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Gordon Dryland

GORDON DRYLAND

  (1926 - 1989)
Nationality:    New Zealander
email:    n/a     Website:    n/a

Literary Agent:    n/a

Born in Auckland in 1926, Gordon Dryland has lived there most of his life. He is the winner of numerous awards, including Best Novel (1965 AN ABSENCE OF ANGELS") Yeai awards (DARK GOING DOWN and IF I BOUGHT HER THE WOOL), and has held the Scholarship in Letters (1971). He has written novels short stories, radio plays, TV scripts, a number of one act plays as well as full length plays. At present Gordon Dryland lives in Auckland, where he works with the New Independent Theatre. (1979)

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

         Academic Year, The         Anyway Sweet Christmas         Apartment 3A         Baby, Baby         Casa Mabel         Dark Going Down         Fat Little Indians         First Day At School         Going Into the Forest         Hell Of It, The         If I Bought Her the Wool         Jason Drowning         Lamb With Rosemary         Last Of My Solid Gold Fountain Pens         Last Rights         Lexie And Mr Cartwright         Little Knife, A         Now Read On         Paddington Red         Passing Through (Dryland)         Present Time         Roman Conquest         Same Old Saturday Night         Seven Standing         Side Of the Road, The         Simon Wendt         Think Of Africa         Unlikely Places         Why People Ask Such Dumb Questions
Academic Year, The

Synopsis:
Tom boards with his aunt. Tom would love to have an affair with her

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-     1985

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:
Drama

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Anyway Sweet Christmas

Synopsis:
a play about a fur coat

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Stockton House 1978   

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:
Comedy

Parts:
Male:  5            Female:  5            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Apartment 3A

Synopsis:
Mrs Barnard has decided to sell her late husband's Mercedes for $5

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Baby, Baby

Synopsis:
Myra cannot stand her baby's crying any longer

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Casa Mabel

Synopsis:
Landlady Mabel is having an affair with one of her paying guests

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
Comedy

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Dark Going Down

Synopsis:
a self destructive young man confronts the women who offer him affection

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  2            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Fat Little Indians

Synopsis:
Lewis a gay man shares his flat with a young straight couple

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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. - - Gay, full length

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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First Day At School

Synopsis:
the story of John's first day at school

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
Childrens one act

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Going Into the Forest

Synopsis:
John is writing the biography of a Nobel Prize winner and finds that the man's family is very different from him

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  3            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Hell Of It, The

Synopsis:
a doctor does not know how to tell her mother about her terminal illness

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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If I Bought Her the Wool

Synopsis:
My mother made me a homosexual. . . . .William and Charlie share a flat. William loves Charlie. Charlie seems to be incapable of loving. William was married to Mabel who lives in the flat downstairs with Beryl. Mabel is not sure if she loves Beryl

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
2 acts Comedy. - - Gay, full length

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
Script in the Hanger Collection, Fryer Library, University of Queensland, Australia. http://www.Austlit.edu.au, http://www.Austlit.edu.au >>>,

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Jason Drowning

Synopsis:
On his third attempt at suicide Jason is rescued - again. This time by a handsome young man.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  2            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Lamb With Rosemary

Synopsis:
Rosemary is left mentally disturbed after a car accident

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  1            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Last Of My Solid Gold Fountain Pens

Synopsis:
their marriage had never worked until she had an accident

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
Playmarket 1980   

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Last Rights

Synopsis:
Robert has a terminal illness and is determined to commit suicide

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  2            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Lexie And Mr Cartwright

Synopsis:
an elderly gay man has a confrontation with his current toy boy

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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. - - Gay, full length

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Little Knife, A

Synopsis:
a woman has killed the man who raped her

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Now Read On

Synopsis:
Two brothers married two sisters. One marriage failed. the other couple are lonely now that their children have left

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  3            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Paddington Red

Synopsis:
Seventy five year old Joan her family and her friend Marge

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  2            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Passing Through (Dryland)

Synopsis:
a girl turns up at the house of a married couple. He had given her a lift earlier

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Present Time

Synopsis:
a New York couple and their lodger a would be writer

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
Comedy

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Roman Conquest

Synopsis:
a couple have moved to Rome - but he has taken to the Italian way of life more than she has

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Same Old Saturday Night

Synopsis:
Two couples squabble over their after dinner drinks

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  2            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Seven Standing

Synopsis:
Seven old women in a retirement home with their memories

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
One act

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  7            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Side Of the Road, The

Synopsis:
the conflict between a woman's sensitivities and her husband's insecurities.

Notes:
part of the American Project: A compendium of short plays

1st Produced:

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:
Short Play One act

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Simon Wendt

Synopsis:
everyone wants Simon to sell his new invention to them.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
Comedy

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Think Of Africa

Synopsis:
an old woman is tricked by her twin sons who sell her land to developers

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:  2            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Unlikely Places

Synopsis:
a couple arrive at their holiday destination to find it is threatened by a huge oil spill

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
Comedy

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Why People Ask Such Dumb Questions

Synopsis:
Why does Ben ask such stupid questions?

Notes:
-

1st Produced:
-    

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:
Childrens one act

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  2            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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