“Thank you so much for these plays! I love ‘Oliver With A Twist’, because it is funny, and a clever story.” – Greyson Neumayer, Senior Student, 2025, Alliance Charter Academy, Oregon, USA.
“There were several moments of chuckles, guffaws, and laughs out loud during this witty satire.” – Brian Hobson, Teacher and Theatre Director, Laporte School, Minnesota, USA
“...even with the first cold read, everyone was in fits of laughter.” – Bonnie Schultz, Theatre Players, Sunshine Coast, Australia.
“Happy to report that the production was a complete success!!” – Cassandra Medrano, Theatre 308, Darien High School, Connecticut, USA.
The love of theatre
One of the most rewarding experiences as a playwright is to inspire a love of theatre.
That’s why I’m so delighted that student directors and actors of all ages in the USA and Australia – and even Spain! – are embracing my FREE short pay Oliver With a Twist.
The play, which satirizes modern food culture, has received eight new productions this year (2025) with another two planned for May 2026.
Drama students at high schools in the United States produced and performed in three of this year’s productions.
These were:
- Laporte School in Minnesota,
- Theatre 308 at Darien High School in Connecticut
- Deep Run High School in Richmond, Virginia.
In November, Tooleybuc Central School, NSW, Australia and North Fork High School in Hotchkiss, Colorado, USA, will produce the play. And in May next year it will be produced by student directors at Modesto Junior College in Central Valley, California.
Students at Modesta will also try their hands at directing another four of my short plays Errata, Breaking Up Is Hard To Do, Members Only, and Greater Expectations.
Oliver was also produced by the newly minted Sunshine Coast senior drama group, Theatre Players, in August this year at the Noosa Arts Centre, Queensland, Australia. Theatre Players was the inspiration of Sunshine Coast U3A tutor Bonnie Schultz.
And in May next year, the play will be produced by Cloud Nine Theatre Group, a company of British expats in Murcia, Spain.
Oliver With a Twist is the second most popular of my 10 FREE short plays available to actors and directors everywhere.
The play orginally premiered at the Singapore Arts Centre in 2014, produced and directed by Susie Penrice Tyrie.
A further production, also directed by Susie, was performed Singapore’s Goodman Centre in 2019, for Timeless Tales, produced by Dream Catchers and Arc Light Productions.
Another scheduled production for The British Club, as part of a trio of Dickens-inspired plays, titled What the Dickens! ,was sadly cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.
The play made a comeback in 2023 students at the Alliance Charter Academy in Oregon, USA produced it. And in the past two years, it’s taken off, as my second most popular FREE short play.
My most popular FREE short play is Members Only, with 18 productions in 11 years. These productions were mostly in schools, universities and community theatre in USA, Australia and the UK.
My aim is to provide free accessible contemporary plays that are easy to produce and are guaranteed to provoke debate.
Congratulations to all the the new theatre makers and students who have performed in Oliver!
I hope you are inspired to look at my other plays and monologues and to continue exploring the joy of theatre.
CONDITIONS OF USE: My short plays are available for FREE on the condition that I am fully credited, users let me know when, where and how the work will be used, there are no changes to the text, and that you send photos and feedback. Your location is important, as I keep a little online pin-map to keep track of where my work goes.
This is a service for community and professional theatre makers alike – my way of giving back to those who gave me my start.
What I’m looking for is connection, so please get in touch if you like my work and want to perform it.
I have other work that is licensed for production and for which I get royalties.
But if you feel inclined, I accept donations HERE to help keep this website going.
Check out my other FREE plays HERE:
Are you a female actor or aspiring actor looking for audition monologues? Check out my FREE contemporary monologues for older and younger women HERE.