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Robert Ainsworth

ROBERT AINSWORTH  (1957 - )

 Nationality:    Canadian
email:    Click here to contact     Website:    Click here

Literary Agent:    n/a


I was born in Birmingham England at a very early age. One of eight (living) children I felt crowded in, so to find my own space I moved to Ontario Canada in 1980, 4 siblings followed as did my parents, so much for my own space! But I didn't mind really. I was involved as an actor for many years, moving to directing then eventually into writing. I started by writing for children, which I really enjoyed. I've written a few comedies, but find I really have to be in the right frame of mind to write a comedy. I now do a lot of Dramas but they tend to have comedy in them because I think we all need to have a laugh. I've also written a couple of musicals, just the story and dialogue but not the songs as I'm not musically inclined. all of my plays are character based, I love to write about people. Most of the time I don't know what's going to happen in the play as I let the characters take me there. Very often I'm just as surprised as anyone by what happens. I've never taken a playwriting course. The reason for this is not because I don't think I can learn anything, I'm sure I can, but more, I don't want to follow the rules. I don't believe there needs to be too many rules when writing plays. I just write by letting characters I have created tell my story. When this is done, and done well, there's no better feeling.

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below is a list of Robert Ainsworth's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

 Autumn Leaves         Be Kind Rewind         Begin Again         Dirty Little Secrets         Frozen Dreams         He Ain't Heavy         Labor Pains         Magical Musical Rose, The         Mouse House, The         Oh Noah         Pip         Slainte: The Musical

Autumn Leaves

Synopsis:
a play that looks at the difficulties surrounding an elderly parent and what to do with them when they can no longer live alone. Helen's husband George died a few months ago but sometimes she forgets this and lives in her own world where she is back on the farm with him and all is right with the world. When her family begin to realize that she is living sometimes in this fantasy world they have to decide what to do with her. Should she move in with them? Maybe it's a retirement home or even a nursing home? Does anyone ask her or is this a decision she has no say in? This production has it all, Drama, comedy, tragic circumstance and a little insight into what could very well be our own future.

Notes:
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1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  4            Other:  1b

Further Reference:
-

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Be Kind Rewind

Synopsis:
It's a very stormy and snowy winters evening and Joan, a middle aged nervous and conservative woman, has to work at Frankie's Flicks video store until closing. She is soon joined by David, a vibrant, seemingly self-confident young man who has turned up for his shift despite the storm of the century. David constantly quotes lines from movies as a way to communicate with the rest of the world and Joan just doesn't get the younger generation these days. This production is very funny and is the winner of the PTG one act festival.

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Peterborough One act Festival    -

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play One act

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  -            Other:  1b

Further Reference:
-

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Begin Again

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Trinity Players    -

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Dirty Little Secrets

Synopsis:
The year is 1957. Hope lives in an apartment in an old converted manor house in the village of Little Compton. She has devoted her life to fund raising and volunteering. One day when a friend dies she realizes all of her friends secrets have died along with her. So she decides she's going to write a book and informs a group of villagers that she is going to feature them in it. They all try very hard to find out what she has written to see if she has revealed the secrets that she harbors about them before the book is published. When she refuses to reveal anything, she is murdered. This very funny murder mystery has a few twists and turns along the way that will have people guessing who done it and an ending that's sure to surprise everyone. With a retired Colonel, a town councillor and his meddlesome wife, a Sunday school teacher, a simple farmer and an over zealous police inspector, the laughs and surprises never quit. This play calls for 4 mature women and 6 mature men.

Notes:
a new murder Mystery, who done it.

1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
murder mystery

Parts:
Male:  6            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Frozen Dreams

Synopsis:
Sam, Harry and Rainman are living on the streets of a major city. It's Christmas and Rainman, a nineteen year old but with the mental age of seven, has been given a frozen turkey for Christmas by a group of good Samaritans. Because it is so important to Rainman to have a 'real Christmas' pondering what to do with this turkey becomes the focal point of the play. They are helped by Lilly, the proverbial, eccentric, bag lady who believes the turkey is a baby and a street nurse who has her own private reasons for working with the homeless. This poignant and sometimes hilarious production is a roller-coaster of emotions that causes the audiences to look through different eyes at the homeless folk that frequent all of our major cities.

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Peterborough Theatre Guild    -

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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He Ain't Heavy

Synopsis:
Devon has just turned seventeen. He has it all, looks, personality, confidence, captain of the football team. His older brother in Jeremy (Emy) who is mentally challenged with the mind of a seven year old. Devon has had to look after Emy as far back as he can remember. They both live with their mother, with the occasional visit from their good-for-nothing father. One day Devon's perfect life comes crashing down when he is involved in a car accident and ends up in a wheelchair. Now the roles are reversed, Emy must look after Devon. This is a story about life, relationships, it's about turmoil and change, but most of all it's about brothers.

Notes:
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1st Produced:
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Organisations:
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1st Published:
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Music:
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To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Labor Pains

Synopsis:
Steve, 35, a bachelor, is bereft. His girlfriend, Sue has left him and gone off with a shoe salesman. His friend, Max, an unemployed labourer and irresponsible has been thrown out by his girlfriend, Jackie. She will have him back when he pulls his life together and gets a job. Steve has reluctantly allowed Max to move into his apartment for a week. Enter Edith, Steve's snobbish, overbearing mother who's visiting from England! To keep his mother off his back, about going back to England to live with her, Steve had told her that he was married to Sue. Now Steve, has to come up with a plan. He askes his neighbor Jan, to pretend to be Sue while the mother is visiting which she agrees to. Unfortunately mother arrives and catches Max dressed as Sue, which he was doing to play a joke on Steve and she assumes he is her new daughter in-law. The biggest problem was that while Max was playing this joke he also pretended to be pregnant. The farcical events proceed from thereon with mistaken identities, hilarious dialogue and several other characters who add to the chaos that ensues. There is Jackie, Max's prudish girlfriend, who keeps showing up at the worst possible moments. Jeffery, her seemingly straight laced brother who turns out to be quite the opposite! Jan, the friendly neighbour from upstairs who helps to keep the plot rolling. and, of course, the inevitable surprise character who arrives at the last minute. This fast paced comedy leaves the audience gasping for breath, as the characters dig themselves deeper and deeper into the deception. Can things get any worst? Well sometimes if you expect the worst you may be pleasantly surprised

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Peterborough Theatre Guild    -

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Play/Drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  6 characters

Further Reference:
-

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Magical Musical Rose, The

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Peterborough Theatre Guild    1989

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Childrens Youth audience

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Mouse House, The

Synopsis:
Set in an old family cottage in southern Ontario, Carson, a fifty year old very successful author has arrived at the end of the summer season to write his new book. He chose this time so as not to be distracted from anything or anyone. One night after he's fallen asleep at the computer, someone climbing through the window of the cottage awakens Carson. He hits the intruder over the head knocking him out. When the intruder awakes we are introduced to a twenty year old angry, juvenile delinquent that soon discovers that he's chained by the leg to a large metal bed. This play demonstrates a clash of cultures between two very different individuals caught in a dilemma with a surprising twist in the story that keeps you on the edge of your seat and guessing right until the end.

Notes:
This is An edgy Drama with bad language, parental discretion is Advised.

1st Produced:
-    -

Organisations:
Pip Productions

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
-

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Oh Noah

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
Trinity Players    -

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Pip

Synopsis:
a musical version of Charles Dickens Great Expectations

Notes:
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1st Produced:
-    1995

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Slainte: The Musical

Synopsis:
Taken from a chapter of Ireland's bleakest time, Slainte tells the story of one family's struggle to cope with the relocation to an unfamiliar shore and new beginnings. The O'Malley's join the mass migration of 1848 in order to escape the plight of the Potato famine and New Brunswick offers the hope of a new beginning. With these new beginnings, however, their faith is tested by the loss and challenges they must endure. Slainte tells the story of friendship and love left behind, and the battle between the past and an uncertain future. This character driven tale is filled with the soul and humour of the Irish culture and is complemented by a dynamic, original score. although the characters must face some of life's most daunting moments, they discover the true strength of the Irish spirit.

Notes:
Music & Lyrics by Paul D. Crough

1st Produced:
-    -

Organisations:
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1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Musical

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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