Elephant's Graveyard (Full-Length Version)

A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Elephant's Graveyard (Full-Length Version)

Request licence

Get the Script

Cast Size

3w, 10m
Duration

75 Minutes
Subgenre

Period, Docudrama/History
Target Audience

Adult, Senior, Teen (Age 14-18)

Accolades

Winner! 2008 Keene Prize for Literature

Also Available

Elephant's Graveyard (One-Act Version)

Details

Summary

Elephant's Graveyard is the true tale of the tragic collision of a struggling circus and a tiny town in Tennessee, which resulted in the only known lynching of an elephant. Set in September of 1916, the play combines historical fact and legend, exploring the deep-seated American craving for spectacle, violence and revenge.

History

Elephant's Graveyard was first produced by the University of Texas at Austin at the Oscar Brockett Theatre in Austin, Texas on 16 November 2007. The director was Laura Kepley.

Cast Attributes

Keywords

Performing Groups

Time Period 1910s/WWI
Setting 1916. An empty stage or an abstract collision of the worlds of the circus, town and railroad.
Features Period Costumes
Additional Features No Intermission, Physical Comedy, Play with Music
Duration 75 Minutes
Cautions
- Alcohol
- Strong Language
- Mild Adult Themes

Media

“Buzzes with truth about the consequences of misunderstanding, the invisible but enormous gap between artists and their audiences, and the infernal beauty of vaudeville.” – The Stranger, Seattle

“The script—based on a true story about a traveling circus that, in 1916, stumbled into gory disaster in a muddy Tennessee town—is, like the best art, microscopically specific with echoes that radiate outward across time. It conjures a world with its own atmosphere and terrible internal logic. It's mesmerizing... symphonic in its emotional variations on a tragic theme. Elephant's Graveyard buzzes with truth about the consequences of misunderstanding, the invisible but enormous gap between artists and their audiences, and the infernal beauty of vaudeville.” – The Stranger, Seattle

“A theatrical masterpiece.” – Columbia City Paper

“The most striking production in the (NSDF) festival.” – Times of London

“Deeply moving...has the audience in stitches at the open and tears at the close.” – The Sun Coast

Music

Musical Style N/A (Not a musical)

Licensing & Materials

Minimum Fee: £70 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

Scripts

Available Formats:

Get the Script

Add-Ons

Take a look below at how you can enhance your show!

Authors

George Brant

George Brant’s plays include Grounded, Marie and Rosetta, Into the Breeches!, The Prince of Providence, Elephant’s Graveyard, The Land of Oz, Tender Age, The Mourners’ Bench, Any Other Name, Salvage and Grizzly Mama. An Affiliate Writer at the Playwrights’ Center, his scripts ...

View full profile

Elephant's Graveyard (Full-Length Version)