Aesop's Hop - My First Published Play

After Josh and I directed our smash success (by children's theater standards), a few changes happened in my life.

The biggest change: I got married.

The other big change: I moved from Orange County to Los Angeles.

At first, I thought that I wouldn't be directing another show for the Yorba Linda Civic Light Opera.  But, during the year, I kept coming up with some new song idea.  And I kept thinking about the various flaws during the last show.  I wanted to create something that was really tight, structurally. 

And really fun.

And for some reason, I kept thinking of Aesop's Fables -- little stories I had heard throughout my childhood, tales with a clear moral at the end.  And, as I thought about the fables of Aesop, I also recalled a story about a dog, a cat, a rooster, and a donkey -- "The Musicians of Bremen."  So, I combined all of the material and created "Aesop's Hop." (Here are some photos from a college production... Great costumes, don't you think?)

I felt truly proud of the show.  About three or four times a week I drove out from LA to Yorba Linda.  But you know what, I didn't mind.  The rehearsal process was the smoothest experience I've ever had as a director.  The kids were terrific, as usual -- but there was something really harmonious about the songs, something that we didn't quite have in previous shows.  Katie Luekens did the music, and I think it was her finest work of all our children's shows. 

So we did the show, a couple years passed, and for some reason -- I can't quite remember how or why now -- I submitted it to a publishing company: Eldridge Plays. 

I had sent them plays before and they had kindly said, Thanks but no thanks.  They also said to keep trying.  Well, they loved "Aesop's Hop."  They weren't looking for a youth musical -- but they thought the script was great.  So it was published as a non-musical.  In fact, this was the very first play to be published.  I was absolutely thrilled.  (I did have irrational visions of it going to Broadway -- ah youthful expectations.)

Strangely, even though it was the first of my plays to be published, it was one of the last of my directorial projects.  Still, I look back on the show and the writing experience with utmost fondness.  It opened a door into the world of publishing -- and I'm forever grateful to Eldridge Plays for taking on the project!

Learn more about how to bring Aesop's Hop to life at your school and/or theater!

"Thumbs Up" -- My Tribute to Siskel and Ebert

Back in the 1990s when I wrote about fifteen screenplays -- each one a magnificent failure -- I was an avid fan of Siskel and Ebert.  These two distinguished critics had a television program in which they reviewed movies and often argued with each other -- which was part of the fun.  To some, they were simply known as the fat one and the bald one.

I learned a lot about movies and about criticism from these two authors.  And since they loved movies so much, I imagined that it might be quite amusing if they stared in their own movie.  So, I wrote a screenplay called "Thumbs Up."  It's about two rival movie critics who are on the run from the law, framed for a crime they didn't commit, trapped in a ridiculous plot similar to the bad movies they review.

You may have noticed that this script was never made into a movie -- And sadly it will never star Siskel and Ebert since Mr. Siskel passed away in the late 90s, and Mr. Ebert passed away last year after a long battle with cancer.

Still, I didn't want the project to just remain in my office drawer, like so many of my other screenplays. So, I revamped the script and turned it into a stage play.  It was published by Big Dog Plays -- and I'm hoping to watch it at a regional theater someday.

You can read the synopsis and a preview of Thumbs Up at Big Dog Plays.

"Tomorrow's Wish" by Wade Bradford

My play Tomorrow's Wish is now a published play! It is available in a trade paperback edition ($10), or only $3 to download. You can order the play by going to Lulu.com or Amazon.com.

And now, back to the original blog-entry (which was written before Tomorrow's Wish was a published play.) I have lots of unpublished manuscripts hanging around my office.

 But most of them are old novels or screenplays. I am very fortunate in that most of my plays have been published by either Eldridge Plays, Heuer Plays, or Playscripts or Big Dog Plays. There are a coupl plays that I wrote during my teens that are just plain horrible -- so those will never see the light of day. However, there is a play of mine that I LOVE and it has yet to be published.

That play is Tomorrow's Wish. It's been a labor of love of mine since 2002 when I started kicking the idea around. It is currently being looked at by Eldridge Plays and Heuer Plays. But they haven't gotten back to my yet. (Not with this current draft, anyway.)

It's about a teen named Megan (named after my niece) who dreads the idea of her eccentric cousin Juniper coming over for a visit. In the first drafts, Juniper was a very loving, mentally handicapped 16 year old girl.

 And this is perhaps where the first major problem of the play arose -- Juniper kept fluctuating from childlike to emotionally distraught, to surprisingly mature and well-spoken. So, trying to write a mentally disabled teen-age girl proved to be the wrong direction. But it took me a LONG time to understand that and be able to revise the work. Now Juniper is a homeschool student who lives on a secluded ranch with her grandmother.

She is very bright, but not used to being around others-- so she shifts from introvert to extrovert with the snap of a finger. (Oh, and she has a very special power -- but that's top secret.) But I finally did! I've recently submitted the play to a couple places.

So I'm hoping that Tomorrow's Wish will someday be published and performed by talented high school students. I've gottena lot of terrific feedback about one of the monologues from the play (it's available at my About.com GuideSite). A few brave actresses have even posted performances of the monologue on YouTube.



And here's another...


And this one is during someone's drama class:

Creative Contest #1: Stagecraft

Happy New Year! I basically have two artistic resolutions: Create more stuff and generate more buzz.

So, to help spread the word about my plays, books, and other projects, I am launching a new contest once a week. Our first Creative Contest celebrates the release of my latest play: Stagecraft: The Video Game.

How to Play: Create artwork that combines video games and theater. Examples: Macbeth in the style of Mario Brothers. Death of a Salesman, Sims style. Phantom of the Grand Theft Auto.

Email your submissions to: profwade@hotmail.com We'll post the art work on this blog to share with the rest of the world.

How to Win: On Monday, January 12th, 2014 we will pick our three favorite submissions.

What do I win? We're giving away autographed copies of "Stagecraft" along with video games! (Disclaimer: Some of these video games are compatible with game systems found in your local antique store.)

What is the "Stagecraft" about? "Stagecraft: The Video Game" is my latest one-act play. Here's the premise: Katie is in an all-too-familiar predicament. She’s running auditions for the school play and — surprise, surprise! — she needs more guys. Her cousin Matt, who is obsessed with video games, isn’t interested in helping her out. He’s got levels to pass and villains to conquer. She strikes a deal with him. He has to be in the play unless he can beat the new, never-before-seen video game she’s brought along with her. Matt’s up for the challenge and soon finds himself in a wild, virtual world of theatre where he must tackle casting decisions, staging and set building challenges, and ultimately put on a show!

Teachers, directors and students can visit Pioneer Drama to find out more.

Thanks for playing!

Sleeping Beauty and the Beast

We were trying to decide what to do for the Yorba Linda Civic Light Opera's spring musical. OUr producer, Virginia DeLand said she wanted us to write an adaptation of a classic children's show. She said, let's do either Sleep Beauty or the Beast -- sort of by accident. And I thought the title sounded so funny, I decided to merge the two fairy tale stories, thus creating a wonderfully goofy script that became: "Sleeping Beauty and the Beast." It was written around 1995, if memory serves. Like Sahara NIghts, the show was originally a musical, but when it was finally published by Heuer Plays, they went with a non-musical version. But for the most part, the script is pretty much the same. Back in 2007, Tevas Drama Department posted this YouTube video, a collage of images from their rehearsals and performances. Looks like they had fun!

"The Actor Games" by Wade Bradford

This is my latest one-act comedy, available at Eldridge Plays. 

In this dystopian/Hunger Games parody everyone is starving...for attention! Society's obsession with all things drama has become so distracting, the Capitol has outlawed all auditions and has divided the population into ten districts: Greek Tragedy, Shakespeare Drama, Commedia Dell'Arte, and others.
During the annual Actor Games, a tribute from each district competes to become a star. The losers must suffer the fate of the Fallback Wheel. This year, Meryl hopes to become the first ever winner from High School Drama. Unfortunately, the odds are never in her favor. The Actor Games is a fast-paced one-act play that provides lots of comedy opportunities for each cast member, as well as a humorous overview of modern and historic acting methods. 

It's dedicated to drama teachers around the world.  (But I guess since I spoofed the HUnger Games, I should have added a special thanks to Suzanne Collins!) 

What Are You Working On?

This is the question I love to ask other writers.  And, to be honest, I love being asked this question because it gives me the opportunity to talk about my work. I think about my work all of the time.  But I don't always verbally express my ideas.  Keeping my stories locked up in the attic of my brain isn't always a good thing.

When I hear my burgeoning ideas discussed out loud, out in the light of day, I sometimes realize "This is a brilliant story" or "I really need to rethink this plot -- it kinda sucks."

But I'm not talking right now... I'm blogging... So, what am I working on?

I have four different projects going all at once!  And that's probably not a very good writing strategy, but I can't help it.  Also, some of these projects involve different genres than I normally write, so I will be creating a pseudonym.  Which means that I'm working on top secret projects!

But I'll share a few details with you... I'd rather be talking about this, by the way, but typing out my ideas is therapeutic too.

Secret Project #1: An Awesome Picture Book... 
This project really isn't that secret.  Everyone who knows me knows that I love writing picture books.  Two and a half years ago my first picture book debuted: "Why Do I Have to Make My Bed?"  But here's the problem... I have not been able to sell a second picture book.  These are difficult little textual beasts to capture.  I have written about twenty picture books since my first sale.  Some were lousy.  Some were wonderful -- but for a variety of reasons they did not win over the hearts and minds of the editors.  So, in regards to the picture book I am working on now, I am praying that the Gods of Children's Literature have favored me with a brilliant idea.

Secret Project #2: An Awesome Early Middle Grade Novel...
I've been developing this for a while now.  It's a fun combination of silliness and Shakespearean epicness.  It's also one of those books that could shine brightly if the text is combined with some illustrations every few pages.

Word Count Goal: +25,000

Progress: 16% Complete


Secret Project #3: An Awesome Paranormal Teen Novel... 
I wrote the first five chapters over the summer and I am waiting to find out what happens next.  It is written from the POV of a teen girl, so I will be attempting to publish this one under a pen name.  (It's also very different than anything else I've ever written.)

Word Count Goal: +35,000

Progress: 14% Complete


Secret Project #4: An Awesome Fantasy/Adventure Middle Grade...
This is still in the brainstorming stage... but I think I am finally ready to begin working on the first draft.  Of course, maybe I should finish these other projects before I dive in... Ya think???

Word Count Goal: +70,000

Progress: 0% Complete


Secret Project #5: An Awesomely Weird Novel That Combines the Mythical and the Mundane...
I have been writing nothing but children's literature since 2002.  So it's been refreshing and kinda scary to write something for grown-ups.  Actually, I'm not writing this book for grown-ups or kids.  I'm writing it for me.  And I haven't typed anything into the computer yet.  It's all hand written, and there's a nice chunk of it done so far, but this is going to happen over the course of an entire year.

Word Count Goal: +80,000

Progress: 12% Complete


Not-So-Secret Projects: 

I'm sure the above projects make me look kinda lazy, since there's not one of them that is over twenty percent complete.  But I finish drafts!  I do, really!

During the past 18 months I finished two novels... I'm still working on the revision process.

Middle Grade Fantasy: Journey to the Midnight Realm

Word Count Achieved: 75,000

Revision Process: 60% Complete


Middle Grade Adventure: Camp Omigosh

Word Count Achieved: 82,000

Revision Process: 30% Complete

So that's what I am working on.  That is to say, those are the creative projects I am working on when I am not busy teaching, grading papers, attending meetings, playing with my kids, hanging out with my wife, walking the dogs, cleaning the house, and -- and did I mention? -- fighting off the demons of procrastination.

So, what are you working on?