Great Small Cast Plays
Large cast plays give good range and offer a way to get lots of actors involved. But there are many reasons why you might be looking for a small cast play, as well. Your budget may not be able to afford to pay a large cast or costuming; you may not have the sheer number of people needed for a large cast; you may want to pair small-cast one-acts together (easier for scheduling rehearsals) or your actors are all looking to have meaty roles, without the small side roles you may find in large cast. Check out these plays with small casts, all which have 2-5 actors. Scroll through and click on the play covers for more details, or check out the summaries below.
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF TWO (2)
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF THREE (3)
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF FOUR (4)
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF FIVE (5)
SUMMARIES OF PLAYS
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF TWO (2)
THE MOON RIVER RAFT
Two rabbits flee for their lives, holding onto hope that a mysterious secret Moon River Raft will carry all Woundeds to a perfect land. But things are never what they seem in the middle of the night…at a creepy river bank…in a forest…under the moon… Are they?
Details: Dark comedy, 2 person play, around 15 minutes
ALFRED AND LILY AND THEIR MARVELOUS TANK IN THE FOREST
When Alfred and Lily are transplanted to a mysterious tank in the forest, they must decide if they will trust their new benefactors or find a way to escape.
Details: Absurdist, dark comedy, 10-15 minutes, 2 actors (1 male, 1 female), set in a tank in the forest
20 MAGICAL MINUTES OF DARKNESS & SILENCE & PEACE
Grace, a raccoon, is begrudgingly charged to find, and bring back, her fellow raccoon who has gone missing after a shocking personal tragedy. When she finally finds the depressed Joffrey in a train station parking lot, he refuses to come back with her—yet. Because he has something important he has to do first. In this parking lot. And he needs her help.
Details: 10-15 minutes, dark comedy/drama, 2 actors (1 male, 1 female, or 2 any gender), set in a parking lot
PITFALLS AND TREASURES
Mary and Andrew are lonely and troubled seagulls, each ostracized by their former flocks. When Mary embarks on the desperate challenge of removing twine wrapped around Andrew’s leg, they both must decide how much to trust each other in the hope of finding a better life.
Details: 10-15 minutes, dark comedy/drama/comedy, 2 actors (1 male, 1 female or 2 any gender), set in a parking lot
A LIFE SPURRED INTO MEANINGFUL ADVENTURE
When secret friends, Goldilocks and Little Bear, find themselves alone in the forest, they must decide what they will give up to embark on a new future together…and, um…how to survive in the actual woods.
Details: 10-15 minutes, drama/comedy/fairy-tale, 2 actors (1 female/1 any gender), set in a forest
MABEL AND THE TALKING CAT
A lonely baker has the opportunity to finally adopt a child of her own. But her best friend, Patches, a talking cat, has grave hesitations about the questionable method she’s using to secure her precious child. Hint: a witch is involved.
Details: 15-20 minutes, dark comedy/drama/fairy tale tangential, 2 actors (1 female/1 any gender), set outside a cottage, in a garden
THE PRETTIEST DUCKLING
Two adorable ducklings plot the ousting of their gray-feathered sister…
Details: Around 25 minutes, dark comedy, teen, “mean girl” style, fairytale tangential, 2-person play (2 any gender), set outside near a pond
JACK AND DEAR RAVEN
Jack didn’t give it much thought when he climbed up the 15,000 foot beanstalk. But now that he has reached the clouds, he is starting to miss his mother, his turkey, and even his fence post. Unfortunately, he appears to be stuck and unable to climb back down the slippery stalk which was so easy to climb up. When a roving black bird passes by, Jack solicits his company and aid in figuring out how on earth he should now get down the beanstalk he has carelessly climbed up. Unless, of course, he is not meant to climb down…
Details: 10-15 minutes, fairy tale comedy/drama, 2 actors (1 male, 1 any gender), set outside on a giant beanstalk in the clouds
THE ITEMS FORGOTTEN
Locked out of their house for the third time this week, Travis and Kira search for their spare key on their porch, and begin questioning their relationship (and state of mind)!
Details: 2 actors (1 female, 1 male), drama/comedy, 5-10 minutes, Published in Five-Minute Plays, Applause Acting
THE TENTH OAK TREE
Carrot and Potato, lifelong friends despite the opposing nature of their heritage, try to get an important letter to Carrot's lost children.
Details: 2 female actors, comedy/drama, around 10 minutes,
SHARING SOIL
In soil cultures, prejudices run deep for carrots and potatoes.. But when bully vegetables draw Carrot and Potato together, they must decide if their new friendship is worth risking their safety and rejection from their own garden cultures.
Details: comedy/drama, around 10 minutes, 2 female, heightened
THE SCENT OF COCONUT HAD HAUNTED HER FOR DAYS
A newlywed Woman chooses unusual methods to communicate to her husband that she is not happy she might be pregnant. Her husband, in turn, finds ways to ignore the situation he does not wish to address. As the Woman becomes increasingly obsessed with a backyard weed garden growing in her picnic table, the dissonance in their marriage escalates.
Details: 2 actors (1 male, 1 female), comedy/drama, 10-15 minutes
WHAT’S INSIDE THE EIFFEL TOWER COFFEE MUG
On their 10th wedding anniversary, Rebecca finally reveals to Henry a secret collection she has been hoarding. But what Henry sees inside his souvenir coffee mugs may change their marriage forever. (Hint: It’s not coffee)
Details: 2 actors (1 male, 1 female), dark comedy/absurdist, 10-15 minutes
RUTH AND HARRY & THE DINNER PARTY
While preparing for a dinner party, Ruth reveals a well-kept secret to her husband, which jeopardizes their future as a family.
Details:2 actors (1 female, 1 male), drama/comedy/1940s, 10-15 minutes
UNDER THE ASHES
Emmett frantically searches for keys to his private office which he thinks his wife has hidden. But before Lorna will answer his questions about the keys, she insists on telling him about her day, including the mysterious trinket she says her lost son has sent her.
Details: 2 actors (1 female, 1 male), absurdist/drama, 10-15 minutes
WAITING FOR WIND
Two tulips’ lives change for the better when they meet each other at high sun. They have a connection and it is clear they were meant for each other. Yet can they overcome their fears about the future, and lift each other up, despite the stagnant air?
Details: 2 actors (1 male, 1 female, but can be any gender), comedy/drama/romance, 10-15 minutes
THERE ONCE WERE TWO CLOUDS IN THE SKY
When two clouds realize their time existing is quickly running out, they attempt to find some sort of purpose for their lives so their legacy will live on (Creating lightning? Writing poetry?). Yet their own listlessness is dragging them down, and the pressure of dissipating in a matter of minutes is a bit distracting, to say the least. When one cloud proposes a risky way to extend their existence, they must decide together, if what they must give up is worth what they might gain.
Details: 2 actors, comedy/drama/heightened, 10-15 minutes
HOLDING GINGER
When Jenna breaks a special gift a boy gave her older sister, they are not only faced with broken glass to clean up, but they are also faced with the changing dynamics of their family.
Details: drama/comedy, teen, around 10 minutes, 2-person play
THE BRONZE LINING
When two estranged sisters attempt to bond during a hike after their mother’s death, they confront whether there may be too much damage between them to repair.
Details: drama/comedy, 2-person play, around 10 minutes
RUBY AND MILLIE & THE DYING CUCUMBERS
During WW2, two sisters on the homefront are charged with new responsibilities, including the rooftop “victory garden” at their apartment building. But what does it mean when the vegetables start to die?
Details: comedy/drama, 1940s, 2-person play, around 10 minutes, child/tween/teen/young adult actors
RUBY AND MILLIE & THE OLD CHEMICAL PLANT
Sisters, Ruby and Millie have always been extremely close—from Millie caring for Ruby during the strain of WW2, to Ruby watching out for Millie’s bad knees. Neither one can imagine life without the other by her side. But now they struggle with decisions that may, for the first time in 60+ years, take them far away from each other.
Details: Comedy/Drama, 1990s, 2-person play, around 15 minutes, mature actors (50s-80s)
MY BEST MYSELF
While Megan and Kel are waiting for their school bus to arrive, Megan challenges Kel to prove how she received her latest Girl Scout badge.
Details: 5-10 minutes, children’s theater, comedy/drama, cast 2 female
WHEN MARSHMALLOWS BURN
Sammy and his mom are enjoying roasting marshmallows by the fire, under the full moon, when something very strange starts to happen. Sammy’s arms look a little furry. His teeth look a lot like fangs. And he has a sudden urge to kill squirrels—and eat them raw. What (or who) else will he have an urge to kill? Is there anything his mother can do to stop him, or can she ultimately accept and love him? This is a dark comedy about a boy becoming a werewolf, but it’s also a story about needing acceptance and love, in the face of evolving identity.
Details: around 10 minutes, dark comedy/absurdist/thriller. 2 actors, 1 female, 1 any gender
FUNERAL FOR A CRAYFISH
When a classroom crayfish meets an untimely demise, Ari and Queen must figure out whose crayfish suffered this unexpected fate! It’s going to take some clever detective skills though, because unfortunately, Juliet used the same color permanent marker to dot her crayfish’s back as Ari did! Will the clues they uncover be enough to solve the mystery? This is a 5-minute comedy for children which explores friendship, problem solving and working together! It also includes a fun Question and Answer page all about crayfish!
Details: 5-10 minutes, comedy, 2 any gender, children’s theater
STARING AT THE SLOTH
The sloth at the zoo keeps staring at Riley. Is it Riley’s spiky hair? Long nose? Or chocolate milk stain? Can Jaime convince Riley that the sloth is not making fun of her, but rather, maybe, just maybe, thinks Riley is cool? Staring at The Sloth is a funny, sweet play about friendship, self-acceptance, and of course…sloths!
Details: 2 any gender, 5-10 minutes, comedy, children’s theater
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF THREE (3)
KNOCKING LOUDER
Carol adores, but neglects, the newborn baby placed in her custody. When her sister, Lilah, insists the baby be returned to his mother, Carol takes extreme measures to ensure she keep the infant.
Details: Dark comedy, absurdist, dramatic, 3-person play, around 10 minutes
PEBBLES AND TAILS
Scoot, Wiggles and Crunch have been friends since they hatched from eggs in the pond, hiding from predators together, protecting each other, and playing “Kick Pebble” together. But when Scoot realizes that Wiggles and Crunch have developed into froglets, while Scoot remains a tadpole, Scoot feels left behind. Is their friendship strong enough to endure these changing phases? Pebbles and Tails is a story about frogs growing up, but it’s also a story of bravery, kindness, loyalty and friendship.
Details: 5-10 minutes, comedy/drama, children’s theater, 3 actors (any gender), set in a pond
FOR THE LOVE OF SOLOME
Details: cast 3 (2 male, 1 female), around 110-120 minutes, drama
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF FOUR (4)
FREE SPACE
Amelia spends her days under the watchful eye of her mother, doing the same nothing she has done for years. Yet when Bingo arrives at her local community center, a talking Bingo chip convinces Amelia that forming her own game is the way out of this life and away from her controlling mother. However, as her mother begins acting like her newly arrived sister, and the chip becomes increasingly dominating, Amelia discovers her new life is nothing as she imagined.
Details: 3 female, 1 male (1 voice which can be doubled), dark comedy, absurdist, thriller, around 95-105 minutes
THE LAST TWO
Scruffy has been a contented guard dog on an isolated island all his life, but when he meets Daisy, a spunky dog with a flair for adventure, he must decide if he'll join her in starting a new life in the city. But the city is nothing as Daisy imagined, and soon her fate falls into Scruffy’s paws. As they fight to find their way to safety, the two discover a very strange secret about their existence.
Details: 2 female, 2 male (1 voice which can be doubled), dark comedy, absurdist, drama, around 90 minutes
THE SHIPWRECK SOLUTION
What do a box jellyfish, a mako shark, an anglerfish and a tiger shark have in common? They all want to live in the same abandoned shipwreck on the ocean floor! No one wants to share, no one wants to live somewhere else and…uh oh…what if someone can’t help but want to eat someone else? Can these four, very different creatures, can find a way to work it out?
Details: 5-10 minutes, children’s theater, comedy/drama, 4 actors (any gender), set in a shipwreck in the sea
PINHOLE OF JOY
When David gives his ill wife, Leah, a wig for her bald scalp, he is thrilled to find this pleases her, so he complies with her request for more of them. However, as Leah’s demands become increasingly troublesome, and loose human hair with mysterious “red dots” now engulfs their entire apartment, David must decide how far he is willing to go to satisfy his wife.
Details: 4 actors (2 female, 2 male), absurdist tragedy/dark comedy/thriller/drama, 90-100 minutes
PLAYS WITH A CAST OF FIVE (5)
THE OTHER THREE SISTERS
Intertwined scenes of a family are juxtaposed between the 1700s of Jane Austen’s day, and the late 1900s in Queens, NY. 18th Century Mary must decide if she will wed on oaf she despises to make her neighbors jealous, as 20th Century Mary considers allowing back her missing husband who claims to have been sleeping for the years he was away. While the scenes span generations, the women encounter the same issues of marriage, money, and pride.
Details: 5 person play, 1700s/1990s, around 40 minutes, partial adaptation of Jane Austen’s short story, The Three Sisters
GREENHOUSE LIVING
When a new tulip arrives in the greenhouse, the long-time residents (a hyacinth, a fern, a poinsettia) make him pay for the fresh air and space he takes up.
Details: around 10 minutes, 5 any gender, comedy/drama, heightened
MOVEMENTS OF THE WIND
As wind sweeps through a garden, its inhabitants must confront the volatile effects of Mother Nature, as well as their own changing nature. The story follows several short, intertwined pieces, as Carrot and Potato, taught to be enemies from birth, struggle to remain friends, Tulip wants more out of life than only her partner, and two pieces of pollen attempt to make a dangerous jump from a dying flower to a fresh one. Through sacrifice and friendship, they must not only survive their trials, but also come to populate another generation.
Details: allegory, drama/comedy, heightened, 5 actors any gender (with designed doubling)
THE WITCH IN THE GINGERBREAD HOUSE
After giving up her dreary home at The Witches' Estate in search of warmth and sweetness, Delphine creates a new life for herself on the outskirts of a busy village. She builds a beautiful and welcoming gingerbread house to live in, and opens her home and treats to the children of the village. Despite her openness, the children return her kindness with mischief and terrorism. Delphine’s giving spirit retreats, and she draws upon her witch’s disposition to survive. But when she finds two strange and other-worldly children, named Hansel and Gretel, gnawing at the icing on her house, her true nature is put to the test--and her life changes forever.
Details: 2 female, 2 children any gender, 1-2 male with doubling, dark comedy/drama, fairytale tangential
CHRISTMAS SUPERPOWERS AND BELIEVING IN BLITZEN
Take a snowy walk through the child-like magic of Christmas, where reindeer talk, Santa is real, and…does someone want super powers? This is a 30-minute play for 5 actors with doubling or 8 actors without doubling.
Details: comedy, Christmas, children’s theater, around 20-30 minutes, cast is 5 with doubling