Plays and Musicals for Community Theatres

Choosing the right play or musical isn’t just about filling a season; it’s about sparking joy, conversation, and connection among audiences and performers alike. From laugh-filled comedies, heartfelt dramas, or musicals that get the whole town humming along, the titles that thrive on community stages balance artistic ambition with accessibility, giving every theatre—no matter its size—the chance to deliver unforgettable nights under the lights.

Peter Pan Goes Wrong by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer & Henry Shields

The newest hit from Mischief! Brace yourselves for an awfully big adventure when the inept and accident-prone Cornley Drama Society set out to present J.M. Barrie’s much-loved classic tale of Peter Pan, their most audacious production to date. Flying? Pyrotechnics? Sharp hooks? What ensues is two acts of hysterical disaster, battling technical hitches, flying mishaps and cast disputes. But will they ever make it to Neverland?

You’ll laugh; they’ll cry. Something so wrong has never been so right.

Brooklyn Laundry by John Patrick Shanley

Fran is a pessimist who’s terrified of making decisions. Owen is a guy who sees life for what it is, finding ways to make the best of it. Both of them are lonely, and they find in each other what could be a meaningful connection. But when Fran’s sisters need her more than ever, she is faced with the most difficult choice she’s ever had to make. Brooklyn Laundry is about romance, family, joy and responsibility. Most of all, it’s a play about choosing to love and be loved.

Christmas in Connecticut Book by Patrick Pacheco and Erik Forrest Jackson, Music by Jason Howland, Lyrics by Amanda Yesnowitz
Based upon the Warner Brothers Picture

Based on the beloved Barbara Stanwyck film, this hilarious musical is destined to become a holiday tradition!

Aspiring writer Elizabeth Sanders moves to New York City wanting to change the world, but first she needs to make rent. Out of desperation, she takes a job as a columnist, doling out advice about domestic life in the country – something she knows nothing about. Under the pseudonym Liz Lane, she skyrockets to fame, writing weekly about cooking, marital bliss, and life in her bucolic farmhouse in Connecticut… all the while living alone in her city apartment. When Liz’s biggest fan, a beloved war hero, is invited to her nonexistent farm by her publisher, Liz is forced to find a house and husband in Connecticut to maintain the façade – and her job. Throw in a team of co-conspirators, madcap locals and a toe-tapping Broadway-style score, and holiday hijinks abound as Liz tries to pull off the hoax.

Conversations with Mother by Matthew Lombardo

Growing up isn’t easy – especially with a strong-willed, Italian-American mother keeping tabs on your every move. Free-spirited Bobby has a knack for getting into trouble, and his mother, Maria, never hesitates to offer her opinion, like it or lump it. As he comes of age and builds a life for himself in New York City as a struggling playwright – is there any other kind? – Maria is always there with a phone call or check-in, following her mother’s intuition. And when Bobby begins to seek independence as a gay man, Maria stretches her own beliefs to support him. Through learning curves, life’s complications, and hard-won victories, their love for each other never diminishes, with plenty of laughs and only a few tears.

Dakar 2000 by Rajiv Joseph

Boubs is serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal and is a little fed up with all the red tape. The morning after he crashes a supply truck that he has filled with misappropriated goods to aid a local village’s gardening group, he is reprimanded by Dina, the seasoned U.S. security agent now in charge in Dakar. She presents the smooth talker with an ultimatum: a one-way ticket back to the States or a make-good mission. Smitten with Dina and desperate to make an impact, Boubs jumps at the chance to redeem himself. But as Dina’s assignments and his feelings for her escalate, he unexpectedly finds himself in a moral dilemma, where he must decide how far he is willing to go to do what is right.

Flex by Candrice Jones

The pressure is on for the 1998 Lady Train high school basketball team – on top of a battle to bring home the championship trophy, it is also college scouting season. But the team’s performance on the court is tested as it ruptures under the weight of its own infighting, and the once-tight players begin to focus on their individual futures. What does it mean to be a Black girl on the brink of freedom and womanhood in a small town in the South? Does honoring your own wants mean sacrificing your friends, family, and team? This funny and frank play about getting a full-court press from life will have audiences cheering.

Jimmy Buffett’s Escape to Margaritaville Book by Greg Garcia and Mike O’Malley, Music and Lyrics by Jimmy Buffett

Jimmy Buffett’s Escape to Margaritaville is a musical comedy featuring the most-loved Jimmy Buffett classics, including “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” “Margaritaville,” “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” “Fins,” “Volcano” and many more. With a book by Emmy Award winner Greg Garcia (My Name is Earl, Raising Hope) and Emmy nominee Mike O’Malley (Survivor’s Remorse, Shameless), this hilarious, heartwarming musical is the party you’ve been waiting for!

Left on Tenth by Delia Ephron, based on her memoir

After her husband of more than 30 years passes away from cancer, Delia Ephron has to deal with logistical problems large and small – among them, cancelling her husband’s landline with Verizon. The frustrating experience becomes the basis of a New York Times op-ed, which in turn becomes the basis for a new relationship. Peter, a man she briefly dated in her twenties, contacts her after reading her piece and wants to reconnect. In classic romantic comedy-style, emails become phone calls become cross-country flights become lasting love. But when Delia is faced with a devastating new challenge, her newfound relationship with Peter comes to mean more than a happy ending – it means winning the fight of her life.

LIZZIE Music by Steven Cheslik-DeMeyer and Alan Stevens Hewitt, Lyrics by Steven Cheslik-DeMeyer and Tim Maner, Book by Tim Maner, Additional Music by Tim Maner, Additional Lyrics by Alan Stevens Hewitt. Based on an original concept by Alan Stevens Hewitt and Tim Maner, Orchestrations by Alan Stevens Hewitt

Rage! Sex! Betrayal! Bloody murder!

In the heat of late summer 1892, Andrew Borden and his wife are found murdered in their house. The main suspect in the murders is Andrew’s youngest daughter from a previous marriage, Lizzie Borden. Using a searing rock score, and based on the historical record, LIZZIE explores the heady and heated days leading up to the murder and Lizzie’s controversial acquittal of all charges and the creation of a new American myth.

McNeal by Ayad Akhtar

Finally, finally, Jacob McNeal has won an award he feels appropriately honors his genius: the Nobel Prize in Literature. The award is already improving his professional life, including high expectations for his newest novel, which his longtime publisher has honored by providing an appropriately large advance. But McNeal’s career success comes at a time of great personal turmoil. His alcoholism is spiraling out of control, and his estranged son, mistress and a New York Times culture reporter threaten to ruin his reputation – something McNeal might accomplish himself with his use of Artificial Intelligence. McNeal must figure out how far he’s willing to go to tell a good story – and if the value of the message outweighs its perceived truth.

Mrs. Stern Wanders the Prussian State Library by Jenny Lyn Bader

Berlin, 1933. With martial law in effect, political activism has become a capital crime. The Gestapo has arrested a graduate student suspected of conducting illegal research. She undergoes intense questioning, and the arrival of a lawyer sent to defend her only complicates matters. But the encounter takes surprising turns as an earnest young officer must interrogate the iconic political thinker Hannah Arendt – a woman in possession of untold wit, charm and ideas. Inspired by real events, this fantastical drama delves into the life and mind of one of history’s deepest thinkers.

Penelope Music and Lyrics by Alex Bechtel, Book by Alex Bechtel, Grace McLean, and Eva Steinmetz
Based on writings in The Odyssey by Homer

Penelope has been waiting… and waiting… and waiting for her husband, Odysseus, to return from a decade-long war. Given the rest of the soldiers came home years ago – forgive her, but she’s going to need a drink while she tells you about it. With a beautiful folk-inflected pop score backed by an onstage band of strings, piano and drums, Penelope opens up about her loneliness, her son’s disappearance, her suitors, her gods, her faith in her marriage – and ultimately, the faith that she must have in herself. So go ahead and grab a drink, too, and listen to this ancient tale made new: A woman wondering who she is if she’s alone, and discovering that she has been, is and will always be complete – with or without her husband by her side.

Staff Meal by Abe Koogler

Mina and Ben, two strangers who frequent the same café, strike up a conversation and decide to have dinner together. But something strange is happening in the city outside: The streets are empty and a bird calls a warning. Amidst this unsettling atmosphere, Mina and Ben find themselves in the only place still open: a mysterious restaurant where service is an art, the chef may be a god, and food is a portal to other – better – worlds. Endlessly surprising and unexpectedly moving, Staff Meal is a surreal dark comedy about the stories we tell and the ways we take care of each other when the world grows dark.

Still by Lia Romeo

It’s been nearly 30 years since their relationship ended, and now Helen and Mark are having a drink together. As they reflect on the ups and downs of their lives since their breakup, they find themselves charmed all over again, and their attraction to each other is undeniable. That is, until judgments and deep feelings surrounding past choices finally come to light, causing them to confront their beliefs and hopes for the future. Intimate and character-driven Still explores the line between the personal and political with vulnerability, wit and passion.

The Counter by Meghan Kennedy

This warmly funny and yearning play follows the unlikely connection between Paul, a retired firefighter who goes to the same counter every morning for a few cups of coffee, and Katie, who’s always there to serve him. After many months of small talk, Paul decides it’s time for them to become real friends, and Katie gives in, sensing he needs a friend more than she does. What begins as the sharing of one secret grows into a deeply meaningful, life-affirming friendship – shocking Paul and Katie into embracing the hopes and joys born of basic human connection.

The White Chip by Sean Daniels

Despite spending more time drunk than sober, Steven McAlister has managed to graduate from college, create an extremely successful theatre group, get married and thrive in a dream job at one of the most prestigious regional theaters in the United States. Sure, it’s gratifying to go to an AA meeting where they reward you with a white chip just for showing up, but does he really have a problem? Even with an ailing father, a marriage on the rocks, and his professional life careening out of control, Steven has a carefully constructed balancing act that keeps it all together – until it all falls apart. Told with humor, honesty and compassion, The White Chip is about living with addiction and coming alive through recovery.

tiny father by Mike Lew

Overnight, Daniel’s entire life changes when his former lover gives birth to his daughter several months early. Now forced to reevaluate his previously casual relationship with his daughter’s mother, he begins to learn the ins and outs of caring for a premature baby with the help of NICU nurse Caroline. But Daniel’s initial ambivalence toward parenthood turns into a growing distrust of Caroline’s rigid adherence to hospital protocols. Caroline, in return, questions Daniel’s fitness as a father and feels as though she’s the only one properly advocating for the baby’s well-being. tiny father focuses on the tension between parents, healthcare professionals and the business of hospitals as their priorities overlap, conflict and come to a head.

We Are the Tigers Book, Music and Lyrics by Preston Max Allen

The Tigers’ high school cheerleading squad is meeting for their annual sleepover at captain Riley’s house – and they’ve brought plenty of their teenage troubles with them. Love triangles, a lustful boyfriend and hurt feelings over a now-viral cheer stunt gone wrong complicate their team-bonding activities. But so does the untimely death of one of their own in the front yard. Will that be the only murder? And who did it? With a pop-driven, belty score and a seriously silly book, We Are the Tigers will have audiences cheering for the Tigers as the Tigers learn to cheer for themselves.

For more great plays and musicals, visit BroadwayLicensing.com.