Wade Bradford's Blog

This wacky play, that’s right Joel, I used the word “wacky,” is my final comedy in my cycle of Princess Plays. I started out playwriting with a children’s theater group that wanted to produce a popular fairy tail titled play, but they didn’t want to pay any royalties. And that’s when I started cranking out shows like “Sleeping Beauty and the Beast” and “Cinderella in New York.”

My take on Snow White is really a tribute to two of my high school friends, Joshua Eklund and Jeff Griffith, who loved the blatant cheesiness of Disco the way old Southern church members love gospel songs.

During the next two weekends, Hudson’s Bay High School (in my home state of Washington) is performing “Snow White in the 70s.” I hope the cast has a blast, and I hope whoever did the costume design had a disco-tastic time!

Here’s a link to the flier, in case you’d like more information about the date/times/location.

Here’s a photo from a 2006 production of my shamelessly silly play:

Twelve Angry Pigs Poster

Administrator — Thu, 10 May 2012 21:19:42 +0000

Love this poster created by the Broadway West Players. Good job, oinkers — oops, I mean, good job, actors!

“A History of Messy Rooms” – Free Play for Students

Administrator — Wed, 09 May 2012 15:06:47 +0000

That’s right, in case you haven’t heard, I have written a free play for students, drama teachers, amateur theater groups, home school families, and anyone else that wants to bring my picture book “Why Do I Have To Make My Bed? or A History of Messy Rooms” to life.

My About.com Guide to Plays and Drama has a printable version of this fun, easy to produce 10 minute play.

Here’s Part One of “A History of Messy Rooms”

Here’s Part Two of “A History of Messy Rooms”

So far, it has been performed by the Girl Scouts, the 4H Club, and the Boys and Girl Club. Today, I discovered that some of the kids have even designed their own poster. (Check it out, Johanna, we got some fan art!)

Pretty cool, huh? Of course, writing a free play was just one of the many ways I shamelessly self promote my picture book, which is available at Amazon.com or Indibound.org and other fine interwebby book stores.

Coming Soon: Shakespeare in Shambles

Administrator — Tue, 08 May 2012 06:03:09 +0000

Anyone who knows my plays is well aware that I have a fondness for Shakespeare. If I were living in 17th century England, I probably would have stalked the poor man. In fact, I felt like a stalker when I visited Startford-Upon-Avon, pawning through his mother’s farmhouse, his brother-in-law home, and the supposed place of his birth, not to mention the church where his dusty old bones remain.

So, if I love him so much, why can’t I leave the poor man alone? Why do I keep satirizing and parodying his work? I can’t help it. My foolish works of nonsense are my backwards way of saying thank you.

And I’ve done it again… very soon, yet another one-act play of mine will be available through Heuer Plays. It’s called “Shakespeare in Shambles.” Here’s the pitch:

SYNOPSIS: Audiences at the Globe Theater can’t wait to find out which play William Shakespeare will write next. Too bad the Immortal Bard is a fraud. He hasn’t written a single play. So, who is the author? None other than her majesty, Queen Elizabeth. Seeking creative fulfillment, the queen has been writing and delivering plays to Shakespeare while disguising herself as a man named Squire X. However, when Shakespeare complains that comedies about women disguised as men are unrealistic, Elizabeth reveals herself. While dealing with a scornful queen-in-disguise, Shakespeare must also handle a bumbling actor, power hungry noble, a flirtatious seamstress, and a suspicious wife.

The idea of the play came about when I saw the preview for Anonymous (a movie that conjectures that the bard did not write any of his plays). And so I took things a step further. Some folks actually believe that Queen Elizabeth wrote some of the plays attributed to Shakespeare — as if the Virgin Queen wasn’t busy enough!

I’ll let you know as soon as “Shakespeare in Shambles” is available in print and online. In the meantime, let’s hope Shakespeare isn’t too upset with me.

Mistakes Were Made…

Administrator — Fri, 04 May 2012 05:03:57 +0000

Help Us Bring “Pharaoh’s Kiss” to Life

Administrator — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 01:43:19 +0000

One of my plays that has never been produced is the 1930s styled adventure-mystery-supernatural-comedy Curse of the Pharaoh’s Kiss. I am hoping that in the very near future, we will be seeing a world premiere of this manic mummy misadventure.

Direct/producer Ken Salzman and actor extraordinaire R. Christofer Sands have been developing this project for almost two years, performing staged readings and helping me polish up the material with their invaluable advice.

If you have been looking for an artistic investment, or you simply want to help us bring Curse of the Pharaoh’s Kiss to the stage, they have launched an online campaign at Indiegogo.com. Please donate early, donate often. They are even offering T-shirts and other cool perks!

The play has been on sale at Lulu.com for about six months, and I’m planning to use the money from book sales to help produce the play. So, if you’d like to buy a copy of Curse of the Pharaoh’s Kiss, follow this link to Amazon! (You would think it would be to the Nile… hmmm…)

April is the Coolest Month

Administrator — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 16:01:34 +0000

So far, it has been a fantastic spring.

I’ve been taking singing lessons with my family. If you live intp the Santa Clarita area and you want to sing better, you must take a class with Rene Urbanovich. She’s so knowledgible and encouraging.

I have also been co-leading an improv workshop with Pat Mannion. We’re hoping to do a little show sometime in June.

During spring break (this was weeks ago), my mom flew us all out to Hawaii. He stayed in a beautiful hotel on Maui, and halfway through the trip my sister and her kids came out to visit too.

The following week, the girls and I went tp visit their other grandma (my moher in law) in Palm Desert. And surprisingly, amid all of this travel, I managed to grade a lot of papers, so my semester is winding down nicely.

And I’ve been writing, of course. I finished chapter five (or was it six?) of CAMP OMIGOSH, and I’ve sent it off to my agent to see if it’s heading in the right direction. I’ve also been working on a new play, a one act called HOW TO KISS A GIRL. I think it’s rather cute and ridiculous at the same time.

There have been a lot of great schools performing my plays this season, but I should probably write about them in a separate blog entry, because you deserve to see some photos!

Nice Review from “Tampa Bay Parenting”

Administrator — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 06:36:29 +0000

Now that “Why Do I Have to Make My Bed?” is a year and one month old, it’s especially nice to get press.

Here’s a link to a recent review of my picture book. (The critic is very gracious: ten stars!) And they also included a nice photo of one of my readers.