One for the Road: New Plays for One Actor

One for the Road is a collection of recent Canadian plays for one actor. Often written and produced for touring and festivals, plays for one performer offer unusual challenges and benefits for both sides of the theatrical event: actor, and audience. The plays in this volume come from writers across the country, and have been road-tested in a variety of venues, from main stage to fringe, and other stops along the way.

What is most exciting about a play for one actor? Often, it's the wonderfully intense storytelling that takes place, sometimes it's a bravura performance. Many actors create their own one-person scripts, which are then extremely portable and self-sufficient for touring. Sometimes a one-person play arises from a personal experience -- a kind of living, breathing memoir -- one that the artist shapes and hones to express an important discovery or a burning question. In all cases, solo plays draw their audiences deep inside a theatrical expression, an individual vision. Laugh, cry, get angry, be moved by the strong stories in this exciting collection. Included in the volume are interviews with the playwrights, in which they discuss the creative process of writing and of producing the work.

Included are:

Nggrfg by Berend McKenzie

Cassandra by Briana Brown

Dianne & Me by Ron Fromstein

All My Day Jobs by Kirsten Van Ritzen

Dear Penthouse by Collin Doyle

Sunnyside Caf by Pam Calabrese Maclean

The anthology will be of particular interest to students and teachers looking for current, challenging scene work for young actors, as well as to actors searching for the perfect solo piece.