Ten (10) Great Plays with Animals as Characters

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Have you ever wanted to play a rabbit? Or a raven? Or a bear? Here’s your chance because in these ten (10) plays, all animal characters not only talk, but they have strong, interesting, fun acting roles to boot! The plays may feature animals but don’t assume they’re written for children (although younger audiences may enjoy too); they are complex, often with dark humor, high stakes, and poignant connections to each other. The plays range from absurd to dark comedy to drama-comedy (and yes, there are a couple for young performers/audiences!). There is so much room for creativity in directing, designing and acting and they’re enjoyable for audiences to watch and discuss. From a grieving raccoon to ostracized seagulls to frogs stuck in a tank, check out these ten (10) humanly relatable plays all featuring animals as the leading characters!

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Pit Trap Meredith: New monologue and upcoming publication

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Wouldn’t you be mad if you were an injured rabbit and you thought your sister abandoned you in a tree stump to fend for yourself against vicious dogs? That’s what has happened to Selena, but there’s actually a really good reason why her sister, Meredith, never came back for her. And it has to do with some really mean rabbits…

In this monologue, Pit Trap Meredith, Meredith defends Selena’s accusations of abandonment, and in the end, even turns the tables on her sister. This is a 30-second to 1-minute monologue from the play, The Moon River Raft. The play follows these two rabbits as they wait at a creepy riverbank, in the middle of the night, hoping a mystical raft will take them across the river to a practically-perfect land. Of course, what awaits them is not exactly as they had dreamed…

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Into The Violet: New dark comedy

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NADINE: And she left us with the gnomes and never came back.
LOLA: Now I hate her.
NADINE: Me too. (pause) Unless she’s dead because that’s not her fault.

That’s part of the dialogue two fairies have about the little girl who caught them in a jar and stuck them behind a waterfall! If you’re local to the tri-state area, you can check out my new dark comedy/absurdist play, INTO THE VIOLET, where Nadine and Lola struggle through hope and despair, reality and fantasy—to create the escape they desperately need. (Script will be available in June).

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New Rom-Com Monologue: Head to Toe

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Sydney is on a first date. A blind date. And a zoom date during the covid-19 lockdown. Needless to say, she’s nervous—but she’s also excited to possibly form a new human connection. And during this date…her cat pees on the floor. Is her cat seeking attention, since he’s been the only one to get her affection for 8 weeks? And will her date wait for her while she cleans up the mess?

I wrote this monologue a couple of years ago, but for some reason, held onto it in the “laptop cave files” until today. Do any single folk remember what it was like to be isolated in a living quarters with literally no one else, except maybe a pet? Thank God for pets, right? Humans need affection, they need interaction, they need comfort and cuddles and touch. And while I ask “does anyone remember”—honestly, three years (or less) really isn’t that long ago…

This idea is forefront in my monologue, Head to Toe, although it’s sandwiched by a jealous cat who might be peeing to ruin Sydney’s blind date! Sydney is a fun role for an actor to play, or director to direct, as she has a lot of action (especially for someone on Zoom), coupled with humor, first-date nerves and excitement, as well as the poignancy of striving for connection amidst isolation.

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Mabel and the Talking Cat: A new one-act quirky comedy/drama

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“If I had opposable thumbs like you, I should rule the land!” ~Patches, the Talking Cat

How far are we willing to go to get the things that we want? How can doing a good thing enable a bad thing? How much would you sacrifice for a loved one? How long do you hold onto a far-fetched hope? How do you connect with those in the dark once you’ve been brought into a new light? Does guilt ever go away?

For a one-act play, Mabel and the Talking Cat sure brings up a lot of questions! On top of all that, we have a bit of magic, a witch in the neighborhood, an ogre, a missing husband and a talking cat! And you won’t find out until the end of the play which well-known fairy tale this play launches into…

Mabel and the Talking Cat is the story of a lonely baker, Mabel, who finally has the opportunity to 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 this precious child…

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March 2023 Newsletter

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Hello, Theater Friends!

It has been a while! Happy "all those holidays" I missed! The past few months, in addition to teaching theater, attending theater, and keeping up on my own theater, I visited a wolf sanctuary, immersed myself in a Harry Potter forest, and even squeezed in a family getaway to ski and snow tube! And now, our Blink-and-Miss-It Winter in the NYC area is basically over (that's fake snow in the photo!).

If you like updates more often, please follow my my FACEBOOK PAGE as I frequently share new plays, monologues and videos there. You can also connect with me on Instagram where you'll get some theater updates, but also updates of my cat, our fig tree and random videos of things like laser tag or a polar bear cocoa bomb!

Now, let me catch you up theatrically! Check out this issue filled with 6 new one-act plays, 5 new monologues, 4 new compilations, 3 publication announcements, 2 photos of Kiwi (our family cat), and 1 monologue video.

Here's to wishing you all good, creative, joyful things in 2023 and beyond! 

 Warmly,

Tara

Click here for the complete newsletter.

"The Prettiest Duckling" - To Be Published by YouthPLAYS

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Happy to share that YouthPLAYS will be publishing my one-act play, The Prettiest Duckling. In this dark comedy, two “mean-girl style” ducklings plot the ousting of their gray-feathered sibling… But they’re always—only—always, thinking of her. Because they, you know, “love her so so much.”

Right?

This play was first performed as part of the production, When Fairy Tales Falter. Buchanan Highhouse and Jessica Caputo fabulously brought to life Gorgeous and Cutesy (yes, those are the names of the ducklings! What do you think Mama will name the gray-feathered duckling?), Nate Flower directed, and Georgia Evans did the costume design.

This play was a TON of fun to write. It went through lots of revisions and tweaks to really land it all (thank you, Kevin Christopher Snipes, Gabe Davis, Mike, Dylan, Luke, Nate, and team!). Can’t wait to see it take life beyond my local world soon. Stay tuned for more information when it’s published. But for now, I’l leave you with these empathetic words from Gorgeous:

“Being gorgeous is also, like, kind of a burden…I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.”

Photos by JCP Images

Teen/Tween Monologue about Confronting a Bully from "What Happened at the Mud Puddle"

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Have you heard the phrase, “hurt people hurt people?” It’s been used enough to sound a little cliche, but there’s truth to it. In my one-act play, What Happened at the Mud Puddle, our main tween antagonist is Taylor. She makes fun of others, steals boyfriends, hogs the spotlight, and acts out of spite in true “mean girl” fashion. She has a lot of learning and growing to do, well beyond this play. But even though she’s left a lot of people hurt in her wake, she has her own hurt and insecurity too.

This monologue takes place toward the end of the play, after Taylor has alienated all the guests at her extravagant yacht soiree and they’ve left to come to Chloe’s simple backyard birthday party. Taylor arrives at Chloe’s house—very angry and humiliated. Someone gets pushed in a mud puddle…And Taylor walks away, defeated. Chloe’s monologue recounts her final private confrontation with Taylor, where she realizes why this whole feud even started...and how Chloe is perhaps not entirely innocent either…

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New Comedic Monologue for Unicorn-Lovers: CloudLily The Unicorn & Zoey

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Did someone say UNICORN??

magical forest with a unicorn horn and ears in bottom left. In blue and pink font, Title Cloudlily The Unicorn And Zoey. Subtitle in brown, A monologue by Tara Meddaugh

Okay, so there just are not enough monologues out there for unicorns! Right?? But here’s your chance to finally play one (I know you have always wanted to). Check out my comedic monologue, CloudLily The Unicorn & Zoey, which runs about 30 seconds to 1 minute long. In it, CloudLily, a unicorn, is talking to her loyal fan, 4-year-old, Zoey. Zoey has been visiting CloudLily in the magical forest and giving her super awesome gifts. You know the kind of gifts some 4-year-olds give you, right? Like…weeds…and clumps of dirt? So CloudLily is grateful. I mean, how could she not be? Zoey is an adorable child who is the definition of “pure of heart.” But…CloudLily also knows humans have access to some pretty cool things besides just, well, dirt. Check out what CloudLily asks Zoey for in the short funny monologue for any age actor (child, tween, teen, or adult!).

Also, gotta give some props to the inspiration for this monologue. One of my followers on Facebook messaged me he got a “Top Fan Badge” for my page. I gave him some virtual props and said, “you win!” He wisely asked me what he won. And I said, “hmmm…you or your kids can give me a topic and I’ll see if I can write a little monologue about it.” He told me his daughter loves rainbow unicorns. Well. Here’s your monologue, Zoey! Hope you enjoy!

Enjoy a little excerpt (and silly floating animated unicorn head video, as well!)!

CLOUDLILY  

(to 4-year-old Zoey)

Zoey. I love the dandelions and clovers and…clumps of dirt you keep bringing me every day. They’re all really cool and special and I know it’s super fun watching my magical unicorn horn turn them into rainbow colors and make them dance and stuff like that. But I hear—CLICK HERE FOR MORE

My silly floating-head-unicorn amateur animation of “CloudLily The Unicorn & Zoey.”

Two One-Act/Ten-Minute Plays About Sisters - for Youth and Mature Adult Actors

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I’ve written about sister-relationships before (in The Bronze Lining and The Moon River Raft to name a few), but the relationship is especially unique in my two Ruby and Millie plays. These plays both feature the same sisters, but at two very different points in their lives.

In Ruby and Millie and the Dying Cucumbers, Ruby is a child around 9 years old and her older sister, Millie, is around 16. It’s 1943 and their father is a Prisoner of War in Europe. He has charged Ruby to lead her apartment building’s rooftop Victory Garden on the homefront in White Plains, NY. With their mother working long hours and their father gone, teenage Millie carries weighty responsibilities of her own. In the play, Millie has been searching for her little sister at night, and finally finds her on the rooftop. While Millie tries to convince Ruby to come inside to bed, Ruby discovers some of her vegetables are dying, and fears this is a harbinger of bad news for her father and the war.

In Ruby and Millie and The Old Chemical Plant, we fast forward 50+ years. The war is a distant memory while Seinfeld blares on the tv at night. Ruby has had a successful career but never married; Millie is a widow with children living all over the globe. The sisters live in the same senior apartments, and are tending to a fig tree in their 1990s community garden together. Ruby and Millie have always been close. 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 very far away from each other.

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Monologue from "When Marshmallows Burn" Published in The Best Men's Stage Monologues Anthology

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I’m honored that my monologue from When Marshmallows Burn has been published in Smith & Kraus’s anthology, The Best Men’s Stage Monologues 2022, edited by Debbie Lamedman. Did you know Smith & Kraus has been publishing anthologies of the best men’s and women’s stage monologues for over 30 years? Very cool! In my dark comedy/drama:

Sammy and his mom are enjoying roasting marshmallows over 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 her wereson? Read the whole play here.

Missy Flower and Buchanan Highhouse in When Marshmallows Burn, directed by Nate Flower. Photography by @designbyraegan.

This is a play about a werewolf, yes. But moreover, it’s a play about a mom and her son. I recently read Celeste Ng’s new novel Our Missing Hearts and in it, a central mother character says, “But in the end every story I want to tell you is the same. Once upon a time, there was a boy. Once upon a time there was a mother. Once upon a time, there was a boy, and his mother loved him very much.”

This hits me hard.

And when I was telling my 2 sons basically the whole story of Our Missing Hearts, you can bet I was choking up relaying this part of the book (and then hugging them!).

When Marshmallows Burn is not only a dark comedy about a boy becoming a werewolf. It’s a story about familial acceptance and the love of a mom and a son, in the face of changing identity.

The monologue selected for the anthology (What My Fangs are For) takes place the moment Sammy has returned from his first kill in the woods. He is proud he found his late-night snack without troubling his mom for help. As he relays killing the squirrel to her, he realizes his mother is becoming increasingly scared of him and his pride turns to fear that she will no longer love him as a werewolf.

Sammy’s monologue runs about 1 minute long and is great for any gender actor. It gives the performer a significant journey from being proud of something new and exciting to being deeply worried and terrified to lose what matters most. It also lets an actor showcase both dark comedy as well as dramatic skills.

Debbie Lamedman’s foreward

I was so lucky to have an outstanding team bring this play to life for the first time: Missy Flower as the mom, Buchanan Highhouse as the son, and Nate Flower as the director (produced by Free Space Theater, in collaboration with the Harrison Public Library). We performed the play around Halloween, at night in the great outdoors, and this was an absolute amazing backdrop for the play, which takes place at night, in the great outdoors…

Along with Sammy’s monologue, this anthology includes dozens of other wonderful monologues. As Ms. Lademan writes in her foreword, “These pieces present great acting challenges, and actors will have the pleasure of sinking their teeth into this sublime material while continuing to perfect their craft in their online or in-person workshops.”

Click here to get The Best Men’s Stage Monologues on amazon. You can also get Sammy’s monologue, What My Fangs are For, by itself here. Additionally, you can read an excerpt here of When Marshmallows Burn, or click below for the complete digital copy of that play:

When Marshmallows Burn, a 10-minute dark comedy by Tara Meddaugh
$5.99
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Teen/Tween Monologue about Bullying and Fitting In from “What Happened at the Mud Puddle”

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In my one-act play, What Happened at the Mud Puddle, Taylor, resident mean/popular girl, is creating a whole lot of uncomfortable drama for her entire grade. By the end of the play, we’ll realize, not everyone is quite as straight-forward as they seem (including Taylor), and the line of who is “mean” and who is “nice” sometimes get a little blurred in middle-school… What Happened at the Mud Puddle is a comedy that runs around 25 minutes, with a nice ensemble cast of 12 roles (8 female, 4 male). It has a lot of great monologues, so while it’s good in-person theater, it also transitions easily to zoom or virtual productions.

In this monologue, we learn about Amanda. Amanda is new to this middle school and it doesn’t take long for Taylor to humiliate her in front of the whole cafeteria. So why does Amanda still want to go to Taylor’s party?

Amanda’s monologue runs about 2 minutes. You can read an excerpt of Amanda’s monologue below and you can read the whole play, published by YouthPLAYS here.

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The Reason I'm Single: Included in "10 Female Monologues from Love Sick Characters" Theatre Nerds

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We’re less than a month away from Valentine’s Day and I know y’all have seen all that pink-heart stuff in CVS the moment the Christmas stuff went on sale! On this “love note”, I’m happy my piece, The Reason I’m Single, was included in this collection from Theatre Nerds of 10 Female Monologues From Love Sick Characters (Ashleigh Gardner). About the collection, Gardner writes:

Competition and audition season is quickly approaching! Have you found your monologue yet? If not, we have you covered. Below are 10 monologues (5 dramatic and 5 comedic) from love-sick female characters who have a bone to pick with love.

In my comedic/dramatic monologue, The Reason I’m Single, Rebecca finally admits to her friend, Kelly, why she doesn’t have a boyfriend. And it’s not why Kelly thinks… As of this post, PerformerStuff is the only place you can get the monologue too (you can read an excerpt and more info there).

Hope you’re not lovesick for real, but it’s good theater playing someone who is!

New 30-Second Monologue About Trust from Pitfalls and Treasures

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My play, Pitfalls and Treasures, is a dark comedy/drama about two loner seagulls finding each other, and forming a kind of reliance, trust, friendship. Each has been ostracized from their former flock, but their response to the pain of being pushed out is very different. Andrew remains open, friendly, trusting, hoping for the best. Mary is more jaded and skeptical (“one bitten, twice shy” kinda situation). But now Andrew has twine wrapped around his foot and no one has stopped to help him except Mary. As the two search a littered parking lot for objects that might be used to cut off the twine from his leg, Mary points out dangerous litter (like chewing gum) which might appear treasures to Andrew if he is not careful. Andrew’s gratitude for Mary’s help is immense and he marvels at how he has even survived without her. In this monologue, Mary warns him not to be too trusting of her—or anyone for that matter, as she gets lost in thoughts from her own experience.

This is a 30-second contemporary monologue for a female actor, from late teens to any age adult. You can enjoy a short excerpt below, get the free monologue here, or the entire play here.

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1-Minute Monologues

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One-minute monologues are an important way to make a quick impression to agents, casting directors, schools/colleges/universities. While longer monologues definitely have their place, sometimes actors are required to stick with showing their chops in less than 60 seconds. One-minute monologues also fairly easy to memorize because, well, obviously, they’re short, and they work well for younger actors who may not be ready for a 2-minute monologue or longer. One-minute monologues are also great to perform in festivals, competitions or classes, and an accessible way for actors to hone their craft privately or with a coach.

Having only 1 minute to showcase yourself as an actor can be a bit daunting though, so I’ve started a new page of my 1-minute monologues to make things a little bit easier for actors. These monologues have story and character arc, even if short, and they help actors showcase versatility and evoke emotion from their audience. There are dramatic 1-minute monologues, comedic 1-minute monologues, 1-minute monologues for women, men, any gender, teens and children. From candy-inspired monologues for kids to mean girl monologues for teens to hopeful love or scorned love—these 35 monologues allow actors to dig into complexities and give a memorable performance, in one minute.

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The Moon River Raft: New Dark Comedy Play for 2 actors

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A wounded rabbit and her loyal sister, fleeing for their lives, hold onto hope that a secret Moon River Raft will carry them to a perfect land with no predators, filled with rainbows and radish tops as far as the eye can see… All they have to do is wait for this mysterious raft…in the middle of the night…in the woods…until Peak Full Moon…at a very creepy river bank…

You can check out what happens at this creepy river in my new one-act (miiiight slide by as a 10-minute) dark comedy, The Moon River Raft. It runs about 15+ minutes and has two great roles for ages teen through adult (the parts are written with female pronouns but the casting can be any gender). Yes, it’s dark, but it’s also funny as you lean into the cruelty, naivety and absurdity of the world these rabbits are in. It’s a play with minimal setting requirements and could adapt well to outdoor theater. CLICK BELOW TO READ MORE

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Pitfalls and Treasures: Published in The Best Ten-Minute Plays 2022

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Before we ring in 2023, I’m happy to share that Smith & Kraus’s anthology, The Best Ten-Minute Plays 2022, edited by Debbie Lamedman, is out and available! I’m so honored that my 2-person play, Pitfalls and Treasures, has been published in this fabulous anthology. In the play:

Mary and Andrew are lonely and troubled parking lot seagulls, each ostracized by their former flocks. When Mary happens upon the injured Andrew, she embarks on the desperate challenge to remove twine wrapped around his leg. This play is about, well, yes, seagulls. And being seagulls, in a parking lot, with a numb leg and no flock, the stakes are high. But it’s also about love and loss, hope and failure, trust and apprehension, desperation and resignation. And of course, a seagull and a french fry! It’s a bit dark, a bit funny and a bit sweet.

Along with Pitfalls and Treasures, this anthology includes 50 other great new plays. While all of the plays included are diverse in theme, topic, style, and genre, in her foreword, Ms. Lamedman points out their commonality; they are all, “timely, cutting-edge, thrilling pieces of theatre.”

Ten-minute plays are unique pieces of theater. The “short stories” of theater, they give us a window into a few meaningful moments in time, and it’s a delightful challenge as a playwright to make sure the audience is brought in to the world, the characters and the story pretty darn quickly. I love writing in this format, and, short as it may be, I fall in love with my characters, as they become much larger than 10 minutes. I hope may feel a similar way as you dive into a 10-minute theatrical short!

Gregory Perry Photography, WCT 2021 production featuring Rob McEvily and Missy Flower, directed by Mel Nocera.

The original production of Pitfalls and Treasures was especially sweet as I had a fantastic team of people bringing the play to life: Under Mel Nocera’s keen direction, Missy Flower and Rob McEvily made the seagulls Mary and Andrew charming, funny, sharp and heart wrenching. Much gratitude also to WCT and their Executive Director, Alan Lutwin, for producing the play and their dedication to new work. And of course huge thanks and recognition to editor Debbie Lamedman for her amazing work on this anthology!

Click here to get The Best Ten-Minute Plays 2022 on amazon. Additionally, you can read an excerpt of Pitfalls and Treasures here or click below for a complete digital copy of the play:

Pitfalls and Treasures, a 10-minute play
$5.99
Add To Cart