So I've been approached by a company with basically an open offer to put on a show.

The Good: I have a good network of people who've put on many a production and can be trusted to handle the production side and let me direct.  Also, the sponsoring company has a good reputation and draw, and has a reputation for pushing the envelope on content and style, so there are pretty much no limits there.

The Not-So-Good: The budget will likely be smallish, enough so that a musical is probably out of the picture.  It's a proscenium stage and it's small, so there's not a lot of room to play in.

So I'm looking for a straight play, interesting, small cast is better, and something offbeat or edgy will probably play well to the audience.  I'm looking for something with a performance history -- I'm a playwright, too, and I've rejected the idea of doing something original already.


Just to give an idea of where I am on this, the first thing that came to mind was "Picasso at the Lapin Agile" but I'm iffy on that specifically for a couple reasons.

How big a performance histroy do you want?  The following had their debuts in the authors' home states (and have yet to reach Broadway):-

For the Good of the Family by George Douglas Lee (Texas)
A Rose for Danny by Kevin James Moriarty (California)
The Future by Andrew Harrison (London, England)

If you want something edgy and out there, look at Original Works Online's site. Maybe Seven Redneck Cheerleaders?
Original Works Online

Also: recent, small cast & award winner: A Gulag Mouse
A Gulag Mouse - Next Stage Press

Edited by bnk01 - 3/02/11 at 8:35pm

Thanks for the tip on Fuddy Meers. Read it through yesterday and it seems to be right on what I was looking for.  Going to propose that one up the chain, I have a feeling it'll play very well both within the company and with the audience.

   I've always thought a real " winner" from an audience and production standpoint is "On Golden Pond" . It's comedy/drama that appeals to many age groups. One set. Simple costumes. 7 in the cast. I saw the original broadway production and was in a community theater production of it years later. And from the movie version it has name recognition.