Authors

Playwright Emily Jenkins discusses working with students to create COOKIES and gives advice for anyone wanting to license the play too.

From the incredibly funny, to the slightly dark, there’s a Chekhov play for any occasion.

Literary executors Laurence Maslon and David Pittu talk all things George S. Kaufman and why he remains one of the theatre’s master comic writers.

A few highlights of Noël Coward plays that would make a great addition to your theatre season.

Playwright Rosary O’Neill discusses her recent trip to Bonn, Germany as part of her work with Fulbright and discusses Degas’ shrouded ties to The Big Easy.

Ten Caryl Churchill plays you should definitely read.

The new stage adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express was a labor of love for writer Ken Ludwig and director Emily Mann. Read all about their process of bringing this classic whodunit to the stage.

“If the play is played for truth, then humour, humanity and the emotional honesty of the characters will come through.“ Bill Rosenfield shares an insight into writing 46 Beacon.

Master of comedy Ken Ludwig does a deep-dive into his newest literary adaptation: The Three Musketeers.

Nearly all of Agatha Christie’s mysteries have a life outside of their existence as books.  The dramatic potential of many of her crime stories are well known by the Queen of Crime herself and by other playwrights.  While some of Christie’s plays are based on short stories or original ideas, over the course of her career, Christie dramatized several of her own novels for the stage. 

David Wood talks about writing for young audiences and young performances, adapting Roald Dahl’s tales for the stage, and working on the West End production of The Go-Between with Richard Taylor.

What is it about musicals like Gypsy, Cabaret, and Mame that seemed to empower the LGBTQ+ community? We sat down with theatre historian Patrick Pacheco to talk all about the musicals that helped us express our pride.

Octavio Solis, born in El Paso, Texas, to two Mexican immigrants, is quintessentially American — except he isn’t. Solis explores the “in-betweenness” of his Mexican-American identity and its impact on his storytelling.

The undisputed Queen of whodunits had a few mysteries of her own. Untangle a complex and storied life with ten things you didn’t know about Agatha Christie.

Nick Payne, author of critically acclaimed plays such as Constellations and If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet, shares an insight into his creative process.

They say to write what you know, and it’s the familiar that inspired Adam Szymkowicz’s new play, Kodachrome. Szymkowicz reflects on grief, love, and his hometown.

CAUTION: SPOILERS AHEADMost Agatha Christie fans are aware that she wrote plays in addition to novels and short stories. The Mousetrap, Witness for the Prosecution, and And Then There Were None are the most famous and successful of her plays, but she wrote many more, some of which have never been published, and at least one has never been performed. Though some of her plays are original, most are adaptations of her previously released stories, some of which deviate substantially from her original work. From 1945 to 1960, Christie adapted four of her best novels featuring Poirot, and turned them into stage plays, none of which have Poirot as a character.

Several long-lost Christie plays are finally being made available to the general public– and to theater companies looking to put on Christie plays that have previously been seen by only a select few audiences.

How do Neil Simon’s comedies, with their white, mostly middle-class, mostly urban New York Jewish characters, continue to draw audiences across the globe? Why do they hold up for decades after they were written, with nine of his plays surpassing the half-century mark? Dramaturg Susan Myer Silton explores the enduring relevancy of one of the masters of comedy: Neil Simon.

The bond between playwright and actor can be an incredible one. Playwright Crystal Skillman talks with actor Megan Hill about such magical bond.

Take a look inside A 1940’s Radio Christmas Carol with writers Walton Jones, David Wohl, and Faye Greenberg.

Four titles, a nine-year gestation, an ever-changing cast, and a forever friendship.

Henry Filloux-Bennett discusses adapting Nigel Slater’s autobiography Toast for the stage, why food is at the heart of the show, and advice for future performers.

In 2006, a lone gunman walked into an Amish school house and opened fire. The Nickel Mines shooting inspired the 2009 play The Amish Project, though the subject feels even more familiar, and relevant, than ever before. Check out this interview with playwright Jessica Dickey about The Amish Project ten years later.

In celebration of Gower Champion’s 100th birthday, take a look at these 19 facts about the legendary choreographer, director, actor, and dancer!

Take a look inside the mind of Thornton Wilder and the women he wrote.

Tabitha Mortiboy shares an insight into writing The Amber Trap.

Jack Bradfield of Poltergeist discusses creating the play Lights Over Tesco Car Park and offers advice on how to stage it yourself.

With the release of expanded The Agatha Christie Collection, which features some plays that were unavailable to the general public for decades, actors have the opportunity to embrace some exciting and challenging new roles. 

Agatha Christie is well-known for writing for the page and the stage, but it is not common knowledge that she also wrote for radio and television as well. 

Playwright Phil Porter shares an insight in his creative process and rewriting Roman comedy in classical farce Vice Versa.

An interview with the writer and composer behind Thrill Me: The Leopold and Loeb Story.