020 by Tara Meddaugh in dramatic, comedic, full-length plays, one-act plays, Plays, women, women in the arts

If you’re looking for a 15-minute comedy/drama for 2 female actors in their 60s, check out Ruby and Millie & The Old Chemical Plant. Sisters, Ruby and Millie, have been through a lot together. During WW2, 9-year-old Ruby took charge of her apartment building’s rooftop Victory Garden, hoping her patriotic war efforts on the home front would help bring her father back from a prisoner-of-war camp. Teenage Millie, disillusioned as her own boyfriend was fighting in the war abroad, cared for her younger sister as their mother took on a job, working long hours.

Now, over fifty years later, Ruby and Millie still live just down the hall from each other, in a senior living community. They still tend to a community garden. And they still take care of each other. But today, something is different. It’s not just that Ruby sat on her glasses watching Seinfeld last night or that Millie is suspicious someone has been stealing their tomatoes. Today, Ruby and Millie both have secrets and dreams to share which may, after all these years, lead them in very different directions, very far away from each other…

Poorly Wrapped, a One-Act Play for 2 actors about Desire, Obsession, Power

January 21, 2020 by Tara Meddaugh in comedic, dark comedy, dramatic, love, monologues for male actor, Monologues, one-act plays, Plays, romance, Teen, thriller, thriller play, valentine's day, Halloween

We’re less than a month away from Valentine’s Day, so check out the one-act play, Poorly Wrapped, on the topic of Love…or at least, lust, obsession, greed, power, and desire! It has 2 great roles for 1 male and 1 female actor and runs around 25 minutes long. It’s a dark comedy/drama, a bit eerie, a bit funny, some elements of the absurd mixed in with some potential creepiness…

New 30-second Christmas monologue: Meeting Blitzen

November 20, 2019 by Tara Meddaugh in children, Children's theatre, Christmas, comedic, dramatic, family, monologue for child actor, monologue for female acto, Monologues, monologues for male actor, one-act plays, Teen

Have you ever dreamed of being that special person chosen to hear the voice of an animal? Or better yet, to be chosen to be the friend of a very special animal? Say…a special animal who knows someone pretty famous, especially come December 24? Annie gets to experience just that in the play, Christmas Superpowers and Believing in Blitzen. Santa’s reindeer, Blitzen, chooses to befriend her, and he supports her during Christmas crafts, her role in the local pageant, and even through a single-parent household. This is one cool reindeer! So enjoy this 30-second monologue, Meeting Blitzen, when Annie tells her friends that she’s seen a talking reindeer for the first time. The monologue is designed for children, but really could apply to anyone of any age who might dream of being seen by someone special—as someone special.

Weird or Creepy Plays for Halloween

October 29, 2019 by Tara Meddaugh in dark comedy, dramatic, Halloween, one-act plays, Plays, ten-minute plays, thriller, thriller play, gender neutral casting, holiday, outdoor theater, Suspense, Teen

If you’re looking for some plays with a thrilling, weird, scary or eerie nature, just in time for Halloween, check out my list of 6 GREAT PLAYS FOR HALLOWEEN! From a domineering talking bingo chip to an apartment enveloped in human hair to a line of diamonds which seems rather painful—these dark comedies, dramas and thrillers give you a fun dramatic ride!

New 10-minute dark comedy play for 2 actors: Alfred and Lily and Their Marvelous Tank in the Forest

August 13, 2019 by Tara Meddaugh in dark comedy, dramatic, comedic, Plays, one-act plays, ten-minute plays, thriller play

If you like dark comedies (cringe and laugh, laugh and cringe—then pause to think seriously for a minute…), check out my new 10-minute play, Alfred and Lily and Their Marvelous Tank in the Forest. Yes, it has two frogs in it who jump around, chew on sticks, and get jealous of pond creatures with purple scarves—but this allegory doesn’t only provide fun entertainment; it’s thought provoking and generates great discussion. Does a horror have to affect you personally for you to notice something is wrong? How long will you accept happy lies until you’re willing to see what is in front of you? How can two individuals have such contrasting views of reality?…

Christmas Plays: talking reindeer, mistletoe melancholy, Christmas tree blood and more!

December 03, 2018 by Tara Meddaugh in children, monologue for child actor, monologue for female acto, Monologues, monologues for male actor, monologue collections, 2-minute monologue, 3-minute monologue, 30-second monologue, 5-minute monologue, 5-minute play, child monolog collection, Children's theatre, Christmas, comedic, comedy monolog collection, dramatic monolog collecti, inclusive casting, one-act plays, Plays, pre-teen, socially distant theater, Teen, teen monologue collection, tween, virtual theater, play collection

As we sled into December, first, a very warm Happy Hannukah or Happy Chanukah (or use one of the other 14 spellings!)! And second, the Christmas Theater season is upon us! Is there a classic holiday play you see every year? Or a new Christmas show you are looking forward to this season? For me, I recently enjoyed A Charlie Brown Christmas: Live On Stage followed by one of those crazy milkshakes shared by 4 of us (check out the pic!)! Nothing says Christmas like tons of sweets, right (Okay, yes, lots of things say Christmas other than sweets! But one must exert some sugar will power around the holidays!)? Next weekend, I’m looking forward to nestling into an historic Dutch church in legendary Sleepy Hollow to watch a one-man show of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol. The following weekend, I’ll enjoy a one-hour version of The Nutcracker. I love to suppor theater year-round, but there is something special about seeing a warm holiday show in December!

As much as I love seeing Christmas Drama, I also love writing it! So check out some of my Christmas theater below (a one-act play, a 5-minute one-man show, and several monologues for kids to adults)! Click on the links to read excerpts from all of the holiday monologues or holiday plays or to get the full versions. Enjoy the holiday season!…

19 Children's Monologues from Christmas Superpowers and Believing in Blitzen: Monologue Packet

November 09, 2018 by Tara Meddaugh in Children's theatre, family, monologue for child actor, monologue for female acto, Monologues, monologues for male actor, one-act plays, monologue collections, child monolog collection, comedy monolog collection, dramatic monolog collecti, Christmas

Enjoy a new monologue packet, featuring 19 comedic monologues for children extracted from the one-act play, Christmas Superpowers and Believing in Blitzen. Monologues range from 30 seconds to 3 minutes, and average approximately 1-2 minutes long. Check out two free sample monologues from this packet, Santa’s Lousy Job and Shepherd Superheroes. About the play: Take a snowy walk through the child-like magic of Christmas, where reindeer talk, Santa is real, and who wants super powers?…

Great Plays for Halloween

October 26, 2018 by Tara Meddaugh in Plays, one-act plays, ten-minute plays, dark comedy, Halloween, play collection

If you’re looking for an eerie, creepy or thriller play in the spirit of Halloween, check out these plays that just might give you a chill or two! From the witch in that gingerbread house, to a mysterious heart, a domineering bingo chip, a lust for human hair—and more—enjoy these uniquely dark (and sometimes comedic) plays by Tara Meddaugh…

Now available: Seventeen Stitches, a one-act dark comedy thriller for 2 actors

October 17, 2018 by Tara Meddaugh in Halloween, one-act plays, Teen, dark comedy, thriller play

In this one-act dark comedy/thriller, Rachel and Peter meet in a vortex-like space between opposing lines of people. While Rachel is simply passing the time before she returns to her place in line, Peter has stepped out of his line in protest. As the lines begin to close in on them, he must make a life-altering decision by choosing to continue forging his path in his father’s line, or join the haunting allure of Rachel’s line, the “line of diamonds.”