Nick Hern Books

Great Plays for Festivals

A selection of our plays available for performance, specially chosen for their suitability for performance at festivals. Most of these plays have a shorter running time, generally 30-60 mins, or can be performed in a shorter version by prior arrangement. For more specific requirements, please contact our Performing Rights Department. Please note that inclusion here does not indicate that rights are available - it is important that you enquire about rights availability before making any commitment.

Showing 145-168 of 190 items.
REVENGE: After the Levoyah

REVENGE: After the Levoyah

By Nick Cassenbaum

A Jewish heist comedy that combines madcap action and biting political satire, winner of an Edinburgh Fringe First Award and a Summerhall Lustrum Award.

The River

The River

By Jez Butterworth

A bewitching story from the author of global smash hit Jerusalem.

Ross & Rachel

Ross & Rachel

By James Fritz

A dark and uncompromising play about romance, expectation and mortality, James Fritz's Ross & Rachel takes an unflinching look at the myths of modern love.

Run

Run

By Stephen Laughton

Stephen Laughton's one-man play about a gay Jewish seventeen-year-old explores what it means to love, to lose, and how to grow from a boy into a man.

Run, Rebel

Run, Rebel (stage version)

By Manjeet Mann

A fast-paced, mesmerising stage version of the prize-winning YA verse novel about a young woman beginning to take control of her life. Edition includes a range of teaching materials and resources.

Rust

Rust

By Kenny Emson

An ultra-contemporary, sexy and funny play that pushes the boundaries of trust, love and lust to the limit.

Salad Day

Salad Day

By Deirdre Kinahan

A short play about an elderly couple who, trapped in a nursing home, plot a daring escape into the sunshine.

Published in volume Irish Shorts
    The Same

    The Same

    By Enda Walsh

    A play about two women who meet in a psychiatric institution.

    Published in volume Medicine & The Same: two plays
      Saturday at the Commodore

      Saturday at the Commodore

      By Rona Munro

      A short solo play from the award-winning Scottish playwright, in which an Aberdonian woman remembers a painful teenage betrayal.

      Published in volume Scot-Free
        Scarborough

        Scarborough

        By Fiona Evans

        An electrifying portrayal of a dangerously charged romance between a fifteen-year-old and their teacher.

        • Paperback£9.99 £7.99
          There is limited availability of this title. Please enquire before placing your order.
        Scenes with girls

        Scenes with girls

        By Miriam Battye

        A witty and caustic play about female friendship, premiered at the Royal Court Theatre in 2020.

        • Paperback£10.99
          There is limited availability of this title. Please enquire before placing your order.
        Scorch

        Scorch

        By Stacey Gregg

        A touching and provocative story of first love though the eyes of a gender-curious teen, inspired by recent UK cases of 'gender fraud'.

        Second Person Narrative

        Second Person Narrative

        By Jemma Kennedy

        A play about growing up, and forging your own identity. Part of Platform, a series of big-cast plays with predominantly or all-female casts, written specifically for performance by school, college and youth-theatre groups.

        Sex with a Stranger

        Sex with a Stranger

        By Stefan Golaszewski

        Bleak, funny and excruciatingly accurate, Sex with a Stranger examines what it is to be in your twenties, lonely, hollow and uncertain.

        The Shakespeare Revue

        The Shakespeare Revue

        By Christopher Luscombe and Malcolm McKee

        An enchanting collection of witty music and skits about the Bard, devised for and first performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company.

        small

        small

        By Holly Robinson

        A compassionate and probing play about youth and aging, nostalgia and regret, and the dangers of refusing to get old. In the Nick Hern Books Multiplay Drama series featuring large-cast plays specifically written to be performed by and appeal to young people.

        Snatches: Moments from 100 Years of Women's Lives

        Snatches: Moments from 100 Years of Women's Lives

        Eight Monologues

        Created by Vicky Featherstone By Various

        A collection of monologues that document, remember and bear witness to a century of struggle for progress and equality for women in the United Kingdom.

        Something Awful

        Something Awful

        By Tatty Hennessy

        A thrilling play inspired by the true-crime story of the Slenderman.

        Space Girl

        Space Girl

        By Helen Stanley

        An action-packed play for young performers and audiences, bursting with songs and imagination, celebrating curiosity, resilience and exploration. In the Nick Hern Books Multiplay Drama series featuring large-cast plays specifically written to be performed by young people.

        Start Swimming

        Start Swimming

        By James Fritz

        A play about occupation, revolution and what the future holds for today’s youth.

        Steel

        Steel

        By Lee Mattinson

        A hilarious and heartfelt play set in West Cumbria, about first loves, forging identities and the wild, wild hearts of teenage boys. First performed at Theatre by the Lake, Keswick, in 2024.

        Stolen Secrets

        Stolen Secrets

        By Fin Kennedy

        From the heart of London's East End, Stolen Secrets are urban fairytales, bold, lyrical and gruesome, that can be performed individually or together for maximum shock value.

        Strategic Love Play

        Strategic Love Play

        By Miriam Battye

        A Fringe First-winning play that, with acid wit, takes a scalpel to modern romance.

        • Paperback
        Surrender

        Surrender

        By Sophie Swithinbank With Phoebe Ladenburg

        A gripping play about a woman trying to survive in a punishing and dysfunctional penal system that has separated her from her daughter. Premiered at the Arcola Theatre, London, in 2024.