PLAYS by Meredith Bean McMath

CASE 22

A one-act dramatic farce that asks whether there's any real hope for children suffering physical abuse in America and shines a glaring light on the deadly, gaping hole in the "safety net" of America's Child Protective Services.

Set as a play within a play, Case 22 follows a physically abused child's attempt to seek help within "The System" and begins as a play rehearsal - a play meant to illuminate the current crisis in child abuse and the holes in Social Service's safety net. The scenes quickly turn surreal as adult actors themselves begin to abuse the child actors, mirroring the case study they're attempting to portray. Toward the end, a new actress is brought on - a teenager.

Her response to her character's hopeless situation is to begin cutting herself. Now the actors can't decide if she's really hurting herselfor just trying to grandstand. Weak from loss of blood, the teenager finally falls to the stage. As the actors quit in disgust, the the girl struggles to raise her head and ask, "So, did I get the part?"

Black Box. 30 minutes. Cast of 9: 5 women, 2 girls (12-14), 2 men.

For performance rights, contact Meredith Bean McMath at meredith@storyroot.com