PLAYS, BOOKS, & COLUMNS

PLAYS & BOOKS: L. CHRISTOPHER COLLINS

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CALLING THE SHOTS

Lowery Christopher Collins

Dark Comedy/Sarcastic/Crime Comedy

7 Males/5 Females/3 Either

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Charlie Bagley, the mayor of a large city, is well-loved, but has a hard time keeping his sarcasm to himself. But he is far from unmatched; his wife, Dana, keeps up every step, and their ex-con butler isn’t far behind. When the mayor’s daughter, known for her lax morals and lack of discretion, brings home yet another boyfriend, the audience gets the sense something isn’t right, especially when all the cinema posters in the city are being filled with bullets. Add a next-door neighbor with multiple personalities, an egocentric movie star couple, a visit from the eccentric mayor of Dusseldorf, Germany with her energetic, narcoleptic, son, and the appearance of a popular handgun, and nobody knows how it will end, except for the playwright, of course.

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Approximately 70 minutes

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LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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THE BEEBLES ACCORD, A DRAMATIC TREATISE OF TIME AND ART

Lowery Christopher Collins

5M, 3W, 2 Either

The Beebles Accord, the first of the “Beebles” plays introduces a set of characters, aware that they are being played by actors, who take on the task of performing scenes from a variety of well-known plays. When one of the characters begins a frantic search for “Beebles,” his special . . . cow, the other characters become equally engaged, all the while continuing the duties outlined by the “playwright.” One character, Michael, dealing with self-awareness, struggles with the tasks at hand and gradually slips into a crisis of “character” identity.  The others attempt to help him, as reluctant as he is, “find” himself. Ultimately, the tale brings the entire cast to a moment of reflection and realization about the nature of theatre. Filled with humor, visual gags, and puns, the play rises to a poignant ending, an epiphany, a dramatic treatise about time and art.

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Approximately 60 minutes.

*40-minute CUTTING also included.

LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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THE BEEBLES REFRAIN, ANOTHER TESTAMENT OF TIME AND ART

Lowery Christopher Collins

9M, 2W

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The Beebles Refrain, the first official sequel to The Beebles Accord, picks up just a few “stage minutes” after the events of the Accord, but in those few stage minutes, much has happened off-stage.  The play begins with what appears to be the Scottish Play but quickly evolves into a series of play references led by a visiting Stage Manager from Our Town. Soon, this “SM” clashes with Michael, who has become the new leader of the troupe, and Montaño, who has finally found someone he doesn’t like. We watch as the characters perform their roles, all the while accepting that characters have “moved on,” welcoming characters who return, and meeting a new . . . character who changes everything.  And yes, the legacy of the cow lives as a refrain that reverberates through the play as the characters learn a new lesson about art, time, and identity.

Approximately 60 minutes
**40-minute CUTTING included

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LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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THE BEEBLES CONTINUANCE, A CHORD OF TRANSITION

Lowery Christopher Collins

5M, 2W

The Beebles Continuance serves as a bridge between the events of the first two major Beebles plays, The Beebles Accord and The Beebles Refrain.  This short play begins with Mary Ann, recently having engaged in self-evaluation, coming to terms with her character and her role in the Beebles universe. She is quickly joined by Brannon and Law, who are with her during her epiphany. Within a few minutes, the characters are visited by an iconic character from English literature, who sets into action the events that will lead into The Beebles Refrain.  This short one-act play has comic elements, yet it pulls together the logical and emotional strings of The Accord and provides the characters with the arc that leads them to the search for meaning explored in The Refrain.

Approximately 25 minutes

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LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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PARIAH

Lowery Christopher Collins

Drama/Quirky/Surreal
9 Males/5 Females

In the small resort town of Lake Shiloh, it’s not the town oddballs that are the pariahs; it’s the few relatively normal people who are socially ostracized from the majority of freaks and misfits. A problem arises, though, when the likable Manny starts getting too much attention for his visions of the future and Hannah gets a bit “too bold” just by being herself. The locals come out of the woodwork and eventually force a crisis for both Manny and Hannah. Life cannot continue in the new status quo, so in Lake Shiloh, something has to give.

Approximately 110 minutes.

Winner of the 2006 Texas Educational Theatre Association Playwriting Contest: Texas Resident

LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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THORN IN THE FLESH

Lowery Christopher Collins

Suspense/Crime/Psychological Drama

14 Males/5 Females

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A play with the mood of a Hitchcock film or a Poe short story, Thorn in the Flesh is the story of one fateful night when an addiction group under the leadership of a counselor named Sam meets for therapy. Among the group are people dealing with violence issues, self-image issues, food and chemical addictions, mental issues, and various phobias. However, on this one night, new people have been assigned to the group by a local judge and, in an unusual turn of events, and much to the chagrin of the group members, the judge also invites an award-winning reporter to the session. Before all can be sorted out, the judge himself arrives, and in an unusual turn of events, the people present find their ailments transforming as they learn what they all have in common and where all their pasts had crossed once before.

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Approximately 100 minutes

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LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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OTHERS PRETEND

Lowery Christopher Collins

Drama

4 Males/4 Females, Most in Dual Roles

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Patronizing a meat market in 1978, Helen Butler, a retired school teacher, pulls everyone present back to the café of the early 1930’s where her prominent family, thriving during the East Texas Oil Boom, were better off than most other families during the Great Depression. Helen relives the betrayal at the hands of her family and her calculated revenge that protected her dignity. As she brings us back to the 1970’s, we witness a surprising glimpse of reconciliation and a chance at peace.

Approximately 100 minutes.
Has been performed as a 40-minute cutting for Texas UIL One-Act Play Contest.

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LINK TO AMAZON

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​**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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FISH TANK

Lowery Christopher Collins

Comedy/Farce/One-Act

4 Males/5 Females

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When Margaret tells Allison, her carefree cousin/housemate, about her unexpectedly rough day, she has no idea that it has all followed her home to make for an unusual evening. Starting with a visit from their eccentric aunt who brings a tag-along blind hitchhiker, the evening evolves into a revolving door of Margaret’s ex and his new wife, a stalker who happens to be a clumsy nerd, Margaret’s new boss, and her bipolar secretary. As the events untangle themselves one by one, both Margaret and Allison find the end of their evening more pleasant than they started it—and maybe enriched with a few surprises.

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Approximately 45 minutes

Has been performed as a 40-minute cutting for Texas UIL One-Act Play Contest.

LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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DAMASCUS

Lowery Christopher Collins

Drama/Controversial

51 Male Characters/28 Female Characters—Can be Played by as FEW as 9 Males/6 Females (With Actors Playing Multiple Roles)

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In this drama that’s a bit too close to current events, Caleb Martinez, grandson of the infamous leader of the Elect Street Church, known for its anti-Semitic, anti-gay, anti-American, and anti-military rants (as well as protesting the funerals of American soldiers) struggles with becoming his own man, in his role as both lawyer and New York actor, trying to break free of the bonds of his past. However, the task is harder than he realizes. As he fights to establish his own identity in his modern, urban life, the audience is given insight into the history of the church and of Caleb’s much-hated, powerful grandfather, the Reverend Jeremiah Coffee–including all the steps that have led him to his controversial stances. Jeremiah pushes to exert control over his grandson and his “kingdom,” but Caleb learns that dignity, integrity, and even faith itself doesn’t have to come from the package presented by his grandfather or even the philosophies dictated to him by those in his professional circles. He stands up, but is it too late—for everyone?

Warning: This play deals overtly, yet delicately, with very controversial themes. Some are offended at the discussion of topics concerning modern life such as anti-American sentiments, sexuality, religion, politics, and deceit; others are offended at the discussion of forgiveness and grace.

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Full Length: 165 minutes—Can be cut for time (with playwright’s permission)
One-Act Cutting: 35-50 minutes. (Open for discussion)

Has been performed as a 40-minute cutting for Texas UIL One-Act Play Contest.

LINK TO AMAZON

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​**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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LIES OVER THE OCEAN

Lowery Christopher Collins

6M, 6W (+ a variety of CHORUS MEMBERS and PARTY GOERS)

An unusual “mid-Twentieth Century” retelling of Book 9 of the Odyssey, Lies Over the Ocean opens with a distraught man named McBride who is on a journey in which finds something much larger than that which he is seeking.  In an almost supernatural turn of events, he meets a group of characters whose direction leads him to an island occupied by a . . . one-eyed psychopath. On his way, though, McBride engages with a fictionalized version of a young man who would become President of the United States and, eventually, with a beautiful ingénue who will play a major part in this politician’s life, as well as in Hollywood.  McBride fights to outwit his adversary and even his own situation in hopes of finding the peace that “lies over the ocean.”  This rewriting of history explores the “could have been,” the “may have been,” and the “seems to have been” as it looks at life through the lens of ancient literature, the very stories that help define our culture.

Approximately 75 minutes

LINK TO AMAZON

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​**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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HAPPENSTANCE

Lowery Christopher Collins

16M, 11W
(Since the play is written in short vignettes, there can be some ‘careful’ doubling.)

This play, which contain eight short, short one-acts, can be performed separately as individual “scenes,” OR it can be performed together as an eight-scene thematically related show.  Each of the scenes explores a different kind of “luck” in our lives, touching on topics such as love, crime, misunderstanding, mischief, betrayal, friendship, nostalgia, loyalty, and family. The scenes contain moments of humor and farce as well as moments of poignancy and acceptance, all addressing the role of chance and situational turns of events.  Since the characters are introduced thematically, as well as alphabetically, the scenes should be performed in the order in which they are written, an order that leads the audience to a conclusion about luck and destiny—or does it?

Approximately 90 minutes

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LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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MRS. BIRDSONG'S SECOND DEATH

Lowery Christopher Collins

Drama/Suspense

7 Males / 8 Females/2 Either /1 Off-stage Female Voice

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The audience witnesses important moments in the life of Evelyn Hall Webber, a well-to-do real estate agent who collects plants from people’s funerals, names them after the deceased, and cares for them in a living shrine. As we travel back and forth to observe important days in her life, we meet Mrs. Louise Birdsong, Evelyn’s former art teacher whom Evelyn secretly blames for ruining her life. Mrs. Birdsong was supposed to have died years earlier in a horrific accident, but as her plant namesake is still alive, we find that Birdsong is, too—that is until Evelyn discovers the cover up. How much longer will it be until Mrs. Birdsong’s second death?

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Approximately 80 minutes

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LINK TO AMAZON

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​**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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AND THE EVENING AND THE MORNING WERE THE SEVENTH DAY

Lowery Christopher Collins

Drama

8 Males/8 Females

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Rather than several different scenes occurring at several different places at the same time, And the Evening and the Morning Were the Seventh Day occurs at several different times, but all within the same small park. The audience witnesses events simultaneously playing out at the same location, but because of the temporal variance, the characters are unaware of no time but their own. In a series of events vaguely reminiscent of Thorton’s Grover’s Corners, we watch as important events play out at numerous times during the characters’ lives. Poignant, but direct, Seventh Day pulls at the heartstrings and reminds us of the importance of our choices and the significance of each fleeting day.

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Approximately 65 minutes

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LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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THE MOON LIES FAIR

Lowery Christopher Collins

Drama

5 Males/6 Females/ 1 Offstage Female Voice

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Reno has a lot going for him. He’s popular, he’s charming, he has great friends, he’s a successful artist, and he owns a nice home. However, when he learns he has terminal testicular cancer, his whole world comes crashing down on him. On top of that, he is visited by his cold, selfish family who squanders their last chance to make amends. Filled with colorful characters and loving hearts, The Moon Lies Fair, whose title is an allusion to Matthew Arnold’s “Dover Beach,” explores what it means to face one’s own mortality and what it means to come face-to-face with the mortality of those we love. A testament to true friendship, this play shows that family shouldn’t always be defined by blood.

Note: This play deals with sensitive topics, from which it never hides, but they are addressed in an extremely professional, delicate, and respectable manner.

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Approximately 100 minutes

LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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PLACES!

Lowery Christopher Collins

Musical

16 Males/20 Females—Parts can be doubled up—carefully

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Evan is a high school theatre director to a great group of kids. In their state, the annual theatre competition consists of the students writing, directing, and performing their own show, and this year’s category is “the musical.” After a great deal of discussion, dealing with each other’s personalities, strengths, and weaknesses, they decide to write a high school musical about a group of high school kids writing and directing a high school musical. In essence, a performance of Places is a high school musical about a high school putting on a musical about a group of kids writing and putting on a high school musical. It may seem confusing, but it all works out. With a bit of romance, a smidgeon of villainy, and a lot of spirit, all ends well: it IS a musical, right?

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Note: This play IS indeed a full-fledged musical, and it was performed a few years ago with a full cast. All the lyrics are in the script, but I do not have the sheet music written out yet. I do, however, have all the songs with piano recordings on MP3’s. Those interested in performing this show would be taking on a major task, but it is a fun, fun show, and I will help in any way possible.

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Approximately 130 minutes.

LINK TO AMAZON

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**A DOCUMENT CAN BE EMAILED AS A PDF. ***

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TWO SHORT, ODD PLAYS ABOUT FAITH

Lowery Christopher Collins

GRANITE

Drama/Christian/ Religion/Existence/Friendship

2 Males

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Tommy and Lee make a midnight trip to the gravesite of their best friend on the fifth anniversary of his death. While there, they discuss the life of their friend, the nature of existence, and the possibility of an afterlife. At the end, they realize they have to face the truth that there is something more to this earthly life and that the answers may very well lie within something they’ve been purposefully ignoring for years.

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Approximately 25-30 minutes

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Note: This play addresses meaning in life and illustrates that meaning can be found ultimately in God.

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AND

AARDVARKS AND HILLBILLIES AND AN ANGEL NEARBY

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Christmas/Christian/Quirky

5 Males / 3 Females

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On Christmas Eve 1943, a big-city reporter and his girlfriend find themselves lost, on-foot somewhere in backwoods America, where they come upon an eccentric family who has forbidden their children to be exposed to the origins of Christmas and of all religious teaching. Filled with odd characters and big laughs, this Christmas comedy explores the faith behind the reason for Christmas.

Warning: this play is not a traditional Christmas drama and will likely appeal to those with a slightly different sense of humor.

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Approximately 50 minutes.

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LINK TO AMAZON

 ****AVAILABLE AS AN EMAILED PDF. ***

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UNUSUAL POEMS FOR UNUSUAL KIDS AND THE UNUSUAL ADULTS THEY BECOME

Lowery Christopher Collins

This collection of poems is the first complete group of children's poetry written by teacher, director, and playwright Lowery Christopher Collins. It contains a wide variety of odd topics, all written in tight rhyming schemes. Perfect for children as young as eight, and even more perfect for older children and adults, these poems work on the level of simple stories and themes while also addressing much deeper social topics. This book contains poems about flamingos, mimes, parakeets, mermaids, braces, England, and people who smell like goats. And that's just the surface. If you or children you care about would like read some fun, strange, rhythmic poetry, this book's for you!

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LINK TO AMAZON

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