Highlighting a variety of perspectives on religion, race, sexual orientation, ability and identity, these plays explore our differences and guide us toward greater understanding and compassion.
Middle School | High School | College | Community | Professional | TYA
6 any gender.
Livestream and Record & Stream Rights Available
30 min.
Lift Every Voice, which is based on a true story, explores the impact of racism in an urban high school. When the class president of an elite inner-city high school posts a racially inflammatory message on social media, tensions explode, loyalties are tested and long-simmering resentments boil over as the six members of the student council grapple with the fallout and how to move forward. Learn More
Middle School | High School | College | Community | Professional | TYA
6 either gender.
Livestream and Record & Stream Rights Available
30 min.
Lift Every Voice, which is based on a true story, explores the impact of racism in an urban high school. When the class president of an elite inner-city high school posts a racially inflammatory message on social media, tensions explode, loyalties are tested and long-simmering resentments boil over as the six members of the student council grapple with the fallout and how to move forward. Learn More
Shedrick, a Liberian refugee living in Australia, explains his journey from his war-torn home to refugee camps, where he survived squalor, hunger and disease. He was rescued by his Uncle John and assumed the identity of John’s dead son. Now safe in Australia, Shedrick wants to reclaim his identity. Rob, a white attorney, believes it can happen with a simple legal procedure, but John is ferociously against it, forcing Shedrick to choose between reclaiming his identity and his loyalty to the man who saved his life. Learn More
14 was inspired by the true-life event in May 2001 in which a smuggler abandoned 30 Mexicans crossing the desert, resulting in 14 deaths from dehydration. It is a starting point for exploration to investigate the complexities of people living on the border, not giving answers but raising difficult questions. The mosaic of flawed and struggling people included emphasize the importance of investigating this topic in a way that calls not only for action and conversation but, ultimately, for a collective solution.
Terminus tells the story of Eller, a progressive white matriarch, and her mixed-race grandson, Jaybo, who live together in a ramshackle house down by the railroad tracks in rural Georgia. Their unique love has seen them through, but when Eller’s mind begins to fade with dementia, her violent past in the segregated South haunts her from the very walls of the old family home. As she descends terrifyingly closer toward a horrifying truth, Jaybo’s capacity to love his grandmother is put to the test. Learn More
Defamation is a riveting courtroom drama that illuminates our common perceptions about race, religion and class. In this case, the plaintiff is Ms. Wade, a professional black woman from the South Side of Chicago. The defendant is Mr. Golden, a successful North Shore businessman who is Jewish. Following testimony from each side, the judge reveals that the audience will be the jury. Defamation challenges our preconceived notions about race, class, religion and even the law.
Elementary School | Middle School | High School | Community
11 to 16m., 11 to 20w., 5 to 9 either gender.
Limited Streaming Rights Available
55 min.
In 1960, 6-year-old Ruby became the first black child to attend an all-white elementary school in New Orleans. When the white families learned of Ruby’s enrollment, they pulled their children from her class, leaving Ruby and her teacher the only ones in the classroom for the school year. Her family watched helplessly as federal marshals escorted Ruby to school each day past protesters jeering and threatening her life. This musical explores a little girl’s unbeatable courage in the face of adversity. Learn More
At the height of what TIME magazine dubbed "AIDS hysteria" in 1983, college student David invites his boyfriend home to his parents' house in Maryland where nothing has changed since the 1800s—including the slave quarters. This play confronts hypocrisy and oppression with exhilarating wit.
