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Nick Hern Books

Plays for One Performer

Discover fringe-theatre shows turned award-winning TV series, memoir-monologues, writer-actor collaborations and so many more excellent examples of solo shows in our collection below.

If you're a theatre-maker interested in creating your own solo show, there's no better place to start than with Making Your Solo Show: The Compact Guide, by Lisa Carroll and Milly Thomas – both experienced solo-show writers, who teach popular workshops on getting to grips with the form.

Discover 10 top tips to make your solo show memorable, an extract from Lisa and Milly's book over on our blog.

Showing 19-36 of 143 items.
Patricia Gets Ready (for a date with the man that used to hit her)

Patricia Gets Ready (for a date with the man that used to hit her)

By Martha Watson Allpress

A powerful play for one actor about a woman recovering from an abusive relationship.

Prima Facie

Prima Facie

By Suzie Miller

A brilliant, powerful play for a solo actor, about a young, successful barrister forced to confront the patriarchal power of the law. Winner of Best New Play at the Olivier Awards and WhatsOnStage Awards in 2023.

Far Gone

Far Gone

By John Rwothomack

A profoundly moving play about a young Ugandan boy's journey from childhood innocence to child soldier, seen through the eyes of those that love him and those that betray him.

Phoenix

Phoenix

By Mike Bartlett

A powerful story of fire and destruction, self-deceit and the corrosion of trust.

Published in volume Mrs Delgado
    Mrs Delgado

    Mrs Delgado

    By Mike Bartlett

    A funny and poignant play for one actor that tells a story of desire, control, raised blinds and lowered boundaries. This edition also includes the monologue Phoenix.

    • Paperback£9.99 £7.99
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    Air

    Air

    By Caryl Churchill

    A resonant and surreal short piece published alongside What If If Only.

    Published in volume What If If Only
      Sessions

      Sessions

      By Ifeyinwa Frederick

      A raw, funny, bittersweet play about the complexities of masculinity, depression and therapy.

      Glee & Me

      Glee & Me

      By Stuart Slade

      A touching drama about a teenage girl diagnosed with a brain tumour, an unexpectedly optimistic portrayal of love and the extraordinary resilience of the human spirit.

      Burgerz

      Burgerz

      By Travis Alabanza

      A timely, unsettling and powerful play from one of the UK's most prominent trans voices.

       

      Published in volume Contemporary Plays by Black British Writers
        Lava

        Lava

        By Benedict Lombe

        One woman's journey into her own past becomes inextricably linked with the tides of global history in this wickedly funny, strikingly lyrical and explosive debut play. Winner of the 2022 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize.

        Bloody Elle

        Bloody Elle

        By Lauryn Redding

        A heart-warming and belly-achingly funny story about falling in love for the very first time.

        My Son's a Queer (But What Can You Do?)

        My Son's a Queer (But What Can You Do?)

        By Rob Madge

        A joyous, chaotic, autobiographical play telling the story of actor, writer and social-media sensation Rob Madge as they set out to recreate a Disney parade they performed as a twelve-year-old for their Grandma.

        Harm

        Harm

        By Phoebe Eclair-Powell

        A thrilling and razor-sharp twisted comedy on the corrosive effects of social media and isolation.

        The Motherhood Project

        The Motherhood Project

        Monologues and Reflections on Motherhood

        By various

        A collection of dramatic monologues and real-life reflections by some of the UK's leading writers, artists and thinkers, and explores all the guilt, joy and absurdity, the regrets, pressures and taboos surrounding motherhood.

        The Kiss

        The Kiss

        By Zoe Cooper

        A tender, funny and beautifully observed study of lives in limbo, and a glimmer of hope for what lies ahead. First performed as part of the Orange Tree Theatre's Inside/Outside season.

        Published in volume Inside/Outside
          First Time

          First Time

          By Nathaniel Hall

          A hilarious and heartbreaking true story that smashes through the stigma and shame of HIV, to present an uplifting and inspirational guide to staying positive in a negative world.

          15 Heroines

          15 Heroines

          15 Monologues Adapted from Ovid

          By various

          Drawing inspiration from Ovid, fifteen leading female and non-binary British playwrights dramatise the lives of fifteen classical heroines in a series of new monologues for the twenty-first century.

          CripTales: Six Monologues

          CripTales: Six Monologues

          By various Curated by Mat Fraser

          Six fictional monologues portraying some very real experiences of disabled people in Britain, commissioned to mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the UK's Disability Discrimination Act.

          • Paperback£10.99 £8.79
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