Lives of the Saints: Seven One-Act Plays

by David Ives

ENIGMA VARIATIONS. Zany hijinks as a pair of lookalikes named Bebe W.W. Doppel-gñgler solve an identity crisis with the help of Dr. William W. Williams and his nurse Fifi, who may or may not be Aphrodite the Goddess of Love. Or is she a male gym-teacher in a dress? (3M, 2W)

THE MYSTERY AT TWICKNAM VICARAGE. A body on the carpet, three ridiculous Masterpiece Theatre-style suspects and a bumbling Scotland Yard detective solve philosophical quandaries as they investigate: Who killed Jeremy Thumpington-Fffienes? (3M, 2W)

BABEL'S IN ARMS. Two blue-collar Mesopotamian construction workers are handed a provocative task: Build the Tower of Babel or else. How many stones does it take to get to heaven, anyway? (3M, 2W)

SOAP OPERA. A washing-machine repairman falls in love with a picture-perfect washer. Should he tell his girlfriend Mabel? Is the washer two-timing him with a dryer? Stay tuned. (3M, 2W)

LIVES OF THE SAINTS. A tender and gently comic meditation. Two women preparing a funeral breakfast in a church basement muse on life, death, and the meaning of Polish jokes7and along the way achieve a kind of sanctity. (3M, 2W)

ARABIAN NIGHTS. Utterly normal Norman walks into utterly ordinary Flora's shop looking for a souvenir of his travels and together they find whirlwind romance, spurred on by a wacky translator. (1M, 2W or 2M, 1W)

CAPTIVE AUDIENCE. A cautionary fable tells how Rob and Laura face a menace in their living room: a television that talks back to them and threatens to swallow them whole. (2M, 2W)

Genres: Plays, Drama

72 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2000

About the author

A contemporary American playwright whose plays often consist of one act and are generally comedies. They are notable for their verbal dexterity, theatrical invention, and quirky humor.

He earned his MFA in Playwriting from The Yale School of Drama. A Guggenheim Fellow in playwriting, David is probably best known for his evening of one-act comedies called "All In the Timing". The show won the Outer Critics Circle Playwriting Award, ran for two years Off-Broadway, and in the 1995-96 season was the most-performed play in the country after Shakespeare productions.

Reviews

[Mark Woodland · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Ives writes brilliant short one-act plays, many of which last 10 minutes or less. It's an impediment to their being produced, however; many theatres are reluctant to present anything called "an evening of one acts". Still, like in the "All in the Timing" collection, here's a bunch of very funny and bent pieces that would be great if you could see them, but have the virtue of also reading well. I recommend both books.

[Jonathan Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

So fun! I love David Ives. It’s not All In The Timing but it’s pretty great.

[Julie H. Ernstein]

Just saw this performed last week and it was fabulous. For folks who love pop culture--everything from British murder mysteries, to television, to church suppers--this has a little something for everyone and hangs together when performed back-to-back (X7). Am very much looking forward to this.

[Nick Douglas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Turns out I'd read it before, but I've since grown out of it. It's like a college kid imitating the wrong part of Tom Stoppard. Disappointing compared to all his other work, especially his incredible Molière interpretation, The School For Lies.