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Mystery/Suspense/Horror

From murder mysteries to gothic horror, Stage Partners has an exciting collection of suspenseful plays by some of the most exciting playwrights working today. From high schools and middle schools to community and professional theatres, Stage Partners has chilling new plays for every stage.

Browse our selection below and READ EVERY PLAY SCRIPT FOR FREE!

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7 Items
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  • This Murder Was Staged, a murder mystery comedy play script by Patrick Greene and Jason Pizzarello

    This Murder Was Staged

    Length: 100-120 minutes
    Cast Size: 8-25 actors
    Genre: Comedy
    Synopsis:
    It's opening night of a brand-new mystery play, but just as the killer is about to be revealed, the body of the play's director falls onstage instead. In that moment, the theater becomes an active crime scene, and everyone from cast to crew to even the audience becomes a suspect. But how is the intrepid detective supposed to find the killer when everyone and their mother (literally) has a motive t...
  • Silenced on Barbour Street - Stage Partners

    Silenced on Barbour Street

    Written By: William Prenetta
    Length: 40-50 minutes
    Cast Size: 21-35 actors (suggested casting: 15F, 7M, 5 any)
    Genre: Drama
    Synopsis:
    On July 6, 1944, a fire roared across the top of the 48-foot high tent during the matinee performance of the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus, claiming the lives of 144 spectators. In this ensemble driven drama, 15 victims of this tragedy must face their guilt and deepest fears in order to escape from a sadistic ringmaster who has trapped them in a mysterious circus purgatory. Part h...
  • Ten(ish): Horror - Transfer by Elinor T Vanderburg. 10-minute horror play

    Transfer

    Written By: Elinor T Vanderburg
    Length: 10 - 20 minutes
    Cast Size: 5 actors (suggested casting: 4F, 1M)
    Genre: Drama
    Synopsis:
    Bow returns to her senior year of high school after a personal tragedy that no one wants to discuss head-on. But coming back isn't easy – especially not with the presence of a transfer student who is all smiles, light, and brilliance – and taking over every relationship Bow holds dear. A little Black Swan, a little more Hitchcock, Transfer is a sparse, noir-inspired drama t...
  • The Great, Great Granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes - Stage Partners

    The Great, Great Granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes

    Written By: Jon Jory
    Length: 30-35 minutes
    Cast Size: 7-10 actors, flexible
    Genre: Comedy
    Synopsis:
    Clever Sherla Gomes, the Great, Great Granddaughter of famous sleuth Sherlock, teams up with her loyal friend Lolo Watson to get to the bottom of some seriously mysterious happenings. In The Blue Diamond case, they have to figure out what an uncooked goose has to do with a missing jewel - and why Jenny the Scorpion is so dangerously irritable... In The Speckled Band, the g...
  • The Great, Great Granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes: The Blue Diamond - Stage Partners

    The Great, Great Granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes: The Blue Diamond

    Written By: Jon Jory
    Length: 30-35 minutes
    Cast Size: 7-10 actors, flexible
    Genre: Comedy
    Synopsis:
    Clever Sherla Gomes, the Great, Great Granddaughter of famous sleuth Sherlock, teams up with her loyal friend Lolo Watson to get to the bottom of some seriously mysterious happenings. In The Blue Diamond case, they have to figure out what an uncooked goose has to do with a missing jewel - and why Jenny the Scorpion is so dangerously irritable... Performed together or separately, these one-act myst...
  • The Great, Great Granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes: The Speckled Band - Stage Partners

    The Great, Great Granddaughter of Sherlock Holmes: The Speckled Band

    Written By: Jon Jory
    Length: 30-35 minutes
    Cast Size: 8-12 actors, flexible
    Genre: Comedy
    Synopsis:
    Clever Sherla Gomes, the Great, Great Granddaughter of famous sleuth Sherlock, teams up with her loyal friend Lolo Watson to get to the bottom of some seriously mysterious happenings. In The Speckled Band, the girls must solve a high-profile murder involving a cheetah, and baboon, and an expiring inheritance. Performed together or separately, these one-act mysteries, inspired by the stories of Sir...
  • Edgar: A Ghost Story - Stage Partners

    Edgar: A Ghost Story

    Written By: John Haman
    Length: 35-40 minutes
    Cast Size: 6-20 actors (suggested casting: 4F, 2M,)
    Genre: Drama
    Synopsis:
    A first-year high school drama teacher arrives at school to find her auditorium haunted. Against this backdrop, a terminally ill girl falls in love for the first time with a troubled boy as she works against time to stage a tender, autobiographical play. A love-letter to high school theater, Edgar explores the realms of the living, dead, and dying with humor and grace. The play features virtually...
7 Items