Contains forty-three monologues for men, selected from some of the best plays published or produced during the 2004-2005 theatrical season, most for characters under the age of forty.

This latest in Smith and Kraus's popular series contains only material from published, readily available plays, all first published or produced in 2006/2007, and most appropriate for use by student actors and working actors in need of audition material. A partial list:BEL CANTO by Renee Flemings BFF by Anna Ziegler BLOOD ORANGE by David Wiener CAROL MULRONEY by Stephen Belber DARK PLAY; OR STORIES FOR BOYS by Carlos Murillo THE DARLINGS by Susan Eve Haar DEDICATION; OR by THE STUFF OF DREAMS by Terrence McNally DIRECT FROM DEATH ROW THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS by Mark Stein DISCONNECT by Rob Ackerman DRACULA RIDES AGAIN by Jeff Goode THE FIRST ANNUAL ACHADAMEE AWARDS by Alan Haehnel HOME FRONT by Greg Owens. Also gender-specific are The Best Men¿s Stage Monologues of 2007, and The Best Women¿s Stage Monologues of 2007, both edited by Lawrence Harbison. Some of the playwrights represented are familiar (Theresa Rebeck, A.R. Gurney, Terrence McNally), but much of the material is from new and emerging authors ¿ once again giving the performer access to well crafted, but not overexposed works. Stage Directions - Off The Shelf, May 2008

This latest in Smith and Kraus's popular series is a terrific collection of scenes for two men, for two women, and for one man and one woman, all from plays first published and/or produced in 2006/2007 and most are appropriate for use by young actors. Scenes are taken from:ALL THAT I WILL EVER BE by Alan Ball ALL THIS INTIMACY by Rajiv Joseph ASYLUM by Keith Aisner BFF by Anna Ziegler BHUTAN by Daisy Foote BLUR by Melanie Marnich BYE, BYE, MARGARITA by Gavin Lawrence.CHECK PLEASE: TAKE 2 by Jonathan Rand THE DEAD GUY by Eric Coble DOG SEES GOD: CONFESSIONS OF A TEENAGED BLOCKHEAD by Bert V by Royal LEVITTOWN by Marc Palmieri LIFE SCIENCE by Anna ZieglerMANUSCRIPT by Paul GrellongTHE MISTAKES MADELINE MADE by Elizabeth Meriwether PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION by Warren C by Bowles STRAIGHT ON TIL MORNING by Trish Harnetiaux STRIKE/SLIP by Naomi Iizuka THEY'RE JUST LIKE US by Boo Killebrew VICTORIA MARTIN: MATH TEAM QUEEN by Kathryn Walat ASYLUM by Keith Aisner COUNTY LINE by Christina Hamm DARK PLAY; OR, STORIES FOR BOYS by Carlos Murillo DUES by Dwight Hobbes INDIAN BLOOD by A by R by Gurney LEADING LADIES by Ken Ludwig OVER THE TAVERN by Tom Dudzick POOF! Lynn Nottage THE RADIANT ABYSS by Angus MacLachlan SECRETARY OF SHAKE by Eisa Davis THE SPIRIT IS WILLING by Nicole Quinn Stage Directions - Off The Shelf, May 2008

This unique anthology provides a wealth of material for actors and acting students, and a wonderful overview of the best recent plays for anyone interested in theatre. The more than 150 monologues cover a diverse range of subjects, and offer a variety of dramatic styles and moods. Each monologue is introduced with a short description of the plot, setting, and character type by the leading plauwrights of our time. Featured dramatists include: Christopher Durang, Wendy Wasserstein, Lanford Wilson, Wallace Shawn, Tina Howe, Caryl Churchill, Athol Fugard, Beth Henley, Sam Shepard, David Henry Hwang, Harry Kondoleon, John Patrick Shanley, Larry Shue, Michael Weller, David Rabe, Marsha Norman, August Wilson, Albert Innaurato, Jules Feiffer, Harold Pinter, David Hare, Jose Rivera, Tom Stoppard, John Guare, David Mamet, Charles Fuller, William Matrosimone, Robert Patrick, Miguel Pinero

Selections from 43 plays staged in 2004 feature monologues designed to help male actors enhance their audition and performance skills.

THE STORY: Maggie is a newly single, junk-food-binging shoplifter looking to change her life and her self-hating ways. Paul is her passionately convicted, formerly four-hundred-pound compulsive-overeating sponsor in a twelve-step program for recove

Theater / Contemporary Plays