The Educational Theatre Association has unveiled its annual list of the most produced plays, musicals, and short plays in U.S. high schools, the result of a survey completed by more than 3,000 high schools on their productions from the 2018–2019 school year.
Topping out the list are Almost, Maine and The Addams Family, both of which are making repeat appearances on the annual list; The Addams Family returns to the number one slot for the first time since 2017 after being number two in 2018, while Almost, Maine leads the plays list for the fifth consecutive year.
Works making their first appearance on the list include musicals Mamma Mia! and Newsies, as well as the plays She Kills Monsters and Clue. All four titles were newly available for licensing this school year.
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Playwrights Don Zolidis and Jonathan Rand continued their domination of the most-produced short plays, with Rand's Check Please remaining in the number one slot.
The surveyed schools reported an average of 10 performances per production (26,534 performances in total), with an average total audience of 1,806. Based on that data, EdTA estimates that U.S. high schools serve a total potential audience of 48.1 million. This is the second year that EdTA has expanded their annual survey to include data on audience numbers.
Take a look at the complete list:
FULL-LENGTH MUSICALS:
1. The Addams Family (Andrew Lippa, Marshall Brickman, Rick Elice), Theatrical Rights Worldwide (TRW)
2. Mamma Mia! (Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, Catherine Johnson), Music Theatre International (MTI)
3. The Little Mermaid (Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, Glenn Slater, Doug Wright), MTI
4. Beauty and the Beast (Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, Tim Rice, Linda Woolverton), MTI
5. Mary Poppins (Richard M. Sherman, Robert B. Sherman, Julian Fellowes), MTI
6. Newsies (Alan Menken, Jack Feldman, Harvey Fierstein), MTI
7. Little Shop of Horrors (Howard Ashman, Alan Menken), MTI
8. Seussical (Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty, Eric Idle), MTI
9. Into the Woods (Stephen Sondheim, James Lapine), MTI
10 (tie). Shrek (Jeanine Tesori, David Lindsay-Abaire), MTI
10 (tie). The Wizard of Oz (various) Tams-Witmark
FULL-LENGTH PLAYS:
1. Almost, Maine (John Cariani), Dramatists Play Service (DPS)
2. A Midsummer Night’s Dream (William Shakespeare), public domain
3. Peter and the Starcatcher (Wayne Barker, Rick Elice), MTI
4. Our Town (Thornton Wilder), Samuel French (SF)
5. Alice in Wonderland (various)
6. Clue (Jonathan Lynn, Hunter Foster, Eric Price, Sandy Rustin), Playscripts Inc. (PI)
7. She Kills Monsters (Qui Nguyen), SF
8. Radium Girls (D.W. Gregory), Dramatic Publishing (DP)
9 (tie). The Crucible (Arthur Miller), DPS
9 (tie). 12 Angry Jurors (Reginald Rose), DP
SHORT PLAYS:
1. Check Please (Jonathan Rand), PI
2. 10 Ways to Survive the Zombie Apocalypse (Don Zolidis), PI
3. The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon (Don Zolidis), PI
4. This Is a Test (Stephen Gregg), DP
5. The Audition (Don Zolidis), PI
6 (tie). Bad Auditions by Bad Actors (Ian McWethy), PI
6 (tie). Lockdown (Douglas Craven), PI
8. Law & Order: Fairy Tale Unit (Jonathan Rand), PI
9. 30 Reasons Not to Be in a Play (Alan Haehnel), PI
10. Tracks (Peter Tarsi), DP
For more on the 2018–2019 survey, visit SchoolTheatre.org.
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