PLAY SYNOPSIS:

THREE MOTHERS

Cast: 3F Full-length Genre Drama
Is a fictionalized story inspired by real people, real events and the 1964 photo of the three mothers, whose sons were brutally murdered during Civil Rights upheaval in the South. After the final funeral, during shiva in Carolyn Goodman’s home on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the three mothers come to grips with the details surrounding their sons’ deaths at the hands of Ku Klux Klan members. Through their meeting they forge an unbreakable bond and commitment to the Civil Rights movement.

I COULD SEE, A RAGING REVOLT

Cast: 1M Short play Genre Drama
After being shot out of his body by police, DeSean witnesses the events after his death.

FLASHING BACK BEFORE ME

Cast: 4M 1F Full-length Genre Drama
Damon Morris, a small time Bronx drug dealer is being framed for a murder and robbery which he didn’t commit. Feeling the heat, he decides to leave town with a friend, but discovers his friend is being held by a ruthless gang leader. Damon must find a way to save his friend’s life and clear his name, which forces him to take a hard look at his way of life. This urban hip-hop drama bends time back and forth in flashbacks.

ONE POINT THREE

Cast: 4M 3F Full-length Genre Comedy
There is a shifting tide in the Williams’ family. When Howard Williams is arrested for discharging a firearm in his backyard, his children arrive at his home to find the place empty. While waiting for him to be released, questions rise about his emotional and mental stability, which brings up old unresolved family issues.

AND FIVE WERE NOT MEN YET

Cast: 8M Full-length Genre Drama
This play is inspired by the Martinsville Seven’s rape case. Set in the rural South in the early fifties, seven young African American men wait to be electrocuted. When Leroy Simmons can’t recall what happened, his brother and the others re-create different scenes to help him find his truth and theirs.

AN HEIR TO HIS THRONE

Cast: 4M 2F Full-Length Genre Comedy
Jeffrey Singleton, a homeless black gay playwright is discovered by Upper East Side socialites, Katherine Brookes and Alicia Talbert on the steps of the 92nd Street Y. Taken in by the young writer’s brilliance, Katherine invites him to her home for dinner. Later Mr. Brookes discovers that the charming young man has written a wonderful heart-wrenching urban drama, which he and Alicia’s husband wants to produce. But, when Jeffrey’s truth is finally exposed, everyone is confronted with their hidden biases and personal perceptions of racial stereotypes. This revisionist satirical folktale is told through the eyes of Davis, a dignified butler.

A SHADOW IN TIME

Cast: 3M 2F Full-length Genre Drama
Feeling his life is coming to an end, Chester Richmond, a broken, but proud man needs a memory of his legacy. When Chester starts working on a basketball court in his backyard for his grandson, it drives a deeper wedge between Chester and his son Clifford, causing a purge and heartbreak between the two.

ALMOST SEPTEMBER

Cast: 1M 2F Two-Act Play Genre Comedy/Drama
Truth, hopes and dreams are revealed and ultimately challenged in this beautiful thoughtful drama. Set in a sleepy college town, this play revolves around the conflicts of an idealist teacher, her young protégé and an alluring blues singer/laborer.

6:09 A SOUTHERN TALE

Cast: 2M One-Act Genre Drama
Set in the Deep South during the mid-fifties, Mister Parson a wealthy landowner has just been murdered by one of his sharecroppers, Davis Ross. After witnessing the murder, Pete Mitchell believes they both will be held responsible, so he convinces Davis to help him bury the body with hopes of catching the 6:09 train to Chicago. As the two desperate men dig Parson’s grave, we discover why this murderous deed occurred.

ROSEMARY’S CONVERSATION

Cast: 1F One-Act Monologue Genre Drama
Rosemary Haywood is preparing a homecoming dinner for her son, who has just been released from prison. He calls to tell her that he’s not coming home. Rosemary must listen to how she played a part in his imprisonment and the destruction of their family.

SWING

Cast: 1M 1F One-Act Play Genre Drama (part of the Highland Avenue Trilogy)
Melvin Woodruff, a quiet elementary school teacher has been carrying a torch for Hattie, his best friend’s wife for years. Realizing the emptiness of his life, he decides to tell her that he loves her. Hattie, who is devoted to her dead husband’s memory rejects Melvin’s offer, but later must decide whether to remain alone or accept his love.

LAY TO REST

Cast: 2M 1F One-Act Genre Comedy (part of the Highland Avenue Trilogy)
Agnes Walker and Matthew are working in their garden, when she remembers they buried their son twenty years ago. Matthew responds with, “we never had a son”; but when a young college student from the neighborhood arrives, it brings up old unwanted memories for Matthew.

OTIS’ SONG

Cast: 1M One-Act Monologue Genre Comedy (part of the Highland Avenue Trilogy)
After another night of heavy drinking, Otis returns home only to discover the front door lock has been changed. In his drunken haze, he must confront the truth of why the lock has been changed.

ONE NIGHT IN BENNIE’S BAR

Cast: 2M Full-length Genre Comedy
Charles Trice, an elegant sixty-year-old washed-up jazz singer finds himself working as a janitor in a Bronx bar. As he is closing, Emanuel Richardson, a young man, gains entrance into the bar by lying. On this night, Charles is confronted with his past and an angry son he never knew.

WENTWORTH’S DISCRETION

Cast: 2M One-Act Play Genre Comedy
After the recent election of Barack Obama, Chet Kincaid, a loquacious erudite and Winston Ford, a retired quiet book clerk meets in the park for their regular chess match. Believing a change has come, Chet wagers a bet with Winston. If he wins, Winston will make the proper introduction to his landlady and if he loses, he will remain silent during their games for the next year. When a call comes in, Chet discovers Winston is more than Lady Wentworth’s tenant.

KIN

Cast: 3M 3F One-Act Genre Comedy/Mystery
Maxine has invited a distant family relative to the family’s Labor Day picnic. Believing the distant relative has murdered his wife, Maxine’s sisters try to convince her not to allow him to attend. When the truth is finally revealed, the family must face how lies can distort everyone’s perception and what it means to be kin.

BIRTH RITES

Cast: 1M 3F Full-length Genre Drama
When the soft-spoken Roosevelt Walker proposes to Daisy Wright, it causes strife between her and her sister Rose. Rose, afraid of being left alone to take care of their demented, invalid mother, sets out to ruin their plans. In the aftermath, terrible family secrets and truths are revealed.

COMEBACK SWEET

Cast: 1M One-Act Monologue Genre Drama
Cleveland Jones, a jealous distraught man must leave town after the loss of his lover. He returns to the river where she drowned and tries to resurrect her spirit, in this Southern hoodoo tale.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

Cast: 2M 1F One-Act Play Genre Comedy
Harvey Matthews, a City College professor is engaged to Joyce Burkes, who refuses to tell her aging, disabled father, Anderson Burkes. After Sunday church service, Harvey waits for Joyce in the park with hopes of putting an end to the charade. Once Anderson realizes his daughter’s fear of losing him, he must find a way to push her out of the nest.

THE KILLING OF DORIS TALBERT

Cast: 6M 5F Full-length Genre: Drama/Mystery
Stanley Ross, a reporter for the local Black newspaper is investigating the murder of two young black women. He has hopes of writing a book with his findings but stumbles upon something bigger. There are other women who have been murdered, and no one has taken notice. Stanley sets out to expose and end these savage murders.

AROUND THE WORLD IN 45 MINUTES

Cast: 1M 4F with multiple children roles Full-length Genre Comedy
When Emily falls asleep in her geography class, the daughter of the Sandman (Sally) and the daughter of Hypnos (Hilary) enter her dream and wager a bet. Sally must take Emily around the world in forty-five minutes, and if Sally loses Emily will receive a failing grade in her class. This story takes Emily and Sally to different countries while meeting important historical figures and witnessing historic events. But little do they know that Hilary has plans to thwart their whirlwind excursion.

SHIRLEY CHISHOLM: A CATALYST FOR CHANGE

Cast: 2F Full-length Genre Historical
Chisholm, a Catalyst for Change, is set in the world of magical realism and takes place in Shirley Chisholm’s last breath. Shirley Chisholm’s last breath enters and reexamine aspects of her political career and how she became the first Black woman elected to Congress.

SOME STRANGER

Cast: 1M One-Act Monologue Genre Comedy
Anderson Lake reflects on the day in Mississippi when he and a friend, Lem were tricked into working on an illegal work farm. Anderson and Lem are able to escape under darkness, with the help of an unexpected stranger.

DAYS OF A DRUNKEN CROW

Cast: 3M 1F Full-length Genre Drama
James Morton, a con artist, returns home to his family’s funeral business to sell his share to his younger brother, Pete. When his older brother William discovers the deal he intervenes, which pushes the three brothers further apart, bringing misfortune and heartbreak.

THE ABUSED

Cast: 1M 1F One Act Monologue Genre Drama
Marilyn Greene is caught between life and death after being shot by her jealous boyfriend. She tries to figure out how this happened in her waning moments.

TERRANCE’S BOUNTY

Cast: 6M 2F Full-length Genre Comedy
Terrance Randall, an ambitious stock investor is being promoted to VP at the Oakes and Oakes investment firm. But when the firm comes under investigation by the SEC, Terrance finds he is at the center of the scandal. Marred in Oakes and Oakes’ financial corruption, Terrance must reconnect with his Southern roots to secure his innocence. Magical realism is at the heart of this play with Terrance caught between his waking world and the dream world.

LOCK AND LOAD

Cast: 2M Ten-minute play Genre Drama
James Turner has been watching old footage of the World Trade Center bombing, which caused the death of his wife. Believing it was all a governmental hoax, he sits with a rifle in hand contemplating his next step. His son arrives to stop him, but after reviewing the same footage, his attitude changes. Now, he takes up his father’s mission.

PLAYS CAN BE VIEWED UPON REQUEST

SCREENPLAYS

A LITTLE SHAKE-DOWN

Feature Length
A Mid-level Crime Story
Tyrone Ross (a jazz trumpeter) is trapped between two crooked detectives and small-time crime boss; he must hatch a plan to free himself form their deadly scheme.

THE CARNATION

A Short Film
Psychological-Comedy
Melvin believes his wife is cheating on him, so he hires a hit man to killer her lover, which is him.

A HOMECOMING

A Short Film
Adapted from Rosemary’s Conversation
Rosemary Haywood is preparing a homecoming dinner for her son, who has just been released from prison. He calls to tell her that he’s not coming home. Rosemary must hear to how she played a part in his imprisonment and the destruction of their family.

THE DATE

A Short Film
A man brooding over the loss of his wife prepares for death.