25 in 10: Twenty-Five Ten-Minute Plays

Twenty-five ten-minute plays that feature more than 50 comic and serious roles in the increasingly popular 10-minute format, 25 in 10 has been selected for professional, community theatre and high-school actors. The plays, chosen for their distinctive content and memorable characters, are well suited for evenings of short works as well as directing and acting class assignments. Titles include:

Art Control by Carter W. Lewis (4m., 3w., 2 either gender.): A play gets out of control when the actors, director and audience members start aiming guns at each other.

Cabbage Head by Julie Jensen (2w.): Ella returns to her childhood home to realize her mother spends all day sitting in a chair watching televangelists.

Contact by Doug Grissom (1m., 1 either gender.): An astronaut who has been alone for the last 18 months finally makes contact with a mysterious ship.

Covers by Sandra Perlman (2w.): Two pregnant teenagers sharing a room in a halfway house stay up late talking about the past and planning their futures.

Don’t Think So Hard by Hope Gatto (1m., 1w.): Celeste and Alan have only been married for five months, but Celeste is worried that their relationship has already lost some of its fire.

Hot Wax by Nancy Hanna (2w.): A salesperson becomes annoyed when a customer uses the sale as bait to get the information she desires.

Layla Miserables by Olga Humphrey (1m., 1w.): A down-on-his-luck persimmon farmer becomes a thief after being abandoned by his wife, and must go on the run from the constable, Chavert.

Little Sins by Susan Cinoman (1m., 1w.): A successful lawyer tries to have an affair with a woman he knows, but the seduction doesn't quite go as planned.

Mashed Potatoes by Elaine Berman (1m., 1w.): A relationship falls apart in the kitchen when the meal doesn't come together as planned.

Movable People by Nikki Harmon (1m., 1w.): Two strangers in a Jewish deli don't get along until they learn about their shared past.

Revelation 24:12 by Linda Eisenstein (1m., 1w.): Janna and her husband try to interpret a dream after she is visited by an angel.

Rush to Judgment by Nancy Hanna (2w.): A deadly storm approaches and the impending danger drives Erin to ask her mother about the father she never knew.

Sacred Ground by Elain Berman (2m.): The friendship between two coworkers is strained after one tells an unflattering story to their boss.

Some Fish by Eric Berlin (2m.): A father takes his son fishing after his wife dies.

Surrender by Barry Brodsky (1m., 2w.): Two women try to help a man on the verge of suicide.

Taking Off by Adam Kraar (2m., 2w.): A family prepares to send their son off to school in America.

Talking About It by Nikki Harmon (2w.): Two friends reflect on their relationship after one of them develops cancer.

The Blocking Maneuver by Seth Kramer (1m., 1w.): A well-known writer is recognized by a fan as he's working on his next book.

The Competent Heart by Pat Montley (2 either gender.): Chris feels incompetent in many areas of life and hopes that the bookstore will be able to help.

The Nine-Volt Time Machine by Richard Strand (2m., 1w): Ginger goes five minutes into the past after being electrocuted. She quickly learns that the smallest electrical jolt will now let her travel through time at will.

The Secret of Our Sex Life by Richard Strand (1m., 1w.): A married couple has trouble in the bedroom until they figure out a unique solution.

The Sixth Floor Museum by Quincy Long (2m., 2w.): Two couples visit a museum in the book depository from which Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK. One of the husbands has an interesting theory.

The Turnover by Adam Kraar (1m., 1w.): An author struggles to make the story in his head appear on paper, alienating his friend in the process.

Truth and Sex by Susan Cinoman (1m., 1w.): Three months into their relationship, Keith and Laurie learn that they don't know very much about each other.

Undress Me Clarence by Doug Grissom (1m., 1w.): When asked, a man mentally undresses a woman and provides her with a dry commentary.