

Outstanding Short Plays, Volume Two
David Ives
What readers are saying
Readers appreciate the impact of 'Crazy Eights' and 'Baby Food', noting their effectiveness and emotional resonance. They find the other piece less impressive but still value the overall work of David Lindsay-Abaire.
THE STORIES: The three short comedies in this collection were all originally written as part of The 24 Hour Plays On Broadway.
Described by The New York Post as "the equivalent of a high-wire act without a net," the 24 Hour Plays is an annual benefit in which several one acts are written, cast, directed and performed on Broadway in less than a day.
As Black Book says, "It's a raucous, foot-stomping evening which redefines fresh."
CRAZY EIGHTS.
When Connie comes home late one night, she finds her parole officer waiting in her apartment with a torte and a long list of questions.
The interrogation/courting dance that follows is complicated by the after-hours arrival of Connie's charming card-playing buddy.
(2 men, 1 woman.) BABY FOOD is a contemporary comedy about an off-kilter couple desperately searching for godparents for their newborn infant.
Little do they know that the friends they've chosen are less than adventurous diners and on the verge of a divorce.
(2 men, 2 women.) THAT OTHER PERSON.
Tonight is the night Ginge and Kevin are going to tell their respective spouses the marriage-shattering secret they've been keeping from everyone.
But their bomb shell gets put on the back burner when a gorgeous peeping-tom, with secrets of her own, falls in the pool and nearly drowns.
(2 men, 3 women.)
"David Lindsay-Abaire...makes ingenious and surprisingly organic use of the blurring of personal and professional roles."
— New York Times
| Character |
|---|
| CONNIE |
| BENNY |
| CLIFF |
| MR. DUGAN (voice) |
| JOYCE usually plucky and good-natured, until things don’t go her way. |
| MARLON Joyce’s husband. Like his wife, usually in good spirits. |
| DANITA Caustic, wry, and probably a little drunk. |
| GARY Danita’s husband. Tries to be the peacemaker, but fails if his wife really pisses him off. He also has a very delicate stomach. |
| TAPPY sweet, beautiful, thin, and can’t swim |
| JACK a man with regrets in search of hope |
| GINGE an occasionally mean woman who never stands up |
| KEVIN a guy, in every sense of the word |
| SISSY a generally good-natured lady who has been pushed too far tonight |
Three One-acts By David Lindsay-abaire is a American comedy play written by David Lindsay-abaire and published by Dramatists Play Service in New York (2006).
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