Explore Eric’s modern dramas and comedies.
Some are published and can be accessed through Next Stage Press and Ghost Light Productions while samples of others can be found through New Play Exchange. Eric’s work can also be found at the Drama Book Shop in New York City.
Direct questions and production requests to the playwright via eric@ericmansfieldwrites.com.
TRIAL BY FIRE (6F/1M)
Georgia returns to teach Women’s Studies at her famed high school alma mater only to be put on “trial” for using books from the state’s new ‘banned’ list, but Ohio’s governor has met his match when five female students become activists hoping to save their teacher along with their access to critical information. (Themes: activism, misogyny, racism, access.). Read TRIAL BY FIRE.
CEMETERY CALLING (4M/2F)
Faith comes to grips with her father’s unexpected passing when she takes over his apartment next to a Cleveland cemetery where spirits from one of America’s most famous tragedies help her meet the dad she never knew.
(Themes: missing father, unresolved pain, questions of faith). Read CEMETERY CALLING.
EXECUTING EVE (5F/1M)
Eve faces a midnight hanging after being convicted of murder in 2034 Ohio, but as crowds gather to debate what some call the state’s barbaric new speedy-and-public execution policy, Eve uses her final hours to play the one card that might help save her life while setting the record straight on why she feels America failed her and millions of other women across the country.. (Themes: women’s rights, health care, death penalty, misogyny, racism, access.). Read TRIAL BY FIRE.
5-2, EYES OF BLUE (2M/2F)
Struggling to succeed as a stage actress because of her youthful looks and size, Cindy keeps her acting dreams alive by using her baby face for a different acting role — helping police, including the cop who might be the man of her dreams, to catch predators via an undercover sting operation.
(Themes: romantic-comedy overcoming physical limitations, forgiveness.) Read 5-2, EYES OF BLUE
BARON OF BROWN STREET (4M/2F)
(Inspired by true events) Winner: 2023 Jean Kennedy Smith National Playwriting Award (2nd Place) from Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C. Lenny King fights to regain the quiet life he once endured in a tent under the Brown Street Bridge after becoming an overnight celebrity by forgiving the punks who beat him and set him on fire outside his homeless encampment. (Themes: self-forgiveness, moral superiority, prejudice.). Read BARON OF BROWN STREET.
LOVE IN RESERVE (1F/1M)
Young Army wife Kate is pushed to the brink after learning of a deadly attack at her husband’s base camp in Iraq. While awaiting word of whether Ray is dead or alive, Kate spends the longest night of her life interacting with visions of the soldier who owns her heart while fearing the worst. (Themes: romantic love, marriage, loneliness, PTSD.). Read/Order LOVE IN RESERVE. (Also available at DRAMA BOOK SHOP, New York City.)
WHITESVILLE (4M/2F)
As a mixed-race police family, the Claytons have always been able to close ranks when times got tough, but when George Floyd is killed under a police officer’s knee, family members find themselves face-to-face in city protests and at home. (Themes: racism, family secrets, adoption.). Read/Order WHITESVILLE.
HOME MOVIE (4M/1F)
What begins as comedic laughs when the Porter family’s adult children discover an old VHS recording of their parents turns serious and confrontational when that tape reveals a deep family secret forcing siblings to take sides on whether to keep the secret or go public and change their family forever. (Themes: family secret, betrayal, sibling rivalries.). Read HOME MOVIE.
THE CONFESSION (1F/1M)
Seasoned detective Joan Banks senses something isn’t right when an admitted thief confesses on his 18th birthday to a violent crime. (Themes: missing father, childhood trauma, mystery.). Read THE CONFESSION.
WITNESSES TO THE EXECUTION (2F/2M)
After witnessing a lethal injection, three new reporters gather an all-night dinner to process what they saw and debate whether the death penalty provides justice or just more pain. (Themes: death penalty, justice, trauma.). Read WITNESSES TO THE EXECUTION.
THE BOARD (3M)
When a new West Point graduate visiting NYC wanders into a conversation between two veterans playing chess in the park, he gets a life lesson that he wasn’t expecting and that might just keep him — and his fellow soldiers — alive. (Themes: Prejudice, Generations). Read THE BOARD.
LOCKDOWN (4F/2M)
Two students, two teachers, a counselor, and a parent who are hiding together during a crisis must own their prejudices about the student they assume is a ticking time bomb (Themes: prejudice, bullying.). Read LOCKDOWN.
| 2025 Productions | ||
| TRIAL BY FIRE | Kent State University, Kent, Ohio | Feb. 7-9 |
| EXECUTING EVE | Convergence-Continuum (Cleveland) | Feb. 13-22 |
| 5-2, EYES OF BLUE | Stow Players Inc., Stow, Ohio | March 1 |
| 2024 Productions | ||
| TRIAL BY FIRE | Firestone High School (Akron School of the Arts) | Jan. 18-26 |
| WHITESVILLE | Open Door Playhouse, Los Angeles | Feb. 13-15 |
| CEMETERY CALLING | Convergence-Continuum (Cleveland) | Feb. 22-24 |
| WITNESSES TO THE EXECUTION | VETREP Theatre (Cornwall, New York) | April 6-27 |
| BARON OF BROWN STREET | Lakeland Community College (Kirtland, OH) | April 29-May 1 |
| DO SOMETHING | Tipping Point Theatre (Columbus, Ohio) | May 17-26 |
| 2023 Productions | ||
| HOME MOVIE | Convergence-Continuum (Cleveland) | Feb. 21-23 |
| BARON OF BROWN STREET | Rubber City Theatre (AEA), Akron, OH | Sept. 8-16 |
| RACTORS (Based on the play, “Date Night”) | Short Film produced by “Devil’s Stew” | Fall |
| THE BLACK DRESS | Playground Experiment Faces of America, New York City | Nov. 18 |
| 2022 Productions | ||
| THE CONFESSION | Convergence-Continuum (Cleveland) | Feb. 20-22 |
| WHITESVILLE | Millennial Theatre Project, Akron Civic Theatre | Mar. 30-April 1 |
| WITNESSES TO THE EXECUTION | SUNY Brockport, Brockport, NY | Oct. 20-29 |
| THE BOARD | Gather by the Ghost Light (Podcast) | Nov. 10 |
| 2021 Productions | ||
| LOVE IN RESERVE | Rubber City Theatre (AEA), Akron, OH | Nov. 5-20 |
| THE BOARD | Salem State University, Salem, MA | Nov. 18-20 |