Diana Grisanti
Playwright | Educator
Plays for Young Actors and Young Audiences
StageOne Family Theatre, 2020
Photo credit: Jon Cherry
Published by Stage Partners.
Lawbreakers! (a fast and furious history of women's suffrage)
flexible; at least 5w, 1m
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Lawbreakers! is a 75-minute whirlwind about two stepsisters who have a terrible fight, bonk heads, and awake to find themselves at the Akron Women’s Rights Convention of 1851. From there, they whizz through seven decades of US history, meeting a host of suffragists, abolitionists, and freedom fighters—Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, Angelina Weld Grimké, Alice Paul, and the Remond sisters, to name a few. Think: intersectional feminism meets Bill and Ted. Producing theatres are encouraged to register young voters after the show.
Premiere: StageOne Family Theatre
Directed by Sydney Chatman
Commissioned by StageOne Family Theatre
Derring-Do
flexible, 11ish to 22ish
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Abigail's mother is an Antarctic explorer, Sonny's is a lion tamer, and Tyler's dad holds the world record for shallow diving. What's a child to do when their parent is hellbent on flirting with death? Why, they join a support group, of course. Derring-Do takes us inside the world of CODI—Children of Daredevils International. This circus-infused tragicomedy explores childhood anxiety, parental angst, and the fear of loss in a melting world.
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Commissioned and Produced by Creede Repertory Theatre. Directed by Brittni Shambaugh Addison.
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Creede Repertory Theatre, 2019.
Photo credit: John Gary Brown.
Cleveland Play House Theatre Academy 2018.
Photo credit: Michelle Berki.
The Starkweather-South High School Physics Club First Annual End-of-Year Lock-In, or ghost party
6w, 1m
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“Phones off; friends on!” When their annual end-of-year trip to Cedar Point is cancelled for mysterious reasons, the six teens of the Starkweather-South High School Physics Club settle for an overnight lock-in at their school. But, this seemingly lame sleepover soon morphs into a night to remember! Friendships are tested. Secrets are revealed. Spontaneous dance parties emerge. And, the school’s resident ghost roams the halls. A comedic-drama about the bonds of friendship and having the courage to be yourself.
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Premiere: Cleveland Play House Theatre Academy. Directed by Brittni Shambaugh Addison.
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Subsequent productions:
Youth Theatre Northwest (Seattle). Directed by Erin
Murray.
Kaiser High School (Honolulu).
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Commissioned by Cleveland Play House
The Baker Goes to War
(co-written with Steve Moulds)
flexible, 12ish to 30ish
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In the midst of a never-ending war, a baker rises to fame with the most delicious confections anyone’s ever tasted. But when a group of opportunistic investors discovers her secret ingredient, they cook up a scheme to keep profits flowing—even if it sabotages the baker’s chance at happiness.
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Commissioned and produced by Commonwealth
Theatre Center
Photos courtesy of Commonwealth Theatre Center, 2015.
Dorina and the Plague
flexible; 12ish to 30ish
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Many generations ago (though not as many as you might think) a terrible plague descended on the inhabitants of a remote Italian mountain village. While doctors, con artists, and civic leaders scramble for a cure—and for profit—the intrepid Dorina takes matters into her own hands in this new fairy tale full of charlatans, rats, evil stepmothers, and some curiously powerful cloves of garlic.
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Commissioned and produced by Commonwealth
Theatre Center
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Photos courtesy of Commonwealth Theatre Center, 2014.
Photos courtesy of Commonwealth Theatre Center, 2014.
Photos courtesy of Idyllwild Arts Academy, 2015.
Extracurricular, or The World Is Caving In on My Little Brain
9w, 2m
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Ah, middle school. So much drama. So many feelings. And now it’s time for the middle-school-iest weekend of them all: the annual gathering of Model UN. When a group of young diplomats descends on mid-range hotel in Southern California, old rivalries flare up, new love ignites, and global policy is hammered out. This play with songs is a meta-theatrical romp through the highs and lows of being a tween.
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Based on characters created by the company.
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Commissioned and produced by Idyllwild Arts
Academy. Directed by Alec Volz.
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1,001 Nights, or the Many Trials of Van Leech
(an adaptation of the classic tale)
flexible, 12ish to 30ish
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In Petunia Van Leech’s classroom, the lesson of the day is 1,001 Nights. Van Leech, the scariest teacher of all time, terrifies her helpless students with her evil pedagogical methods and sinister cane. No one likes learning when she’s in charge. That is, until Alex shows up. Cool and collected, Alex leads a student revolution...with a play!
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Commissioned and produced by Commonwealth
Theatre Center
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Photos courtesy of Commonwealth Theatre Center, 2007
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
(adapted from the novel)
flexible, 12ish to 30ish
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After arguing with her sister, Alice spots a White Rabbit and scurries after him. Then she slips down a rabbit hole and ends up in a strange, wondrous, and occasionally dangerous world. Can Alice escape the Queen of Hearts and return to life as usual? A whimsical and fast-paced adaptation of Lewis Carroll's classic novel.
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Commissioned and produced by Commonwealth
Theatre Center
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Photos courtesy of Commonwealth Theatre Center, 2010