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A Tuna Christmas
Ed Howard
Greater Tuna
by Ed Howard, Jaston Williams, Joe Sears
Highlights
Synopsis
The long-running off-Broadway hit features two actors creating the entire population of Tuna, Texas in a tour de farce of quick-change artistry, changing costumes and characterizations faster than a jack rabbit runs from a coyote.
Two actors, 20 characters, and a barrel of laughs, y’all.
Greater Tuna was originally produced in 1981 in Austin, Texas by its authors, Jaston Williams, Joe Sears, and Ed Howard.
The play’s stars, Williams and Sears, played all twenty characters, and Howard directed.
One year after its premiere, Greater Tuna opened off-Broadway, ran for over a year, and went on to tour major theaters all over America and spots overseas for the next thirty-some years, becoming one of the most produced plays in American theatre history.
Press Reviews
"The audience all but exploded the theatre with laughter."
— New York Post
"Hilarious, a tribute to the art of acting."
— Washington Post
"Sharp, satiric & funny."
— The New Yorker
"A whale of a funny evening."
— Houston Post
Characters
| Character |
|---|
| THURSTON WHEELIS , folksy radio host |
| ELMER WATKINS , head of Klan 249 |
| BERTHA BUMILLER , beleagured housewife |
| YIPPY , half rat-terrier, half chihuahua |
| LEONARD CHILDERS , radio station owner and talk-show host |
| PEARL BURRAS , chicken farmer known for poisoning dogs |
| R.R. SNAVELY , drunken UFOlogist |
| REV. SPIKES , cliche spouting preacher |
| SHERIFF GIVENS , clueless long arm of the law |
| HANK BUMILLER , Bertha's philandering husband |
| ARLES STRUVIE , wise cracking radio host |
| DIDI SNAVELY , owner of Didi's Used Weapons |
| HAROLD DEAN LATTIMER , the weatherman |
| PETEY FISK , the one-man Greater Tuna Humane Society |
| JODY BUMILLER , Bertha's youngest son who collects stray dogs |
| STANLEY BUMILLER , Bertha's other son, a reform school graduate |
| CHARLENE BUMILLER , Stanley's twin sister, a cheerleader reject |
| CHAD HARTFORD , a reporter from Houston |
| PHINAS BLYE , a near-sighted perennial political candidate |
| VERA CARP , society matron and vice-president of the Smut Snatchers of the New Order |
Videos
Greater Tuna Trailer
Publication
Publisher Samuel French
Year 2024
Binding Paperback
Edition Acting
Pages 66
Place New York
Language English
ISBN-13 9780573619021
ISBN-10 0573619026
LCCN 84156567
LCC PS3573.I449327 G7 1983
DCC 812/.54
Greater Tuna is a American comedy play written by Ed Howard and published by Samuel French in New York (2024).
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Performance Rights
Available for Licensing
Amateur Only
Fee: Minimum Fee: $130 per performance
Restrictions: Major Markets Plus (US) / Standard Plus Add'l Postcodes (UK)
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