Parallelplay Logo
Soliciting Temptation
Paradise Lost
If We Were Birds
Beautiful Man
Come Good Rain
The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God
Harlem Duet
Everyday She Rose
Princesses Don't Grow on Trees
Eating Pomegranates Naked
Don't Talk to Me Like I'm Your Wife
Controlled Damage
Punch UP
Mustard
Bang Bang
Parallelplay Logo

Have you ever found the perfect part? Or read a scene that speaks to you? Or seen a play where the actor on stage matched the writing as if made-to-measure? Don’t you wish it happened more often?

Parallel Play is a tool to help smooth the search for material that really fits. Fits actors, directors, teachers, students, writers, readers and theatre enthusiasts in their quest to find parallels between cast and character.

Parallel Play draws from an extensive database of culturally diverse plays and playwrights. Its foundation is a collection curated by theatre people and designed for all. With new plays added regularly, we think you’ll find our collection unparalleled!

Search Icon
SearchSee All Collections

DiscoverPlays and Playwrights

In our database, there are more than 1000+ plays. Search by title or playwright. Click on a playwright's name to see more of their works.

View All

  • Discover plays with Latinx Characters

    Six Essential Questions/”6 Essential Questions”
    The Doorman of Windsor Station

  • Discover plays with d/Deaf, and/or Person(s) with a Disabilities Characters

    Silence: Mabel and Alexander Graham Bell
    How It Ends

  • Discover plays with Mixed Race Characters

    Who You Callin' Black, eh?
    Women of the Fur Trade

  • Discover plays with characters of Unspecified Culture

    Antarctica
    Speed Dating for Sperm Donors

Discover Styles, like 'TYA'

Simone, Half and Half play banner

Realistic

Simone, Half and Half

The story follows Simone, a mixed race, 14-year old girl, curious about her heritage and identity, who is unsure how to explore it. When she joins the Black History and Culture Committee with Jay and Vanessa, she begins to understand the importance of her heritage and starts advocating to include more Black History classes to the school curriculum. The more she gets involved with the club, the more her friendship with her best friend Sarah decays. After Jay gets frisked by the police who suspect him of robbery, and their proposal to change the curriculum is rejected, the club dissolves for a while. This makes Simone think more and more about the casual and systemic racism they face everyday. After a while, Simone and Sarah make up, and Simone gets Jay and Vanessa to join a school sit-in protest. They get the attention of other students and the principal finally agrees to talk about the change in the curriculum.

by Christine Rodriguez, 2022
Characters: 5
Black Experience
Friendship
Jabber play banner

Realistic

Jabber

Teenage Muslim girl and white boy become friends at school and online. When their feelings for each other become stronger, each is forced to confront how they feel about each other and how the choices we make are sometimes shaped by forces beyond our control

by Marcus Youssef, 2015
Characters: 6
Hongbu and Nolbu: The Tale of the Magic Pumpkins play banner

Stylized

Hongbu and Nolbu: The Tale of the Magic Pumpkins

A play with puppets. After their parents die, brothers Hongbu and Nolbu both marry and live in the same house. Nolbu, being the older brother, kicks Hongbu and his family out of the house. Hongbu and his family starve because Nolbu kept all the food and money. Though poor, Hongbu is kind and generous. One day he rescues an injured swallow and nurtures her back to health. To express her gratitude, the swallow queen gives Hongbu a magical pumpkin seed. The pumpkins provide him with food and wealth. When Nolbu learns that his brother is now rich, he tries to do the same by attacking the swallow and pretending to rescue it. But his greed earns him three bad magic pumpkins instead, and he is left without food nr money. Hongbu forgives his brother and take in the family. Nolbu promised to learn from Hongbu; to be generous and kind to others.

by Jean Yoon, 2012
Characters: 17
Death
Late Company play banner

Realistic

Late Company

Over dinner two sets of parents discuss bullying incidents that led to suicide of one of their teenage sons.

by Jordan Tannahill, 2018
Characters: 5
Death
Grief
The Law of Gravity play banner

Stylized

The Law of Gravity

Dom has had a rough go of things so far. At fourteen, he has the hardened look of someone who’s had to fight for everything. Fred has just moved to Not-The-City, a new place to try to disappear. But he didn’t expect to actually make friends. He just hopes he’s accepted for how he looks. When Dom and Fred meet on a hill overlooking a bridge that connects Not-The-City to The City, a place where anyone can be anything they want, the two find a refuge in one another and make a pact: they’ll cross the bridge at the end of the school year. They’ll be free. What could happen by then? Who will they be? And will the bridge even let them cross? The young characters are on a journey of self-discovery, feeling out their gender identity and how they want to present themselves to the world - while living in a world they find limiting, and dreaming of moving elsewhere.

by Olivier Sylvestre, 2021
Characters: 2
Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers play banner

Stylized

Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers

The story of Trayvon Martin’s first hours in the afterlife. February 26, 2012, Florida. A 17-year-old Black boy wearing a hoodie leaves a 7/11 carrying a bag of Skittles and an iced tea. He never makes it home. Our Fathers, Sons, Lovers and Little Brothers invites us into the infamous world of one teen, into his last moments, and into his intricate dance to the afterlife.

by Makambe K. Simamba, 2021
Characters: 6
Death
Grief
Princesses Don't Grow on Trees play banner

TYA

Princesses Don’t Grow on Trees

This Theatre for Young Audiences piece explores the imagination of a young girl who feels isolated because of her family's absorption in digital devices.

by Andrea Scott
Characters: N/A
Cultural Issues
Family
Mortified play banner

Stylized

Mortified

A woman encounters a man from her past and is disturbed by the strange power he still holds over her. In her attempts to uncover the truth of what happened between them, she evokes her 13-year-old self: a synchronized swimmer struggling to make sense of her burgeoning sexuality. Mortified explores adolescent sex, shame and transformation and how we reckon with the traumatic experiences that shape us.

by Amy Rutherford, 2022
Characters: 9
Empowerment
Memory
Selfie play banner

TYA

Selfie

A new year of high school is full of excitement and potential—but three teens didn’t expect it to bring such a dark change to their lives. After spending a summer reinventing herself in Paris, Emma is ready for her new life to start, while her best friend Lily is eager for them to reconnect. Lily throws a last-minute party fuelled by alcohol and Instagram, which leads to a long-awaited encounter between Emma and Lily’s older brother Chris. But the next day Emma feels that something went terribly wrong. When a doctor’s appointment and a visit from police confirm that there was a sexual assault at the party, and the whole school turns against Emma, the three friends grapple with what actually happened between Emma and Chris.

by Christine Quintana, 2020
Characters: 3
Crime
High School
In This World play banner

TYA

In This World

High school is hard, especially for Neyssa, who is not from a privileged family like her best friend Bijou. When the two get into a physical fight at school, they must confront what’s really bothering Neyssa. In This World looks at what friendship means to two teenage girls from vastly different social backgrounds, while they deal with racism, class, teen sex and reputation.

by Hannah Moscovitch, 2015
Characters: 2
Through the Bamboo play banner

Stylized

Through the Bamboo

Twelve-year-old Philly is pulled into an action-packed adventure while mourning the loss of her Lola when she opens an old book and finds herself tossed into the fantastical land of Uwi. This Filipinx-Canadian tale inspired by Philippine mythology shows the value of keeping memories alive and explores how families deal with loss.

by Andrea Mapili, Byron Abalos, 2021
Characters: 15
Death
Grief
Let me Borrow that Top (part of Fish Eyes Trilogy) play banner

Stylized

Let me Borrow that Top (part of Fish Eyes Trilogy)

Centres on Candice a girl who appropriates Meena’s Indian dance skills in Fish Eyes and bullies Naz in Boys with Cars. As she’s doing a YouTube makeup tutorial, she shares a passion for Indian dancing. Candice has just been accepted to the Conventry School of Bhangra. Will she leave Canada and her boyfriend, Buddy, to pursue her dreams?

by Anita Majumdar, 2016
Characters: 2
Cultural Issues
Harassment
Fish Eyes (part of Fish Eyes Trilogy) play banner

Stylized

Fish Eyes (part of Fish Eyes Trilogy)

Meena is a classically trained Indian dancer who wants to be the next Aishwarya Rai. However, she also wants to be like the rest of her high-school friends. She develops a massive crush on Buddy, the popular boy at school. In order to pursue him, she contemplates turning down competitions. With the sometimes gentle, sometimes an unwelcomed encouragement of her dance teacher, she sets out on a quest to conquer her first unrequited hearbreak and emerge triumphant.

by Anita Majumdar, 2016
Characters: 4
Cultural Issues
Empathy
Shape of a Girl play banner

Realistic

Shape of a Girl

A teenage girl, Braidie, struggles to come to terms with bullying and violence that occurred in her past. A bystander who reflects upon the treatment of a bullied friend, she observes the power dynamics between friends from young age and sees the gradually intensifying hostility leading to violence. Braidie wonders if the teen accused of a shocking act of violence is so very different from her and her friends. This “monster in the shape of a girl” propels Braidie to examine her own past and confront the truth of her often terrifying teenage world. She discovers how detrimental bullying is to the victim and examines her own actions and the actions of others who participate in the cycles of violence.

by Joan MacLeod, 2002
Characters: 1
Harassment
High school
The Middle Place play banner

TYA

The Middle Place

“This is a really difficult house.” It’s where people like Kaali and Nevaeh live, but it’s not home. Constructed from interviews conducted at a Rexdale youth shelter, THE MIDDLE PLACE has five actors bring to the stage the extraordinary voices of 16 homeless youth, 3 tireless caseworkers and one outsider.

by Andrew Kushnir, 2016
Characters: 20
Class
Community

Discover Tags, like 'Death'

Andy's Gone play banner

Realistic

Andy’s Gone

What stories do we tell ourselves to keep our walls up and our privilege intact? What is the cost of revolution? In this contemporary retelling of Antigone, denial of what rages outside of a city’s perimeter comes to a head when a young princess named Alison tries to expose the truth of her beloved cousin Henry’s death. By night, Henry went as Andy, as together he and Alison scaled the walls of their kingdom to help the migrants who are kept out of sight. Burdened by the weight of the inequality that his future reign represented, he killed himself. But his mother, Queen Regina, hails his death as a valiant knight and will do anything she can to keep Alison silent. The two women become locked in a poetic battle of power and prejudice, until a push turning into a shove might mean it’s too late to find peace.

by Marie-Claude Verdier, 2021
Characters: 2
Death
High School
How It Ends play banner

Stylized

How It Ends

Most of us, when faced with death, wish we could just have a little more time. But what if this is the little more time that we wished for? What are you going to do with it? Grieving siblings Natalie and Bart have differing views on how we die. Natalie, a palliative care nurse, knows how drugs can help ease someone’s pain, and do so on their own terms; Bart, a minister, believes that surrendering to what may come can bring peace and wisdom. Through this immersive show about end-of-life choices, Natalie and Bart are guided by a disabled angel who helps them address their mother’s final decision and understand their own hopes and fears about death. Packed with relatable existential questions, this joyously engaging and reflective play offers a welcoming space to think about what comes next.

by Debbie Patterson, 2023
Characters: 4
Cultural Issues
Death
Six Essential Questions/”6 Essential Questions” play banner

Stylized

Six Essential Questions/”6 Essential Questions”

6 Essential Questions tells the story of Renata as she travels to Brazil to reunite with the mother who abandoned her when she was just five years old. In Rio, Renata discovers more than she bargained for in her quest to uncover the truth of who abandoned whom. She is continually tossed about by her undead grandmother and a semi-invisible uncle as they choreograph the ultimate dance of mother and daughter, both of whom must confront their dreams before they can ever attempt to confront each other. Imaginations run wild in this strangely beautiful and funny story loosely based on Uppal’s critically acclaimed memoir, Projection: Encounters with My Runaway Mother, a finalist for both the Hilary Weston Writers’ Trust Prize for Nonfiction and the Governor General’s Literary Award for Non-Fiction.

by Priscila Uppal, 2015
Characters: 4
Family
Grief
The Death of the King play banner

Historical

The Death of the King

A retelling of Persian history. At the end of the Sassanian Empire, during the onslaught of Muslim invasions into Persia, the last king of Persia, Yazdgird III, finds death in an impoverished flourmill. Discovered red-handed by the king's army, the helpless miller, his wife, and his daughter must reenact their experience with the king to prove their innocence—or else face a horrible death.

by Bahram Beyza'ie, 2008
Characters: 7
Class
Death
The Elephant Song play banner

Realistic

The Elephant Song

An eminent psychiatrist has vanished from his office. The last person to have seen him is Michael, a troubled patient. Dr. Greenberg, the hospital director, is determined to question Michael, ignoring the head nurse's cryptic warnings. Michael speaks of elephants and opera—with the occasional hint of murder and foul play. Fraught with mind games and verbal tugs-of-war, The Elephant Song is a cat-and-mouse game that will keep you guessing until its haunting conclusion.

by Nicolas Billon, 2006
Characters: 3
Death
Disability
Watching Glory Die play banner

Solo show

Watching Glory Die

Glory is a troubled teenage inmate who, in her solitary prison cell, is tormented by hallucinations. While she battles the creature in her mind, her adoptive mother Rosellen struggles to remain connected to her daughter, believing that she can sense Glory’s feelings no matter the distance. In the prison halls, Gail, a working-class guard, glides between her conscience and her professional duties, knowing her actions could ultimately lead to a tragic end.

by Judith Thompson, 2016
Characters: 1
Death
Family
The Doorman of Windsor Station play banner

Realistic

The Doorman of Windsor Station

Francisco will forever be haunted by the sight of his best friend Juan lying on the floor of a train station, pierced by five bullets. He’ll remember that sight as he flees the political uprising in Uruguay that night. He’ll remember when he’s holding a dying homeless man in Windsor Station in Montreal eight months later. He’ll remember when he’s a successful architect. He’ll remember when he’s having an affair with a Québécoise pianist named Claire. He’ll remember when he’s much older, a vagrant sleeping in a café that was once part of Windsor Station, where he meets his son, an activist in the student strikes in Quebec. As he tries for a better life, Francisco’s past keeps finding him, until it blurs with the present in a series of hallucinations, challenging him to reclaim his identity and his rights.

by Julie Vincent, 2017
Characters: 8
Ageing
Class
The Best Brothers play banner

Realistic

The Best Brothers

Bunny Best has met her unfortunate end after a mishap at a Gay Days parade. Now her two sons, Kyle and Hamilton, have the task of arranging her funeral and caring for her most beloved companion, a troublesome Italian greyhound named Enzo. In the bustle of obituary-writing, eulogy-giving, and dog-sitting, sibling rivalry quickly reaches its peak and years of buried contentions surface.

by Daniel MacIvor, 2013
Characters: 2
Death
Empathy
Gertrude and Alice play banner

Historical

Gertrude and Alice

Visiting the audience in the present day, Gertrude and Alice come to find out how history has treated them. The couple recounts stories of their forty-year relationship; of meetings with iconic artists and writers; and of Alice’s overwhelming, consuming devotion to Gertrude’s genius. Before they leave, they want to find out what has become of their artistic and cultural influence, and how their lives and work are—or are not—remembered.

by Evalyn Parry, Anna Chatterton, 2018
Characters: 2
2SLGBTQI+
Death
Dividing Lines | Líneas Divisorias play banner

Solo Show

Dividing Lines | Líneas Divisorias

"The one thing everyone knows is that we’re all going to die. Which means our loved ones are going to die. So how can we prepare for, experience, and honour their deaths? And does that look different if we have to make the decision to end their lives for them if they’re suffering? Dividing Lines | Líneas Divisorias is one woman’s story that offers a space for communal grieving through a celebration of life. Traced by the historic world events that coincide with her memories of independence and immigration, Beatriz reflects on how she spent over a decade caring for her mother—the one person she promised she’d be there for all the way until the end—as she lost her more and more to Alzheimer’s, and ultimately had to make the tough call to end her mother’s pain. A meditation full of light that doesn’t shy away from fear of the unknown, Beatriz’s narrative comes from a vulnerable and recognizable place of love that will invite our memories and choices in to heal." - from the publisher

by Beatriz Pizano, 2022
Characters: 1
Ageing
Alzheimer's
Reading Hebron play banner

Docudrama

Reading Hebron

A Toronto Jew named Nathan Abramowitz investigates the Hebron Massacre—in which a Jewish settler murdered 29 Muslims at prayer—as a way of questioning his own responsibility for the oppression of Palestinians.

by Jason Sherman, 1997
Characters: 5
Cultural issues
Crime
A Good Death play banner

Realistic

A Good Death

A Good Death is about the conflict between the best friend and the mother of a young woman who has been severely brain injured by a hit and run accident. The young woman has been in a persistent vegetative state and the decision must be made about whether or not to remove her from life support: her best friend is her attorney for personal care. The mother has been estranged from her daughter for seventeen years over religious and lifestyle issues, including the fact that the young woman is a lesbian.

by Shelley M. Hobbs, 2017
Characters: 2
2SLGBTQI+
Death
Seven Stories/”7 Stories” play banner

Realistic

Seven Stories/”7 Stories”

A man is perched on the ledge of an apartment building, preparing to plunge to his death. All about him, the building's inhabitants pop in and out of their windows, revealing snippets of their own incongruous lives. As he contemplates the meaninglessness of his existence, he is unexpectedly and suddenly set free.

by Morris Panych, 1990
Characters: N/A
Community
Death
Top Gun! The Musical play banner

Musical

Top Gun! The Musical

Set in a decrepit rehearsal hall, down and out writer/director Billy Palmer (writer/director of the musical fiasco Apocalypse Wow!) attempts to keep his musical adaptation of Top Gun from crashing and burning, despite a quarreling cast, a sketchy ex-Navy Seal producer, and a love triangle that threatens to destroy the entire project.

by Scott White, Denis McGrath, 2012
Characters: 7
2SLGBTQI+
Death
The Auden Test play banner

Solo Show

The Auden Test

"A play about a poem about a painting about a myth - and what it means to be human. A queer tale, interweaving the lives and works of the poet W.H. Auden and the mathematician Alan Turing." - fromt the publisher.

by Lawrence Aronovitch, 2016
Characters: 1
2SLGBTQ2I+
Death