Happy New Year, everyone!

I am very happy to share a New Year’s resolution here at Fun Middle School Plays…

FREE DRAMA GAMES to one and all in 2019!

That’s right. Every month here on my blog, I’m going to share a drama game you can play with your theatrical group which practices a dramatic skill, boosts their confidence on stage, and is, above all, fun! In my own experience as a drama mentor, I’ve found you can never have too many quick and easy drama games up your sleeve. They are just the thing to warm up a group, settle a group down, start a rehearsal, end a rehearsal, or simply burn off some extra nervous energy. (And sometimes you just need to fill five minutes, am I right?)

So, I’m starting the new year off with a bang. The drama game I’m sharing for January has never, ever failed to be a hit with kids!  It’s my tried and true.  It’s my go-to activity. I also know it can be done with all ages, but middle schoolers especially love it. Warning: they will not want to end the game…ever.

JANUARY DRAMA GAME: “Mamma Mia”

Directions: Circle up your group with everyone giving themselves a little elbow room. The game begins with one person in the circle stepping into the middle and crossing to someone else in the circle. On their way across the circle, they say the words “Mamma Mia” in the expression of their choosing. Options are absolutely endless: in a secretive whisper, in a cheerleader yell, in a creaky voice, in a baby’s gurgle, in a sarcastic tone, in an authoritative demand, in the squawk of a chicken, in a question, etc.. Once they’ve reached the other person, they take that person’s place in the circle, sending that person out into the middle to say “Mamma Mia” with a different expression. Play repeats until everyone has had at least one turn stepping into the middle and saying “Mamma Mia” in a new way.

Rules: Everyone should be given an equal amount of turns. Every expression of “Mamma Mia” should be unique–no repeats. “Mamma Mia” should be the only words spoken–no extra dialogue, please.

Variation #1: Advanced players can add specific movement, gestures, and facial expression to fully envelop a particular character while saying “Mamma Mia.”

Variation #2: Instead of the words “Mamma Mia,”use a key word or words from the script you’re currently practicing as a group.

You will be truly amazed at how many different ways a group of kids can come up with to say “Mamma Mia” while playing this game.  And that’s the point: to practice expression just using two little words. This drama game also demonstrates how powerful expression is on stage–how the meaning of a line can completely change depending on how it is delivered.

This game is reflected in my Secret of the Spoon mystery dinner show, which has the exclamation “Mamma Mia” throughout the script, said with a different expression each time. I’ve played it with every drama group I’ve ever worked with, and it’s always been too much fun! Enjoy!

Happy January!

Wishing you all the best on stage…and beyond!

–Alexi

Fun Middle School Plays

P.S. Don’t forget to check in on February 1st for another free drama game!

Looking for a fun script for your summer drama club? 

Need a light-hearted show to perform out in the sunshine? 

Want a fundraiser that’s easy, breezy, and cookie-filled? 

Then check out the perfect choice: A Cowgirl Cookie Play!

 

   

Cowgirl Cookie is the endearing heroine in this trilogy of old-fashioned western melodramas, and she is in love with two things: reading mysteries and solving mysteries. Cowgirl Cookie finds herself tracking down everything from missing chocolate chips to her own Grandma Sugar with the help of her friendly sidekick, Snickerdoodle, and a family full of Cookie sisters. A goofy sheriff, a line-up of silly narrators, and a hapless gang of villains are also part of the comedy in every play!

These Cowgirl Cookie Plays are nothing but fun for young adolescent performers! Every show is a mixture of silly characters and hilarious dialogue with a “mystery ingredient” stirred in to keep the audience guessing!

Perfect for summer. Ideal for an outdoor stage. And foolproof for fundraising!

But be warned. These plays are like a good chocolate chip cookie. You won’t be able to stop at the first one!

Purchase any script from Fun Middle School Plays during June, July, or August, and I’ll send you the recipe for Cowgirl Cookie’s Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie for Free!

And Happy Summer from Fun Middle School Plays!

P.S. Be sure to check out my Fundraiser Play Ideas page on my website for advice and inspiration for how to bring in the bucks with a Cowgirl Cookie Play!

Happy Spring, One and All!

I am very excited to announce a new product on my website!

This is a collection of twelve comedy skits—all featuring favorite fairy tale characters and all truly hilarious. For teachers, as the end of the year approaches, this collection will be a terrific resource to have in your back pocket for that rainy/snowy/perfectly sunny day you need a little comedy relief!

If you liked my Ten Short Comedy Skits, you’re going to love my Fairy Tale Comedy Skits for a Rainy Day! 

They’re perfect for…

…an emergency substitute plan.

…some material for a Spring Talent Show.

…a fun olio to add on to your Spring Play performance.

…an easy activity for the last week of school.

…some comedy relief on a day you need some!

So check out my Fairy Tale Comedy Skits for a Rainy Day! They’re sure to put a new spring in your step!

I’ve been known to get a little crazy, and this month will be no exception. The proof is this: I’m sharing my recipe for “Death by Tiramisu” with anyone who purchases a playscript in March…for free!  Serve up some tiramisu after a Fun Middle School Play, and don’t be surprised if members of your audience actually swoon. It’s a dessert to die for!

Tiramisu sound too fancy? Think again. The name simply means “little pick-me-up” in Italian, and the traditional version is made with layers of coffee-dipped cookies, rich cream, and shaved chocolate. Easy. Gorgeous. Deadly good.

It’s going to be a delicious dessert following any play performance, but it’s a match made in heaven with my mystery dinner show, The Secret of the Spoon. Tiramisu has a starring role in this particular script! The play tells the story of the Pastalucci Family who run an Italian restaurant and are mourning the loss of their beloved Nonni…not to mention the special spoon she used to make her famous tiramisu. It’s a comedy, it’s a mystery, and it’s a dinner show all layered into one play. And like tiramisu, it’s a crowd pleaser!

A Mystery Dinner Show with a Dessert to Die For! It’s madness, I tell you!

And have I mentioned how dead easy tiramisu is to make? Four layers and you’re done! Don’t anticipate having to make it the day of the show, either. Tiramisu gets better when its had a chance to sit and put its feet up. Prepare it the day before your show, go about your business, and it will be ready and waiting for its entrance the following evening.

In my recipe for “Death by Tiramisu,” I not only give you the instructions on how to prepare the original version but also advice on easy substitutions, possible variations, and some tips on making it for a large group.

So purchase a script from Fun Middle School Plays in the month of March, and enjoy my recipe for “Death by Tiramisu.” It would be madness not to!

Dearest Drama Teachers/Mentors/Directors,

I have a sweet surprise for you. Better than candy hearts. Lovelier than a bouquet of roses.  More delicious than a box of chocolate-covered cherries. And I’m offering it free with any purchase of a playscript from Fun Middle School Plays during the month of February. It’s the recipe for my scrumptious, one-of-a-kind, grand champion Perfect Pear Pie!

A PLAYSCRIPT paired with a PIE RECIPE…what could be better for Valentine’s Day?

So what is this “Perfect Pear Pie”? Oh my.  Well, it’s not a fruit pie with chunks of pear, as you might imagine.  It is instead a rich, caramel-flavored cream pie with a crust of coconut crumble, topped with whipped cream and cinnamon-sugared pear slices. It’s as if pear and caramel and coconut threw a raucous party, and you were invited! It’s won the hearts of family, friends, strangers, and pie judges alike. And when I call this pie a grand champion…I’m not being dramatic. I’ve got the blue ribbon to prove it.

And speaking of pie, you’ll notice on my website I have a Trilogy of Pie Palooza Plays for sale.

    

All three of these playscripts are incredibly fun, side-stitchingly funny, and really simple to stage and costume. Let’s call them the ultimate cure to cabin fever.

These Pie Palooza plays also make absolutely terrific winter fundraisers. Put on the play, and then add on pie-related pieces like a pie contest or a pie auction. You’ll have a very exciting event on your hands, and your community will love it! See my Fundraiser Play Ideas for all the advice and encouragement you’ll ever need to host your own version of a Pie Palooza.

So purchase a script from Fun Middle School Plays, and don’t delay! February is the month of love, and I want to send some your way with my Perfect Pear Pie recipe. ‘Cuz you’re my valentine.

Love, Alexi

P.S. Following your playscript purchase, be sure to check your e-mail for a copy of my Perfect Pear Pie recipe!

So, I’m back on the horse again.  The scriptwriting horse, that is.  Picture someone sitting in a saddle with a keyboard in front of them and a mug of coffee balanced on the horn. That’s me.

And speaking of coffee, the script I’ve been working on is an old-fashioned western melodrama that has a very fun setting: Lulu’s Coffee House. Because after all, when you think of comedy, mystery, and romance, don’t you think of a place where they’re brewin’ coffee and servin’ up cinnamon rolls with cream cheese frosting? I do.

It’s felt good to be looking for script ideas, too.  Having spent time in both careers, I can say that writing and teaching are very similar in this regard.  Writers are always on the search for their next funny line, interesting character, or intriguing plot.  Teachers are always on the hunt for their next fun project, exciting theme, or effective teaching technique. And I don’t think it’s really conscious.  It’s a sixth sense, really. Eavesdropping on a conversation in a restaurant becomes key dialogue in the story you’re writing.  A magazine spread you perused at the grocery store inspires your next classroom project. This is perfectly natural behavior for writers and teachers. (And comedians, I imagine.) And aren’t we all unconsciously looking for our next cup of coffee?

And creative projects—playscripts, classroom projects, jokes—are always an interesting ride, aren’t they? It’s typically a push and pull between inspiration and perspiration.  I believe my best writing happens when I’m working from an inspired, passionate, and energetic place.  I also know that I can’t always wait to be in that perfectly inspired, passionate, energetic place to be writing.  Sometimes, it’s just sitting down in the saddle and doing the work until the chafing truly becomes too much.

So as I finish things up in Lulu’s Coffee House, there is a nice soreness in my writing muscles. I’ve been up in the saddle, but it feels good. Now, can someone hand me a cup of coffee and a cinnamon roll up here?

One year, I got a ham for Christmas.  A kid, I mean.  Not my kid, but a kid in my middle school class who was an absolute natural on stage.  Picture a young Vince Vaughn.  A sixth grade version of Robin Williams.  A Jim Belushi hitting adolescence.  Basically, I had the kid who was a ham in or out of costume. And for a drama teacher such as myself, he was the best gift Santa could have ever brought me.

I wrote our school’s holiday playscript Dear Mrs. Claus that year in large part because of this ham of mine, and it is definitely a show that is near and dear to my heart. I had my young star in the largest role of Buddy the Elf, assistant to Mrs. Claus, and he had the audience in stitches, naturally.  But more importantly, everyone else in the cast became better because of Buddy. His confidence, enthusiasm, and star energy were contagious and encouraged everyone else on stage to really go for it.  The show was a hit because everyone, not just Buddy, turned into a bit of a ham!

When you’ve got a real star, it’s a gift.  I would encourage any drama teacher to use their “sparklers” as a way to light up the rest of their cast. Or maybe you see the star potential in a particular kid. Then I say give them a meaty role! Remember, there’s nothing like a ham at Christmastime!

Dear Mrs. Claus is only one of my fun holiday shows. I have scripts for one and all in my Holiday Play Collection. May you find something that fits the ham, the side dishes, and the desserts in your cast!

In the hope you have a wonderful holiday season on stage, I’m offering a 20% discount on your first playscript purchase. Use the coupon code HAPPYHOLIDAYS20 at checkout. But act now! Coupon expires November 30, 2017.

I was reminded of an important truth the other day. You people are fun. And by “you people,” I mean middle school drama teachers.

I’m certain of this because the other day I found myself unexpectedly in a conversation with a middle school drama mentor…and we might have been perfect strangers, but we were cracking each other up like we’d been best friends since kindergarten. He confessed to me he’s always written dramatic plays…that he tried to write comedy, but the audience’s reaction was “ew.” I shared that all the scripts I’ve ever written have been comedy…I tried to write drama, but the audience’s reaction was inevitably “Ba-ha-ha!” Then we slipped into talking about our secret lives.  I told him my time as a camp cook scrambling eggs and toasting toast was merely undercover work to gather material for my next play. He told me he was only spending time as a middle school drama teacher to prepare for his sparkling career as a singer on a cruise ship. I’m not sure anyone else listening in on our conversation was entertained, but I was having a grand ol’ time.  Which brings me back to my point: you middle school drama teachers are brilliant and funny and fun. And I love knowing that I work for you.

I’ve written two plays that happened to have been performed by a group of fun-loving middle school teachers.  They are my Shakespearean Spoofs: Much Ado About Soup and Midsummer Night’s Spaghetti.  

 

And judging from my seat in the audience, it looked like the cast was primarily focused on cracking each other up, and I loved that.

My theory is this: to work with middle schoolers, you need to be a fun person. This is just a survival skill. And if my scripts can help middle school drama teachers exercise that skill, well, my time toasting toast has not gone to waste.

Before I tell you anything about my playscript Much Ado About Soup, you need to promise me something.  Do not, under any circumstances, let my English professor from twenty-five years ago hear about this, okay? Because this is the man that–upon knowing what I did to one of Shakespeare’s most beloved plays–would promptly stand up from his wheelchair, grab his cane, and come after me.  Because my old professor loved, adored, and revered William Shakespeare. And anyone who didn’t believe that the Bard was an absolute, unquestionable, awe-inspiring genius got kicked out of class with one flutter of his hand.  He had no time to suffer such fools.

But here’s the thing. I adore Shakespeare, too.  I just like to make fun of him, that’s all. He’s like having that friend who excels at everything and gets perfect grades and is always coming up with something especially wise to say, and all you want to do is tease him…mercilessly. Take the plot of Much Ado About Nothing.  It’s a brilliant story of love and friendship getting muddied up by betrayal and misunderstanding.  It’s so brilliant and perfect that I immediately thought, why not just make the main characters vegetables? Let’s have Potato in love with Rosemary. And Garlic can be his sarcastic best friend.  And let’s throw in some villainous vegetables, too: Cabbage, Radish, Turnip, and Mushroom. In other words, I turned into a complete middle schooler.  Silly, sarcastic, slightly obnoxious…while still feeling deep affection and respect for greatness, of course.

I wrote my Shakespearean spoof Much Ado About Soup for a middle school teacher who needed a script that would accomplish the following: have some fun with Shakespeare, be easy to stage and costume, and could be used as a fundraiser to establish a school community garden. I never imagined I’d ever have a playscript with “Onion” as a main character, but life is full of surprises. And it was so much fun to see a collection of middle schoolers and their teachers perform the play together. You haven’t seen anything till you’ve seen a middle school history teacher dressed up as a giant head of garlic on stage and proclaim, “Love stinks!”

So it’s true, Professor.  I channeled my inner middle schooler, and wrote Much Ado About Soup. I stirred in lots of positively ridiculous puns and goofy characters, and I’m sure I have deeply offended William Shakespeare’s number one fan. But you’ll still, like, be my friend, right?

To read a sample and/or purchase the playscript, please click this link: Much Ado About Soup.  And to transform it into an easy fundraiser involving (what else?!) SOUP, check out my Shakespearean Supper section of the fundraiser play ideas on my website.

 

Hello, my friends.

When life throws you some tricky questions, depend on chocolate to give you the answers. This is my motto, anyway, after my experience working at the local library and mentoring their youth drama club.  I was far too loud and boisterous to be a great librarian, but I was just loud and boisterous enough to be a successful drama director. One summer, I had twenty-four enthusiastic young teenagers under my charge, and I wanted to write a play for them that would be a comedy, a mystery, a western melodrama, and a plug for libraries.  And in my mind, I became very attached to the following title: Cowgirl Cookie and the Case of the Missing Chocolate Chips.  I’ve always had a special affection for long titles, not to mention chocolate chip cookies.  It would be a tricky mystery to write and solve in a satisfactory way, but I trusted chocolate would be the key to everything.

So, sure enough, the characters of Cowgirl Cookie and the Case of the Missing Chocolate Chips began to develop.  Cowgirl Cookie was the heroine who loved reading and sleuthing, and she’d have a trusty sidekick, Snickerdoodle. Her Grandma Sugar would be a sassy, no-nonsense character who was known for her prize-winning chocolate chip cookies. There would be an entire family of Cookie Sisters: Oatmeal Raisin, Gingersnap, Molasses Spice, Macaroon Meringue, Peanut, and Butter.  A group of villains would appear and call themselves the Mustache Gang (Greasy, Mushy, Crummy, Soggy, Yucky, and Burnt) and be completely overlooked by the goofy local lawman, Sheriff Nutter Butter.  And finally, there would be three bossy grannies (Miz Snappy, Mix Sticky, and Miz Chewy) who would sit side stage and argue with the narrator any chance they got.

I was off and running with the plot, too.  All of the chocolate chips in town had gone missing.  Cowgirl Cookie was on the case but running out of leads.  The silly Sheriff had no ideas.  The Mustache Gang just played dumb.  And Grandma Sugar was fit to be tied with the town’s cookie contest right around the corner and no chocolate chips in her cupboard.

So I had a crazy set of characters and a great mystery…but absolutely no idea how everything would resolve. But somehow, I wasn’t worried.  It’s difficult to explain, but even into the middle of the play, I just had this feeling–a blind faith–that the answer to the mystery would somehow end up being about chocolate.  And sure enough, by the time I was writing the final scene, it came to me.  One of my Mustache gang members, Burnt, wouldn’t have a real mustache at all—it would just be chocolate smeared on his upper lip!  And Cowgirl Cookie, with her Nancy Drew-like sleuthing skills, would put it all together: Burnt was a chocoholic.  He’d eaten all the chocolate chips in town, save the one bag under his cowboy hat. And hurrah! Mystery solved.

So, if you believe in chocolate as always the right answer, check out my play page for Cowgirl Cookie and the Case of the Missing Chocolate Chips. And if you’re ready to move onto other fun Cowgirl adventures, you can check out my entire Cowgirl Cookie Trilogy which includes Cowgirl Cookie and the Mysterious Disappearance of Grandma Sugar and Cowgirl Cookie and the Ghost of the Grange.

Hello there, gang.

Let’s talk pie.  More specifically, let’s talk banana cream pie.  Have you made one, tasted one, loved one? Or have you passed over it on the pie menu as too ordinary? I’m curious, because not everyone adores banana cream pie, but those who do seem to have appeared everywhere in my life.  And I believe this special combination of cream and crust has played a powerful role in my destiny.

I know that sounds dramatic, ladies and gentlemen, but consider the evidence.  My mother (an infamous ad libber in the kitchen) sent me off into the world with just one recipe written down: her banana cream pie.  I successfully wooed my future husband with a consistent supply of banana cream pie. I actually won a ribbon in a local pie contest with my banana cream pie.  Whenever I ask any of the men of my family what they want for their birthday, the answer is always, always the same: banana cream pie. Case closed.

As a playwright, banana cream pie has come in handy for a good punchline or a fun plot point. It’s featured most prominently in my third Pie Palooza play: All’s Fair in Love and Pie.  At the time I was writing the script, I felt somebody was missing in my pie character line-up.  I had Strawberry-Rhubarb and Peach and Blueberry and Cherry and Apple, and they were all deliciously funny characters.  But I needed somebody else.  Someone solid, old-fashioned, classic.  And as I was mulling this over, a young fellow in my school approached me with a special request.  Could he please, please, please wear his new banana suit in my upcoming play?

Do you hear that? The angels singing, I mean?  Because I’m sure they were at that moment.  Of course the missing pie character was Banana.  Of course, of course, of course!  Why hadn’t I put this together before?  I’d made enough banana cream pies to supply a horde of hungry middle schoolers in a three day pie-eating contest! It was clearly time for banana cream pie to appear on the stage.

So in All’s Fair in Love and Pie, the character of Banana ends up being a rather aggressive defender of the dessert which often gets overlooked in a pie line-up: Banana Cream Pie.  His best line is when he turns on the other pie characters and grumbles, “You girls are all fancy and glamorous with your fruit fillings and your top crusts.  Me? I gotta prove myself with the basics: eggs, milk, butter. Ya think that’s easy?”

And I’m sorry for this spoiler alert, but Banana ends up walking away with the blue ribbon in the town’s infamous pie contest at the end of the play.  Call it justice. Call it destiny.  It was pure plot satisfaction for me with sliced bananas and whip cream on top.

To read a sample of the play, you can pop over to this link: All’s Fair in Love and Pie. And to check out my entire Pie Palooza Trilogy of playscripts, with or without bananas and cream involved, please head to this link: Pie Palooza Trilogy. And here’s to banana cream pie getting its proper due.

Hello, my dearhearts.

I never expected to spend much time thinking about ukuleles this week. Or listening to them. Or believing they were anything much more exciting than your average kazoo.  But oh, how wrong I was.  Now I’m ready to
order a four-stringed beauty online, download every one of the ukulele instructional videos offered on YouTube, and spend much of my spare time strumming a happy tune. Because now I know the truth.  Ukuleles are the secret to happiness.

What makes me certain of this is my experience a few nights ago at a concert performed by a ukulele orchestra.  It was a group of about twenty-five musicians, all playing ukuleles, and looking like the happiest bunch of people this side of the planet.  They strummed, they rocked, they bounced, they sang, and they looked like they could have forgone sleep and played until lunchtime the following day. I was fascinated. I was infatuated.  I was ready to skip into the middle of their group, ukulele-less, and just soak up the joy.

Then I remembered a line in one of my playscripts and cringed. It appears in my third Cowgirl Cookie western melodrama, Cowgirl Cookie and the Ghost of the Grange. Cowgirl Cookie is in an argument with her best friend and sidekick, Snickerdoodle.  Snickerdoodle has been enjoying the many classes and activities of her local grange hall while Cowgirl Cookie has been actively doing what she loves: reading. The two BFFs begin to debate over the value of “doing” versus “readin’ about it” until Snickerdoodle announces she is late for her ukulele lesson down at the grange hall and stomps off stage.  As she does, Cowgirl Cookie bellows after her (and this is where I beg forgiveness from every ukulele-lover that ever lived), “Well, don’t let me stop you from learning the hokiest instrument ever invented!”

Oh, if I could take that line back, I would.  Or maybe I wouldn’t.  Maybe I would just change the ending completely and redeem the ukulele in Cowgirl Cookie’s eyes just as it’s been redeemed in mine.  Cowgirl Cookie could buy a ukulele herself, learn every one of Johnny Cash’s songs, and join a ukulele orchestra.  Or something like that. Ah well.

Here are the facts.  The ukulele is considered to be the stringed instrument which is the least expensive, the easiest to learn, and the most fun you will ever have on four strings. It’s name in Hawaiian means “jumping flea.” And clearly Cowgirl Cookie had no idea what she was missing out on.

Please check out the entire Cowgirl Cookie Trilogy for more silly, completely unfounded statements by hilarious characters. They are a set of old-fashioned western melodramas that could stand alone or do well with a little musical accompaniment.  A middle school ukulele orchestra, for instance.  Just sayin’.

Say “Piggly Wiggly” out loud.  Now say it three times fast.  Now say it with a deep Southern accent.  Fun, right?

My love of the name “Piggly Wiggly” began when I was writing my second Pie Palooza play, A Question of Pie, and I needed the name of a market.  Early in the script, I have hot-tempered Besta Pie complaining about her sly cousin from Texas, Sweetie Pie.  Besta is convinced Sweetie Pie takes scandalous shortcuts in her pie baking. So, I needed a line for Besta that packed some serious comedic punch.  And I was tickled piggy-pink when I discovered folks in the South have markets named…wait for it…”Piggly Wigglies.” Perfect.

A line was born. In the first scene, I have grumpy Besta squawk, “Why any yea-hoo can pick up a pre-made pie crust from the Piggly Wiggly, dump in pudding from the box, and spray it with whip cream from the can!” I love a good line made possible by farm animals and the grocery stores named after them.

And I bring this up only because it’s always been a long-distance love affair between Piggly Wiggly and me.  I had never stepped foot in a store…until now.  Traveling into Florida this week and looking for a place to pick up a few snacks for the road, I discovered to my absolute astonishment I was only within two short miles of a Piggly Wiggly! I’m very certain I squealed.

And now, after my oh-so-casual trip down aisles 1 through 15, my dream of being able to truthfully say “I’ve just been shoppin’ down at the Piggly Wiggly” has come true. Love it.

My Piggly Wiggly line in A Question of Pie is only one of many funny instances in the script. To read a sample of the play or purchase it so that your middle schoolers can have the pleasure of saying Piggly Wiggly out loud in a deep Southern accent for an audience, check out this link: https://funmiddleschoolplays.com/book/a-question-of-pie/

Long live Piggly Wiggly!

Hello, my friends!

So, there’s a magic that happens when you put two particular things together.  Peanut butter and jelly. Flowers and chocolate. Batman and Robin. Well, allow me to put one more perfect pair on the list.  Pies and plays. I know, I know. It sounds like an odd couple, but trust me on this.  There’s something magical about the two together, and the proof lies in the success of a pie palooza.  Pardon me? Never heard of a pie palooza before? Ah, well, grab a fork and clear a space, because you’ll want to know about this.

A pie palooza is a fundraising event with three parts: a play, a pie contest, and a pie auction. Its magic lies in how it creates a fundraiser that’s honest-to-goodness fun. The success my school has been having for the last eight years with their annual pie palooza is strong testimony to that.

Back in the beginning, it was just this fun, crazy idea.  Let’s have a school fundraiser that’s all about pie, people!  I’ll write a play about pie! We’ll have a pie contest! We’ll auction off donated pies! And boy oh boy, not only was it pie-filled fun for all, but that first year the pie palooza raised $1,000! Little did we know that every year after that the delighted crowd would grow, the delicious pies would multiply, and the daring bids would ratchet up.  And now? Well, the school just raised over $7,000. In one night. In a little town out in the middle of nowhere.

So, in need of some fun? In need of some funds? Just love pie? Well, you’re in luck. I’ve written three playscripts all about pie with lots of goofy characters, silly pie jokes, and fun plots.  All three have been performed in front of pie-loving crowds to great applause. You can check out my entire trilogy of Pie Palooza plays at this link: https://funmiddleschoolplays.com/series/pie-palooza/ And I have some advice and suggestions for how to host your own Pie Palooza here: https://funmiddleschoolplays.com/fundraiser-play-ideas/

Pies and plays. Like Sonny and Cher. True magic!

Hello, my friends–

I did an excellent job of procrastinating when it came to writing this particular post.  And I know why. I didn’t want to describe the anguish I’ve been feeling for the last week over things just not working out as planned. My dream of putting on a play this spring with a group of local kids just…dissolved. Despite my best recruiting efforts and four successful shows in the past, I didn’t get enough sign-ups for a play production this time around. The primary challenge being that too many families had too much on their plate already and couldn’t commit to the rehearsal schedule. It’s understandable.

So, I spent my week breaking the news to parents who had signed up their kids, people who had generously offered scholarships, folks who had planned on turning up the thermostat in the stage hall, etc.. I found myself saying things like, “Yes, I’m very sorry, too” and “No, I don’t need anything, but thank you for your support.” It was a humbling, rather heartbreaking experience, but as life devastations go, I realize it isn’t one.

Sometimes, things just don’t work out.  At least not the way we planned. And I know this is where having a little faith in the greater universe can help. It clearly wasn’t the time for a play.  But maybe it was time for me to have another script written. Right now, I’m sitting on a strong rough draft that I wouldn’t have been motivated to write otherwise. Maybe the perfect cast for it is destined to happen this summer…or next spring…or next summer. Perhaps there’s some other project/plan/fate in the works for me that will reveal itself soon enough. Having a little faith in a bigger, unknown plan is the way to go here, I think.

And a final thought: if we never hoped or dreamed for things at the risk of being disappointed and heartbroken later, how boring would that be?  Life would be an empty stage. Better to have wished on a play than to have wished on nothing at all. Right?

Hello again, my friends!

So, to launch my new play production with kids, I realized very quickly that I needed something.  Kids.  So, I’ve been scouring my local area for young hams who would like to be on stage.  I’m a recruiter now.  I’m Uncle Sam with his finger pointed out. I need stars, and I need them now.

It’s hard to say who will sign up since I don’t require any previous drama experience.  Been the star of your school musical? Bravo! Never acted before in your life? Welcome!   My stage is open.

This is because a few years ago, I was working at the local library, and I was desperate to start a kid’s drama club.  After weeks of advertising the club’s first meeting, I crossed all of my fingers and toes hoping I would get at least ten kids.  With ten kids, we could put on a play.  With ten kids, I could write a script that fit the group perfectly. At our first meeting, twenty-six kids showed up.

I couldn’t believe it.  I started to panic.  Now were there too many kids! Too wide a range of skill! Too many parts for a custom play! So I did the only thing I could think of.  I tried to scare a bunch of them off on the first day.  I told them they’d have to memorize lines and that it was critical they came to every single rehearsal meeting. I told them they’d have to be really brave and perform in front of a live crowd.  I told them acting was challenging and not for everyone.  I gave them an easy out. If they decided after this first meeting that drama club just wasn’t their thing, that was okay. I wished them well.  But if they showed up the second week, I was going to count on their serious commitment…maybe in blood. We played some drama games and had some laughs, but I hoped I had weeded out at least half of the group. The next week, twenty-four kids showed up.

So, by golly, I wrote a script for twenty-four kids.  They were all different ages and different abilities, but every one of them was highly motivated to be a part of a play. So how could I go wrong? This turned out to be my first Cowgirl Cookie play, and not only did the kids have a blast on stage, but the audience loved it. You can check it out here: https://funmiddleschoolplays.com/book/cowgirl-cookie-and-the-case-of-the-missing-chocolate-chips/

Which means that my only requirement these days for young actors and actresses is enthusiasm.  If a kid is motivated to be on stage, then I have a role for them.  Brave, shy, silly, serious–I’ll take them. They’re all needed. They’re all wanted. I’m recruiting some stars, and I have faith that it will work out just as it should.

Hello, my friends!

Welcome to my blog. I’m happy you’re here, and I’d like to begin by saying I have my suspicions about you.  Right at this moment, I bet you have some dreams.  Big dreams. Small dreams. Certainly some medium-sized ones.  And if you’re a drama mentor working with middle schoolers, I bet you have a dream or two about what you’d like to do next with kids. Me, too.

Here’s what I know about my own dreams. Something comes along that plants an idea in my head, and it’s a seed that always feels so tiny and fragile. But then I can’t stop thinking about it, and this little, insubstantial seed, begins to grow bigger…and stronger. And soon enough this idea can’t be contained in the greenhouse of my mind any more. It wants to live out in the sunlight and fresh air.  And then it’s clear I actually need to take those first steps in making it happen. It’s scary and exciting and nerve-wracking all at the same time.  But then I remind myself that all great things must have started out this way…as a little, tiny dream in someone’s mind that just couldn’t help itself but grow.

So, that being said, it’s time for me to bring a dream of mine out into the light. As dreams go, it’s certainly not the size of a show on Broadway, but for my life, it’s big enough.  I’m ready to write and direct another play with a group of local kids. I’ve done this before, but that doesn’t seem to take away the anxiety.  I think about writing the script, recruiting the kids, casting the roles, setting up the stage, directing the rehearsals, marketing the show, and, finally, mentoring the final production. It feels…overwhelming. But then I take a deep breath and tell myself to be brave.  Making a dream happen–big or small–is not for the faint of heart.

So, my fellow drama mentors, if you have a dream of making something wonderful happen with kids on stage, and that dream makes you feel anxious, excited, and determined all at the same time, then know that you are not alone.  Be brave.  Because us dreamers have to stick together.