The Best Stage Scenes of 2008

Book excerpt: In these pages you will find a rich and varied selection of scenes from recent plays, for a wide variety of age groups. Many are comic (laughs), many are dramatic (generally, no laughs). Some are rather short, some are rather long. All represent the best in contemporary playwriting. Several of these pieces are by playwrights whose work may be familiar to you such as Don Nigro, Theresa Rebeck, Adam Bock, José Rivera, Peter Parnell and Aaron Sorkin; others are by exciting up-and-comers like Jim Knable, Hilary Bettis, Rogelio Martinez, Mike Batistick, Catherine Trieschmann, Anne Garcia-Romero, Jenny Lyn Bader and David Davalos. All are representative of the best of contemporary writing for the stage. Most of the plays from which these scenes have been culled have been published and, hence, are readily available either from the publisher/licensor or from a theatrical book store such as Drama Book Shop in New York. A few plays may not be published for a while, in which case contact the author or his agent for a copy of the entire text of the play which suits your fancy. Information on publishers/rights holders may be found in the Rights and Permissions section in the back of this anthology. Break a leg in that audition! Knock 'em dead in class! Lawrence Harbison Brooklyn, NY