About the Book:

Despite popular consensus, life doesn't end at thirty-five-to the contrary, it grows infinitely more interesting. In Later Chapters: The Best Monologues and Scenes for Actors Over Fifty, award-winning screenwriter and playwright Diana Amsterdam sets out a dramaturgical map of the oft-ignored territory that comprises a veteran performer's life.

Rather than indulging in the trite, stereotypical musings of eccentric, cutesy, moribund, or otherwise hackneyed characters, Later Chapters portrays exciting and vibrant scenarios from the romantic, professional, and sexual lives of its diverse subjects. Playwright and editor Diana Amsterdam has collected a nice selection of twenty-two monologues (ten for men, twelve for women) and twenty-four scenes (for two or three people with a wide variety of ages and relationships but each including either a man or woman over fifty). Each piece includes a very brief character description and circumstance set-up. The resulting volume explores their trials and triumphs with equanimity, from the thrills of marriage, the rediscovery of sex, and loss of employment to the challenges maturing bodies face, the memories they treasure, and the myriad complicating circumstances that mold the beautiful tribunal we call life.

Never before compiled in a single volume, these moving and unusual pieces by 44 different playwrights are an invaluable source of both quality audition material and personal inspiration. Written by dramatists at the peak of their talent, they reflect best playwrights' best work-in fact, readers are encouraged to seek out and stage full versions of featured plays that speak to them.

Whether you're a young performer eager to expand your range or a seasoned professional seeking a mirror in a world full of windows, Later Chapters is guaranteed to lift your spirits and up your game.

What people say:

"Every actor knows the importance of finding pieces that can show emotional range in a very short time. Prepare a monologue, they say, one or two minutes in length. And don't use anything from the play we're casting but make sure it will show us how right you are for this role, they say. But when you are an actor over fifty, it isn't easy to find a great many scenes or monologues that will be suitable for many different auditions. And it would be nice to have something fresh that the casting agent or director hasn't seen a thousand times before. This is a targeted collection of fresh material for actors over fifty." — San Francisco Book Review

About the Author:

Diana Amsterdam is a New York based playwright and screenwriter. She maintains an active practice as script coach, script doctor and dramaturg. Her plays have been produced in New York, London, Berlin, Montreal, Los Angeles and many American cities and been reviewed by the New York Times and Washington Post.