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Brian Parks

BRIAN PARKS

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

Literary Agent:    n/a

Brian Parks was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, he is an American playwright, journalist, and editor. He's best known for his play Americana Absurdum (which consists of the two shorter plays Vomit & Roses and Wolverine Dream). His other works include Goner, Suspicious Package, Out of the Way, The Invitation (titled Einladung zum Abendessen in the German language version, translated by John and Peter von Duffel), Splayfoot, and Imperial Fizz (published by Josef Weinberger Ltd, London). Americana Absurdum was honored with the Best Writing award at the 1997 New York International Fringe Festival and a Scotsman Fringe First Award at the 2000 Edinburgh Festival Fringe. It was also produced in London in 2004 at the Menier Chocolate Factory Theater.

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

         Americana Absurdum         Golfer, The         Goner         House, the         Imperial Fizz         Invitation, The         Out Of the Way         Professor, The         Splayfoot         Suspicious Package         Vomit And Roses         Wolverine Dream

Americana Absurdum

Synopsis:
In Vomit and Roses, a family-run funeral home business fights back a hostile corporate takeover while the two children of the family face the perils of the Senior Prom. Wolverine Dream takes us into the high-stakes courtroom arena as poet/airline president Wallace Stevens is slapped with a wrongful death suit when one of his pilots intentionally crashes an airplane, killing just about everyone on board, including a famous golfer. Stevens and his attorney must take on Irish lawyers, leprechauns, and the sole survivor and star witness, a talking wolverine.

Notes:
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1st Produced:

Organisations:
The Present Company

1st Published:
http://www.indietheaternow.com/Plays   -

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:
Two 1 Act Black Comedies

Parts:
Male:  7            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Golfer, The

Synopsis:
A golfer is hit by lightning on a golf course and thrust into a surreal alternative world. The Wife of Bath, the Tooth Fairy, Charlemagne, and the Choir of the Eels are among the 50 characters who appear, in 40 fast-paced scenes. Performed by three men and three women. Approximate running time: one hour and fifteen minutes

Notes:
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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 75 min

Parts:
Male:  3            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Goner

Synopsis:
At the start of Goner, the President of the United States gets shot. . . and then the fun begins. the assassination attempt thrusts the President into the care of three screwball doctors, while a pair of manic FBI agents hunt down a conspiracy

Notes:
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1st Produced:
New York    1999

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:
Black Comedy Comedy

Parts:
Male:  4            Female:  3            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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House, the

Synopsis:
The House is so hilarious you may awaken the following morning with the urge to continue howling, or at the very least giggle your way to the breakfast table. Anyone who has ever bought or sold a house will relate. Anyone who has not will digest this experience and proceed with caution when their time comes.- BBGI BLOG

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Kitchen Theatre Company, Ithaca, New York    2014

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:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Imperial Fizz

Imperial Fizz
A seemingly carefree high-society couple swill cocktails and exchange witty banter and pointed barbs as they sing and dance to melodies transmitting from a classic RCA radio in their swanky art deco apartment. they are persistently and comfortably tipsy and obviously relish a (mostly) good-natured verbal joust. they are awaiting the arrival of a very special guest, though gradually it becomes apparent that behind the brittle smiles, the free-flowing cocktails and the banter batted back and forth like a dazzling, gold-plated ping pong ball that there is something very wrong. their world, that at once seems straight out of Noel Coward, veers towards a darker, Beckettian landscape as the music on the radio turns to static, thunder claps in the distance and the couple's bright smiles are stretched to the breaking point with anxiety with the imminent arrival of their special guest.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
Absurdum International in Association With Paula Frits and Wordmonger

1st Published:
Josef Weinberger Ltd (2010) >>>    978-0856763403

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 Drama

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Invitation, The

Synopsis:
In an elite city apartment, a birthday dinner celebration among a group of highly successful friends takes an abrupt, peculiar turn in a play that veers maniacally and sardonically through the worlds of politics, art. . .and revenge.
- press release

Notes:
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1st Produced:
Ohio Theatre, NY    2008

Organisations:
Wordmonger

1st Published:
Contained in: "Plays and Playwrights 2010" published by New York Theatre Experience 2010   978-0979485237

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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Out Of the Way

Synopsis:
-

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:
-

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Professor, The

Synopsis:
A university professor in the process of being fired for incompetence gives his last, unhinged lecture. A monologue that can be performed by either male or female actor. Approximate running time: one hour.

Notes:
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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:
monologue 60 min

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  1

Further Reference:
-

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Splayfoot

Synopsis:
Did you know that the Welsh got to America and colonised Alabama long before Christopher Columbus was even a twinkle in the eye? Or that within 50 years of the arrival of the Mayflower, around 98% of the indigenous population of the US had been killed off by the arrival of guns, smallpox and syphilis? More an entertaining lecture - without any visuals, alas - than a fully fledged theatre show, Guy Masterson's slightly alternative history of America runs from the 11th century through to the declaration of independence that offered liberty and the pursuit of happiness to all Americans - except the slaves. Masterson's monologue is the first half of this double bill exploring the special relationship between the UK and the US. the title of the show says it all, although it may be the wide-eyed American businessman in the second part of the bill, written by Brian Parks, who is being sold a pup. Parks's script is a neat little satire of these isles delivered by an American abroad whose entire knowledge of the country seems to come from Hollywood movies and TV specials on Dickens and Shakespeare. there are some nice observations on the British way of life - taxis are described as hearses for dwarves - and our cultural influence on the US: the language and the best way to shoot Indians.
Lyn Gardner, Guardian

Notes:
part of American Poodle A double bill of two short plays that look At that very special UK-US relationship. Snowball by Guy Masterson And Splayfoot by Brian Parks

1st Produced:

Organisations:
Guy Masterson & Tti

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:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Suspicious Package

Synopsis:
Suspicious Package is a collection of five short comic plays. In the monologue The Dinner Guest, a man goes to a dinner party and discovers that he is seated next to a wolverine. In The Cocktail Party, two socialites trade gossip at a 1930s cocktail party hosted by leaders of the Nazi Party. In Skill Set, two employees complain about their work in a business office of a firm that collects scalps. In The Doctor Visit, a man with a song stuck in his head visits an inept doctor in an effort to get rid of the condition. And in On the Nature and Religion of the Hibernian Peoples, or, Marty McDonagh Goes to the Bank, a small Irish village is scandalized by the murder of a leprechaun. The evening can be performed by five actors, three men and two women. Running time is approximately one hour.

Notes:
-

1st Produced:

Organisations:
Word Monger

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:
five short comic plays

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Vomit And Roses

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
part of Americana Absurdum

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 play

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Wolverine Dream

Synopsis:
-

Notes:
part of Americana Absurdum

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 play

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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