A DRAMATISTS PLAY SERVICE TITLE

Theatre People, or The Angel Next Door

Full-Length Play, Comedy  /  3w, 3m

Paul Slade Smith

Oliver is on the brink of success: his forthcoming novel is being adapted by famed Broadway playwrights. They have a leading lady in mind, a women Oliver is in love with. When they all meet for a weekend at a mansion the thin walls reveal the angel’s true nature.

Theatre People, or The Angel Next Door

Request licence
Get the Script
  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    3w, 3m
  • Duration
    Duration
    105 Minutes
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Adaptation (Stage & Screen), Romantic Comedy
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult
Theatre People, or The Angel Next Door

Details

Summary

In this rollicking comedy, young Oliver Adams is on the brink of a major success. His novel The Angel Next Door is set to be published, and famed Broadway playwrights (and married couple) Charlotte and Arthur Sanders have already adapted his book for what is sure to be a huge stage hit. And who do they have their eye on as the leading lady? Margot Bell, of course, the very person Oliver adores and about whom he has written his novel (though he hasn’t told her yet). When they all converge for a weekend in Newport, Rhode Island, the thin walls of the well-appointed mansion reveal that the angel may not be angelic, and only the power of theatre can save the play, Oliver’s novel and perhaps most importantly, his heart. Adapted from Ferenc Molnár’s Play at the Castle.

History

Theatre People, or The Angel Next Door premiered at North Coast Repertory Theatre, Solana Beach, California, on 6 September 2023. It was directed by David Ellenstein and featured Thomas Edward Daugherty, Noel Grennan, Erin Elinor Gunn, Taubert Nadalini, James Newcomb and Barbara E. Robertson.

Keywords
Performing Groups

CHARLOTTE SANDERS – A successful Broadway playwright. Quick-witted, resourceful, optimistic, the engine of our play. Female, fifties to early seventies 
OLIVER ADAMS – A young novelist. Naive, sincere; a romantic, with both the brilliant mind and unwary heart of a poet. Male, early to mid-twenties 
ARTHUR SANDERS – Charlotte’s husband and co-playwright. A pessimist to her optimist who delights in being her foil; a skilled writer of quips, both on the page and in life. Male – Fifties to early seventies 
OLGA – The housekeeper. A nebulous Eastern European accent from the Old Country; a proudly uncaring, unhelpful servant; intimidating, if not frightening. Female, forties to seventies. 
MARGOT BELL – A Broadway singer and actress. Easily cast as the sweet and beautiful ingenue, but realising she’s wiser and stronger than the characters she plays. Female, mid-twenties to early thirties. 
VICTOR PRATT – A Broadway leading man – and an idiot. Impressively self-involved; the handsomest, sexiest, manliest man on Broadway, according to him; always a beat behind. Male, mid-thirties to forties.

  • Time Period 1940s/WWII
  • Setting

    An opulent, expansive bedroom in a seaside mansion in Newport, Rhode Island. 1948.

  • Features Period Costumes
  • Duration 105 Minutes

Media

“Capturing the sheer joy, sophistication, and wit of those early screwball comedies, playwright Smith has cheekily and efficiently modernized most of the lines and patter for clearer audience sensibilities.” – The Show Report

“The Angel Next Door is a glittering, effervescent hit romantic comedy. It’s an elegant, sweet-dry glass of champagne, bubbling over with non-stop laughs, merriment, glamor, and high-spirited hijinks. It’s hard to think of more fun you could have at the theatre right now, or really, more fun anywhere.” – BroadwayWorld

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £85 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

Scripts

Available Formats:
Get the Script

Add-Ons

Take a look below at how you can enhance your show!

Authors

Paul Slade Smith

Paul Slade Smith
Paul Slade Smith is a writer and actor based in Brooklyn, New York. His three published plays have collectively had more than 500 productions. Paul's first play, Unnecessary Farce, has been staged throughout the United States, and in Australia, Austria, Canada, Great Britain, ...
View full profile

Now Playing