One-Act Dramas
From intimate dramas for competition to large cast historical plays, Stage Partners has an award-winning collection of exciting dramatic play scripts for high schools, middle schools, and theatres from some of the most popular playwrights working today.
Browse our selection below and READ EVERY PLAY SCRIPT FOR FREE!
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Antigone: 3021 (one-act version)
Length: 35-45 minutesCast Size: 14-24 actors (suggested casting: 2F, 1M, 20+ any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
It's the year 3021 and Thebes has just been through a bloody civil war. Chancellor Creah has decreed that anyone who buries the body of the traitor Polyneices will face the death, but Antigone is determined to bury her brother, no matter the penalty. She brazenly breaks Creah’s law and broadcasts her crime on the public cloud. Now Creah must decide if she will bend to the will of the people or p... -
Dracula (one-act)
Length: 30-35 minutesCast Size: 11 actors (suggested casting 7F, 3M, 1 any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
A swift one-act adaptation of Bram Stoker's classic horror novel that is easily staged for the most-effective frights. Eva Van Helsing, the vampire hunter, has decided to confront and kill Dracula before he bites again. Lucy is already wandering the asylum as an undead, and it isn’t long before more victims fall prey. Mina is willing to be human bait to lure Dracula out of hiding, but will Van H... -
As If, Cassandra
Length: 40-45 minutesCast Size: 9-20 actors (suggested casting: 9F, 2M, 4+ any)Genre: Dramedy, DramaSynopsis:
Everybody's whispering: Something's wrong with Cassie. She walked out on her squad mid-routine; won't help her mom put up Christmas decorations; suddenly wants to back out of prom plans. Well, Cassie hears taunts about how fate is inescapable in every cheer, her mom doesn't seem to notice it's February, and she's haunted by premonitions of something terrible that will happen if prom night continue... -
Dr. Jekyll and Miss Hyde
Length: 30-35 minutesCast Size: 15 actors (suggested casting 2F, 13 any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
Dr. Jekyll does not seem herself lately, as a series of strange attacks strikes London. Jekyll's honest lawyer Utterson is determined to get to the bottom of the matter, after the seeing the abominable Miss Hyde flee a crime scene into Dr. Jekyll's house. But as Utterson questions the Londoners in Dr. Jekyll's orbit, it becomes clear that the secrets of Jekyll and Hyde are intertwined... Thi... -
Founding Daughters
Length: 30-40 minutesCast Size: 9-25 actors possible (suggested casting: 5F, 4M)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
An episodic look at the heroic deeds of young women during the Revolutionary War that would be long forgotten if not for oral history. Had these women not been so brave and cunning, would the war have ended the same way? There is Sybil Ludington's overnight ride to gather the militia, Kate, an African Princess, forced into slavery, who saved her master from the British and more. Students and audie... -
The Old Woman Lost at Sea
Length: 35-40 minutesCast Size: 8-11 actors possible (suggested casting: 6F, 3M, 2 any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
Take care of your own little boat, and let others take care of theirs. That’s what Chelsea’s mother Martha taught her as she grew up. But she also remembers the cost, and she can’t look away when she sees someone drowning, like her mother can. When the seas turn stormy for Martha’s own boat, she refuses to come aboard a bigger ship crewed by people different from herself—and they can onl... -
Barn Wood and Blue Roses
Length: 30-40 minutesCast Size: 7-20 actors (suggested casting: 3F, 7 any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
When Devon learns that best friend Chelsea has cystic fibrosis, Devon creates a fantasy world for the two of them to live in. They live in their new imaginative world as L'Sea, a woman who becomes a dragon twice a day, and D'Nova, renowned artisan of comical barn wood signs and a magician's apprentice. But Devon has kept a secret, too. And it is about to bring their whole fantasy world crashing do... -
The Secret Garden
Length: 45-55 minutesCast Size: 12-48 actors (4F, 5M, 3 any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
Orphaned young Mary Lennox finds herself in the charge of a mysterious uncle, in a mysterious house, on the desolate moor in England. Bored and lonely, she starts exploring the gardens and uncovers a secret that has been kept for ten years. But why is everyone here keeping secrets? And who is crying in the house late at night? As spring arrives, the power of nature begins to unlock a beautiful new... -
My Brother's Gift (one-act version)
Length: 40-50 minutesCast Size: 5-15 actors (suggested casting: 5F, 3M, 2 any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
Based on the remarkable true story of Heinz Geiringer -- neighbor and friend of Anne Frank -- we follow the story of a young artist and loving brother living in unconscionable circumstances. A trained musician at only 15 and now forced to live in hiding and silence, Heintz turns to painting and poetry to express his everyday terror but hope of the future. Through Heinz's inspired paintings, nostal... -
Shakespeare, Clearly: Romeo and Juliet (one-act)
Length: 30-35 minutesCast Size: 8-30 actors (suggested casting: 4F, 4M, 10 any)Genre: DramaSynopsis:
In Shakespeare's most well-known tragedy, two young star-crossed lovers’ deaths ultimately reconcile their feuding families. This straightforward adaptation mixing contemporary and classical language emphasizes story and character rather than the poetry. Master director and acclaimed playwright Jon Jory has reimagined the classic tale to serve as an early introduction for younger audiences and a...
