Two person scenes for a directing class?

Question

Any suggestions for a approx 4-6 page scene (10 minutes) with only two characters? It should be modern, and just a normal scene with human characters (no shakespeare). I have to work on it with two actors for a directing class, and I really have no idea where to start. Thanks for any ideas!!!

Answer 1

Well, if you are looking for a comedic scene for two women, you might try The Gingerbread Lady, by Neil Simon. If you are a Durang fan, Miss Witherspoon has some great two-women scenes (in addition to some wonderful monologues for the female actress). For dramatic, you might want to look at Beth Henley's Crimes of the Heart or The Women by Clare Booth (also some comedic stuff in there).

For a man and a woman, Barefoot in the Park is so funny. I might look to Doubt, John Patrick Shanley's play for a really dramatic scene. (There are numerous scenes for two women or a man and a woman.)

I recently saw the play Three Days of Rain (unsure of author) and there are several scenes from that play that might do for two men or a man and a woman.

Since you mentioned Shakespeare, I'll also mention the play After Juliet by Sharman Macdonald, which is an interesting look at what might have happened, and has some great scenes in it, too.

Good luck, and have fun!

Answer 2

There's a lovely scene in The Glass Menagerie between Tom and Amanda, that helps your actors get "into" it. It's very serious with lots of screaming. There's another Glass Menagerie scene between Laura and Amanda. Come to think of it, that play's full of lovely two person scenes. Check it out. Pirates of Penzance is primarily a musical, but there are bits that would make lovely 2 person scenes, especially this hilarious scene with Frederic and the Pirate King. I'm not sure if you can find the liberatto anywhere though...

Answer 3

The Public Eye by Peter Shaffer.

Sure Thing

These are two greatest comedies, oh and of course, The Dock Brief by John Mortimer reequires good chracterizations and British dialect

Answer 4

you could have a store scene whit one the clerk and the other one a customer or co-worker.
customer could be having complaint and clerk handles it
or coworker taking inventory and trying to clean and have a conversation with boss about needing a certain day off and it being a conflict
or about moonlight ling a second job that's wrecking the first one . first with one boss the n the other boss. that should give you some to chew about