Jerry Finnegan's Sister
By Jack Neary.
Product Code: J23000
Full-length Play
Comedy
Cast size: 1m., 1w.
Rights and availability
This title can be licensed and sold throughout the World.
* Please note the royalty rate listed is the minimum royalty rate per performance. The actual royalty rate will be determined upon completion of a royalty application.
Synopsis
Brian Dowd has spent the last 10 years of his life wrestling with an unrequited "something" for his best friend's sister, who happens to live next door. But each and every time he's spoken with Beth Finnegan for more than 30 seconds, he's ended up with his foot planted firmly in his mouth. Now, Brian's time is about to run out. With recent news that Jerry Finnegan's sister is getting married, the time has come for him to put up or shut up. Like John Wayne in The High and the Mighty, Brian has reached the point of no return. What's he got to lose--except the love of his life! In a series of fast-moving, hysterically funny scenes, two actors play Brian and Beth from ages seven and six, through their adolescent and teen years, right up to the moment the play is happening, when they're both in their early 20s. This highly acclaimed comedy has charmed audiences of all ages and is easy to produce while being an exceptionally exciting challenge for actors and directors. Jerry Finnegan's Sister is the rare comedy that is at once entertaining, very funny and, ultimately, touching.
Details
- Status In stock
- Type of Show Full-length Play
- Product Code J23000
- Minimum Cast Size 2
- Pages of Dialogue 56
- Min. Royalty Rate $110.00/perf
- Approx. Run Time 90 min
- Staging Simple area staging.
Categories
- Target Audience High School | College and Adult | Family (all ages)
- Performing Group High School | College Theatre | Community Theatre | Professional Theatre | Touring Group | Dinner Theatre
- Genre Comedy
- ISBN(13) 9780871293008
Customer Reviews
A fun romantic comedy! My students LOVED working on this show.
Cute story. Easy to produce, and really helps the actors with character development as the story follows them throughout different ages in their lives.
We had a wonderful time with the play "Jerry Finnegan's Sister." The characters were very accessible to high school students and we enjoyed the dialogue.
Jerry Finnegan's Sister was a beautiful show to direct. It stretched my creative talents very far. I would recommend this brilliant script to any company looking for a simply perfect play!
Excellent! We got rave reviews. We were sold out for both performances and have had enough calls that we could probably stage three more. Simple staging lets us do it as dinner theatre.
Jerry Finnegan's Sister is a delightful script dealing with how to connect with another person. Brian Dowd's narrative about the girl next door illustrates the pitfalls in the relationships between men and women of all ages. Jack Neary's dialogue is right on, and audiences relate to the two characters of Brian and Beth so well, hoping that they will indeed, finally, get together. Our production was very well received at every festival performance, and the audiences gave our company standing ovations every time. My kids loved this play so much they're still reliving each line and can't quite believe it is over. We have put it and the set to bed reluctantly.
A funny, well written script with great parts for two actors. Our audiences loved it.
Our production of Jerry Finnegan's Sister was performed to four sell-out performances in a hotel dining room. There was no stage, no stage lighting, no sets. We used only one bar stool, two telephones and one hand-held cassette player. All other props were either "talked about" or pantomimed. The entire emphasis of the production was placed on the actors, their characters and the brilliantly written dialogue. We literally "staged" the show with Brian and Beth moving around the entire room, from table to table, directly performing to the audience and each other. The audiences just loved it; and on closing night, we had to turn people away. We are looking forward to bringing it back at a future date. The script is truly funny, and audiences identified with Brian's quest to get the girl next door. I highly recommend Jerry Finnegan's Sister to any theatre group who is looking for something unique, fun, and challenging for two comedic performers.
Jerry Finnegan's Sister is such a wonderful play! Casts and audiences always love it. Timeless and very real characters keep the play contemporary and easy to watch. I have directed this play twice, and it remains my favorite play for its sweet simplicity and easy humor.
A huge crowd pleaser. We took the show to our state festival and got a standing ovation!
Hints, Tips, and Tricks
Keep the set simple. Use different hairstyles or small props/costume pieces to show ages.
Consider having Brian enter through the audience to start the show (chatting with them as he goes). It gets the audience on side immediately.
Gallery
Jerry Finnegan's Sister - Henry County High School, McDonough, GA
Jerry Finnegan's Sister-East Paulding HS Theatre Company, Dallas, GA
Jerry Finnegan's Sister - Mount Saint Joseph Academy, Rutland, VT
Jerry Finnegan's Sister - Ohio Showboat and Drama Inc., Marrietta, OH
Jerry Finnegan's Sister - Wheeler High School, Marietta, GA
Also By These Authors
Jim Smith, Lone Peak High School, Highland, Utah