Tulsa Ghosts hits the airwaves

Spotlight Children's Theatre in Tulsa, Oklahoma, always does a fantastic job promoting their shows and its no different with their upcoming production of Too Many Ghosts as the local ABC affiliate invited three of the young actors to their studios for an interview.

All the kids are unusually well-spoken, but I especially liked how Jaxon Lee, the young man on the left side of the couch, described his character: "I play a poltergeist named Barney. He's playful, he jokes around a lot, and he'll try to scare people. He'll try, but he doesn't-- he's just annoying."

That pretty much nails it.

By the way, the theatre came up with a totally unique item for their raffle to support the show: a Too Many Ghosts quilt. I've got to say, that's an absolute first for me.

4000 and counting...

Enfield High School in Enfield, CT, may look like any suburban high school in this country, but for me it's a very special one because they just booked Too Many Ghosts, making it my 4000th production.

When I hit 3000, I set of goal of reaching the next milestone in eighteen months. Well, I didn't quite make it, but I'm still very happy because I fell short by only a little bit.

Meanwhile, my bookings continue to accelerate. Here's the breakdown of how long it took me to reach each plateau:

0 to 1000: 92 months

1000 to 2000: 50 months

2000 to 3000: 28 months

3000 to 4000: 21 months

But that's not the thing I'm celebrating these days. Watertown High School in Watertown, SD, recently booked the 1000th production of The Enchanted Bookshop.

That's right. Even though I have 38 published plays, that one play accounts for 25% of my productions. And after nine years, The Enchanted Bookshop remains as strong as ever, having already booked 73 productions for the school year that just began.

I may be getting old, but it seems that all those classic literary characters like Dorothy Gale, Tom Sawyer, and Robin Hood never do.

30 Minutes Till Boarding is now available!

How about one more play for good measure? 

That's right! Just in time for the new school year, Pioneer Drama Service has released my airport comedy, 30 Minutes Till Boarding. It's my 32nd play with them and 38th play overall.

Developing the play has been a long journey with several layovers, starting all the way back in April 2025 when Belmont Day School in Massachusetts commissioned me to write a third full-length comedy for them. The play finally premiered to lavish praise in March of this year. And after an extensive round of edits to make it more producible, we ended up with a play that truly reaches new heights in terms of storytelling, emotional impact, and just plain fun.

Originally written for a cast of 40, 30 Minutes Till Boarding has now been slimmed down to a slightly more svelte 36, and you can get it down to 30 by cutting two of the twelve storylines (and the associated dance number!) as spelled out in the production notes.

One of the challenges with this play is that nearly all of these people (along with their luggage!) are onstage at a couple key points in the story, but the script includes some very useful suggestions to make things manageable.

But hey, at least the set is relatively simple, requiring a gate counter, a departure sign, and yeah, a whole bunch of chairs and/or tables.

Here's the synopsis: 

The snow is coming down fast and furious at the airport, but the intrepid gate agents for Sunshine Airways Flight 901 to Rome assure the waiting passengers that the plane will depart as scheduled. Alas, the flight is delayed later and later until finally the flight is canceled, upsetting the plans of passengers and crew alike.

The folks stuck at the gate are an eclectic bunch. There's the therapist taking her fear-of-flying group on their first flight. Imogene is a newlywed who learns that her new mother-in-law is coming along on the honeymoon. A self-absorbed pop star is horrified to discover that nobody recognizes her anymore... and that she has to fly coach! There's also the hilarity of a cocky, young co-pilot trying to hide from the flight attendant he ghosted on a date, and the sweetness of a kindly old couple who accosts everyone they meet with pictures of their new grandbaby.

Airport delays might not seem the subject of comedy these days, yet Todd (that's me!) creates plenty of both hilarious and heartwarming moments in this entertaining ensemble piece. With these rich characters plus many more, this high-flying comedy gives every actor a chance to soar!

I just know you're going to love this one. For a free script sample as well as complete ordering information, be sure to visit the play's webpage.

And buckle up. You're going to have quite a flight.