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Christmas Shorts

  • Matt Hoverman
  • Collection / Anthology, Comedy, Christmas/Holiday, Present Day, Contemporary
  • 2M, 2F
  • ISBN: 9780573698941

A celebrated Winner of the 2009 Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, playwright Matt Hoverman brings an evening of hilarious short holiday comedies to the stage - a wonderful alternative for theatres tired of mounting the traditional seasonal play.

More information

Description

  • Collection / Anthology
  • Comedy, Christmas/Holiday
  • 75 minutes

  • Time Period: Present Day, Contemporary
  • Target Audience: Teen (Age 14 - 18), Adult, Senior
  • Set Requirements: Interior Set, Unit Set/Multiple Settings, Bare Stage/Simple Set
  • Cautions: Strong Language, Mild Adult Themes

  • Performance Group:
  • Large Stage, Dinner Theatre, Community Theatre, Professional Theatre, Shoestring Budget, Reader's Theatre, Blackbox / Second Stage /Fringe Groups, College Theatre / Student, Senior Theatre
A celebrated Winner of the 2009 Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, playwright Matt Hoverman brings an evening of hilarious short holiday comedies to the stage. A wonderful alternative for theatres tired of mounting the traditional seasonal play, Christmas Shorts offers five original plays that humorously comment on holiday themes: family, the nativity, Xmas cards, and elves. An outstanding Christmas collection for any theatre!

Included are the plays:
Going Home
The Christmas Witch
Xmas Cards
Nativity 
and the Samuel French Festival award-winning play The Student.

Touching and inspiring... a favorite!

Indianapolis Performing Arts Examiner

Funny and profane.

Wisconsin State Journal

color:#333333;font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:17px;text-align:left;'>'So what are this year's strongest shows [in City Theatre's Summer Shorts]? ... Clement as a writing professor and Durkin as his endearingly oddball student have perfect chemistry and timing in Matt Hoverman’s The Student.

Miami Herald  

color:#333333;font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:17px;text-align:left;'>'A delightful holiday gift in a small package... A perfect little holiday diversion -- funny, entertaining and with just enough warmth of the holidays...  The collection has become popular with smaller regional theater companies looking for something different for a holiday show.  It's easy to see why.' - San Jose Mercury News'The script is loaded with low-key, sweet humor.

Las Vegas Review-Journal

Funny and heartwarming.

Isthmus Daily Page

My favorite piece [in Indiana's Phoenix Theatre's A Very Phoenix Xmas #6: Our Goose is Cooked] was The Student by Matt Hoverman. I was surprised to find myself weeping during it. This little two-hander is on both of my 'BEST OF 2011' lists.

Indytheatrehabit.com

color:#333333;font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:17px;text-align:left;'>'Five snorts (out of 5) for Matt Hoverman's The Student [in City Theatre's Summer Shorts]: I've run out of good things to say... makes you want to cry.  And laugh.

Miami Art Zine

color:#333333;font-family:'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif;font-size:13px;line-height:17px;text-align:left;'>'Probably the funniest piece of the night [re: The Student in City Theatre's Summer Shorts].'  - Florida Theater Onstage 'Matt Hoverman's short play The Student, the best piece at City Theatre's Summer Shortsfestival [is a] masterful comedy of homoerotic repression and twisted yuletide metaphor. The Student is a reminder that with such gifted acting, directing, and writing, minimalism is more than sufficient.

Miami New Times
Premiere Production: Christmas Shorts: 5 Merry Little Comedies was first produced by Naked Angels (Geoffrey Nauffts, artistic director) at Playwrights Horizons' Mainstage Theatre in December, 2008 as an Angels in Progress workshop. It was directed by Suzanne Agins

Characters

  • Casting: 2M, 2F
  • Casting Attributes: Reduced casting (Doubling Possible), Ensemble cast, Flexible casting, Expandable casting, Strong Role for Leading Woman (Star Vehicle), Strong Role for Leading Man (Star Vehicle)
  • Casting Notes: Although Christmas Shorts can be performed by a talented, versatile quartet of comic actors (2m, 2w), if the needs/resources of your theatre allow, you can find roles for up to 13 separate actors.

There are multiple ways to cast these plays. The playwright suggests:

ACTOR A - an “Archie”, perhaps tall and fair, goofy; with the ability to adopt a patrician air; to play Burt in The Student, Sam in The Christmas Witch, Ned in Xmas Cards, and Bob in Nativity

ACTOR B - a “Reggie”, could be dark and a little heavy, master of the slow burn; to play Greg in Going Home, Hugh in The Student, Sam in The Christmas Witch, and Jim in Nativity

ACTRESS A - a “Betty”, maybe blonde, open-hearted and dotty; to play Cheryl in Going Home, Nelly in Xmas Cards, and Juliet in Nativity

ACTRESS B - a “Veronica”, probably brunette, a barracuda who can also be vulnerable; to play Karen in The Christmas Witch, and Joan in Nativity

All actors are in their 30s - early 40s; although sometimes they play older, as indicated. If there are funds for two additional actors, an older actress could play Nelly in Xmas Cards, and an older actor could play Burt in The Student and Ned in Xmas Cards.

Available Material

Name Price
Christmas Shorts Script Order Now

A celebrated Winner of the 2009 Samuel French Off Off Broadway Short Play Festival, playwright Matt Hoverman brings an evening of hilarious short holiday comedies to the stage. A wonderful alternative for theatres tired of mounting the traditional seasonal play, Christmas Shorts offers five original plays that humorously comment on holiday themes: family, the nativity, Xmas cards, and elves. An outstanding Christmas collection for any theatre! Included are the plays: Going Home, The Christmas Witch, Xmas Cards, Nativity, and the Samuel French Festival award-winning play The Student.

$24.95

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