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JESSIE JONES |
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Nationality: n/a Email: Click here to contact Website: Click here to visit |
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Literary Agent: n/a |
Jessie Jones co-authored the award-winning play, DEARLY DEPARTED, and its feature film adaptation, "Kingdom Come," which was released by Fox Searchlight Films. Her short stories have been published in literary journals and she has written for television sitcoms and an animated series for Walt Disney Productions. As an actor, Jessie has appeared onstage in New York and in regional theatres as well as in television and film.
Plays by Jessie Jones
Christmas Belles | ||
| 1st Produced: | Asheville, NC | 2006 | ||||
Company: | ACT | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2007 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2190-6 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #68798 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Southern Comedy Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 4 | Female | 7 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | t's Christmas time in the small town of Fayo, Texas, and the Futrell Sisters - Frankie, Twink and Honey Raye - are not exactly in a festive mood. A cranky Frankie is weeks overdue with her second set of twins. Twink, recently jilted and bitter about it, is in jail for inadvertently burning down half the town. And hot-flash-suffering Honey Raye is desperately trying to keep the Tabernacle of the Lambs Christmas Program from spiraling into chaos. But things are not looking too promising: Miss Geneva, the ousted director of the previous twenty-seven productions, is ruthless in her attempts to take over the show. The celebrity guest Santa Claus played by Frankies long-suffering husband, Dub is passing a kidney stone. One of the shepherds refuses to watch over his flock by night without pulling his little red wagon behind him. And the entire cast is dropping like flies due to food poisoning from the Band Boosters Pancake Supper. And when Frankie lets slip a family secret that has been carefully guarded for decades, all hope for a successful Christmas pro-gram seems lost, even with an Elvis impersonator at the manger. But in true Futrelle fashion, the feuding sisters find a way to pull together in order to present a Christmas program the citizens of Fayro will never forget. Their hilarious holiday journey through a misadventure-filled Christmas Eve is guaranteed to bring joy to your world! | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Dashing Through The Snow | ||
| 1st Produced: | The Historic Hoosier Theatre, Vevay, IN | 2010 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2011 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2482-2 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #126271 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Southern Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 6 | ||
Parts other: | doubling | |||||
Notes: | Written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | It's four days before Christmas in the tiny town of Tinsel, Texas, and a colorful parade of eccentric guests arrive at the Snowflake Inn and deck the halls with holiday hilarity. Trina, the harried yet upbeat innkeeper of this B&B, has more than she can handle coping with these nuttier-than-a-fruitcake lodgers. Hoyt and his sister, Donna Jo, make the mistake of trying to end a thirty-year feud between their curmudgeonly aunts, Ennis and Della, with sidesplitting results. Ainsley and Lenora, self-involved actors from a lower-than-low-budget touring production of A Christmas Carol, descend on the Inn to fulfill a promise, leaving comedic chaos in their wake. Add to this Yuletide mayhem an ill-advised romantic rendezvous between Mrs. Claus and one of Santa's elves, a demanding guest who refuses to leave, not to mention a tipsy housekeeper, and it's clear it will take more than a kiss under the mistletoe to keep Trina's spirits merry and bright. But a spur of the moment Christmas Eve wedding that brings together the fabulous Futrelle sisters - Honey Raye, Twink, Frankie and Rhonda Lynn - and their best friend, Raynerd, takes a surprising and delightful turn that leads to a laugh-'til-your-sides-ache climax, changing all their lives forever. You'll swear this family-friendly Jones/Hope/Wooten Christmas comedy is more fun than a joyride in a one horse open sleigh! | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Dearly Beloved | ||
| 1st Produced: | Asheville, NC | 2005 | ||||
Company: | ACT | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2006 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2119-7 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #55316 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Southern Comedy Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 4 | Female | 7 | ||
Parts other: | doubling | |||||
Notes: | written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | The Futrelle Sisters, Frankie, Honey Raye and Twink, are throwing a wedding. Frankie has almost made herself sick with elaborate preparations for her daughter Tina Jo's antebellum-inspired wedding, and the rumor mill in their small town of Fayro, Texas, is working overtime. No surprise there, the Futrelle Sisters have never been strangers to gossip. After all, they did survive the scandalous breakup of their almost-famous gospel singing trio, The Sermonettes. But Twink's desperate attempts to get her boyfriend of fifteen-and-one-half years down the aisle, Frankie's ongoing conversations with their dead mother, and Honey Raye's tendency to race to the altar at every opportunity have kept tongues wagging for years. In spite of her own marital problems, Frankie has held steadfastly to the hope that she can pull off one final Futrelle occasion with elegance and style with the help of the cantankerous wedding coordinator, Miss Geneva, who runs the local floral shop/bus depot. But on the day of the nuptials, Frankie's hope begins to dim when she discovers Twink's alternative solution to an expensive catered wedding dinner is a potluck supper sponsored by Clovis Sanford's House of Meat. When the prodigal Honey Raye arrives at the church in skintight gold lame, consumed by hot flashes and a steely determination to right old family wrongs, Frankie's hope is shaken. It is lost completely when word reaches the church that Tina Jo and her fiance have fled Fayro and eloped. The sisters ultimately pull together to find ways to keep the unsuspecting guests in the pews while a highway patrolman races off to track down the runaway bride and groom. As a last resort, and to the delight of the citizenry of Fayro, Texas, The Sermonettes reunite and sing again. | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Dearly Departed | ||
| 1st Produced: | Second Stage Theatre, New York City, NY | 1991 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 1992 | ISBN/ASIN: | - | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #18387 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 4 | Female | 6 | ||
Parts other: | doubling | |||||
Notes: | written by Jessie Jones and David Bottrell | |||||
Synopsis: | In the Baptist backwoods of the Bible Belt, the beleaguered Turpin family proves that living and dying in the South are seldom tidy and always hilarious. Despite their earnest efforts to pull themselves together for their father's funeral, the Turpin's other problems keep overshadowing the solemn occasion: Firstborn Ray-Bud drinks himself silly as the funeral bills mount; Junior, the younger son, is juggling financial ruin, a pack of no-neck monster kids, and a wife who suspects him of infidelity in the family car; their spinster sister, Delightful, copes with death as she does life, by devouring junk food; and all the neighbors add more than two cents. As the situation becomes fraught with mishap, Ray-Bud says to his long-suffering wife, "When I die, don't tell nobody. Just bury me in the backyard and tell everybody I left you." Amidst the chaos, the Turpins turn for comfort to their friends and neighbors, an eccentric community of misfits who just manage to pull together and help each other through their ho | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Dixie Swim Club, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | Wilson, NC | 2007 | ||||
Company: | Playhouse of Wilson | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2008 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2265-1 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #83893 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Southern Comedy Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | - | Female | 5 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | Five Southern women, whose friendships began many years ago on their college swim team, set aside a long weekend every August to recharge those relationships. Free from husbands, kids and jobs, they meet at the same beach cottage on North Carolina's Outer Banks to catch up, laugh and meddle in each other's lives. "The Dixie Swim Club" focuses on four of those weekends and spans a period of thirty-three years. Sheree, the spunky team captain, desperately tries to maintain her organized and 'perfect' life, and continues to be the group's leader. Dinah, the wise-cracking overachiever, is a career dynamo. But her victories in the courtroom are in stark contrast to the frustrations of her personal life. Lexie, pampered and outspoken, is determined to hold on to her looks and youth as long as possible. She enjoys being married - over and over and over again. The self-deprecating and acerbic Vernadette, acutely aware of the dark cloud that hovers over her life, has decided to just give in and embrace the chaos. And sweet, eager-to-please Jeri Neal experiences a late entry into motherhood that takes them all by surprise. As their lives unfold and the years pass, these women increasingly rely on one another, through advice and raucous repartee, to get through the challenges (men, sex, marriage, parenting, divorce, aging) that life flings at them. And when fate throws a wrench into one of their lives in the second act, these friends, proving the enduring power of 'teamwork', rally 'round their own with the strength and love that takes this comedy in a poignant and surprising direction. "The Dixie Swim Club" is the story of these five unforgettable women - a hilarious and touching comedy about friendships that last forever. . . | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Hallelujah Girls, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | The Abbeville Opera House, Abbeville, SC | 2009 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2009 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2378-8 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #95852 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Southern Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 6 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | Written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | Hilarity abounds when the feisty females of Eden Falls, Georgia, decide to shake up their lives. The action in this rollicking Southern comedy takes place in SPA-DEE-DAH!, the abandoned church-turned day spa where this group of friends gathers every Friday afternoon. After the loss of a dear friend, the women realize time is precious and if they're going to change their lives and achieve their dreams they have to get on it now! But Sugar Lee, their high-spirited, determined leader, has her hands full keeping the women motivated. Carlene's given up on romance, having buried three husbands. Nita's a nervous wreck from running interference between her problematic son and his probation officer. Mavis' marriage is so stagnant she's wondering how she can fake her own death to get out of it. And sweet, simple Crystal entertains them all, singing Christmas carols with her own, hilarious lyrics. The comic tension mounts when a sexy, ex-boyfriend shows up unexpectedly, a marriage proposal comes from an unlikely suitor and Sugar Lee's arch rival vows she'll stop at nothing to steal the spa away from her. By the time the women rally together to overcome these obstacles and launch their new, improved lives, you've got a side-splitting, joyful comedy that will make you laugh out loud and shout "Halleujah!" | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Mama Won't Fly | ||
| 1st Produced: | The Historic Crighton Theatre, Conroe, Texas | 09 Sep 2011 | ||||
Company: | Stage Right | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2012 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2555-3 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #137766 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 6 | ||
Parts other: | doubling | |||||
Notes: | written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | An outrageously hilarious race against the clock begins when Savannah Sprunt Fairchild Honeycutt agrees to get her feisty mother all the way from Alabama to California in time for her brother's wedding. Savannah's problem: Mama won't fly. With only four days to make it to the ceremony, this determined daughter has no choice but to drive cross-country with her equally willful mother, Norleen Sprunt, in Mama's vintage sedan. As Savannah steels herself for this hastily conceived road trip, another outrageous complication arises: the bubbly, over-eager bride-to-be arrives unannounced. Hayley Quinn, delighted to finally meet her future in-laws, is convinced that travelling together to her wedding is the perfect way to bond. The folly of her decision quickly becomes apparent when the journey begins and comedic chaos ensues. Every conceivableand inconceivablemishap that can occur does, including the theft of their car and all their clothes, a near-fatal encounter at an underwear museum, the accidental homicide of an ancient Texas relative, a mad dash across the desert in a hijacked eighteen-wheeler and a riotous detour to Vegas that ends in a brawl with an ordained showgirl/minister. As the misadventures multiply, the beleaguered trio rapidly develops the urge to ditch each other anywhere along the way. Eventually the race to get to the church on time takes its toll and the overwhelmed bride calls off the wedding. Rising above their age-old mother-daughter issues, Norleen and Savannah work together to get the nuptials back on track. In a surprising and heartwarming resolution, they forge an exciting new path for their own relationship and welcome Hayley into their delightfully wacky family. This ferociously funny, family-friendly Jones-Hope-Wooten comedy will have you laughing your way across the country and all the way down the aisle! | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Red Velvet Cake War, The | ||
| 1st Produced: | Johnson City Community Theatre, Johnson City, TN | 2010 | ||||
Company: | n/a | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, Inc. NY (2011) | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2482-2 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #124125 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 3 | Female | 7 | ||
Parts other: | doubling | |||||
Notes: | written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | In this riotously funny Southern-fried comedy, the three Verdeen cousins Gaynelle, Peaches and Jimmie Wyvette could not have picked a worse time to throw their family reunion. Their outrageous antics have delighted local gossips in the small town of Sweetgum (just down the road from Fayro) and the eyes of Texas are upon them, as their self-righteous Aunt LaMerle is quick to point out. Having accidentally crashed her minivan through the bedroom wall of her husband's girlfriend's doublewide, Gaynelle is one frazzled nerve away from a spectacular meltdown. Peaches, a saucy firebrand and the number one mortuarial cosmetologist in the tri-county area, is struggling to decide if it's time to have her long-absent trucker husband declared dead. And Jimmie Wyvette, the rough-around-the-edges store manager of Whatley's Western Wear, is resorting to extreme measures to outmaneuver a priss-pot neighbor for the affections of Sweetgum's newest widower. But the cousins can't back out of the reunion now. It's on and Gaynelle's hosting it; Peaches and Jimmie Wyvette have decided its success is the perfect way to prove Gaynelle's sanity to a skeptical court-appointed psychologist. Unfortunately, they face an uphill battle as a parade of wildly eccentric Verdeens gathers on the hottest day of July, smack-dab in the middle of Texas tornado season. Things spin hilariously out of control when a neighbor's pet devours everything edible, a one-eyed suitor shows up to declare his love and a jaw-dropping high-stakes wager is made on who bakes the best red velvet cake. As this fast-paced romp barrels toward its uproarious climax, you'll wish your own family reunions were this much fun! | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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Southern Hospitality | ||
| 1st Produced: | Asheville, NC | 2007 | ||||
Company: | ACT | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2008 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2303-0 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #83890 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Southern Comedy Comedy | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 5 | Female | 8 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | The Futrelle Sisters Frankie, Twink, Honey Raye and Rhonda Lynn are in trouble again. This time, the problem is bigger than ever: their beloved hometown, Fayro, Texas, is in danger of disappearing and it's up to the sisters to save it from extinction. Ever since the Super SmartMart and the rendering plant closed, folks have been leaving Fayro in droves, but Honey Raye, with a major assist from her former nemesis, Geneva Musgrave, has come up with a possible solution. It seems a salsa manufacturing factory is looking to relocate and a company representative is headed to Fayro on a scouting mission. Honey Raye, as the president of the Chamber of Commerce, makes promises that are not to be believed in order to woo the rep to choose Fayro. In fact, Honey Raye has told them that on the very weekend of the rep's visit, the town just happens to be having their biggest celebration of the year: "Fayro Days", which includes a craft show, a pet costume parade, a beauty pageant and a huge Civil War battle reenactment. So now it's up to the citizens of Fayro to quickly make her promises a reality. The biggest hurdle to impressing the salsa representative is staging a Civil War battle reenactment with only fifteen participants. Added to this is the dilemma of Twink being so desperate to get married that she's practically dragging the unwilling groom, Deputy John Curtis Buntner, to the altar. But this pales next to the financial problems the preacher and his wife are having - unless you don't consider gambling away your mobile home a problem. Frankie, however, seems to have it worst of all, what with her husband, Dub, going through a major mid-life crisis at the same time her five-year-old twins are literally tearing up the town. And unfortunately for all of them, the 'meanest woman in twelve counties', Dub's wicked, old Aunt Iney, is on her way for a visit. Iney's arrival in Fayro is definitely cause for alarm for the sisters; but it's nothing compared to their panic when the old girl drops dead in the Dubberly home just before the salsa rep shows up. But how the Futrelle sisters and the other citizens of Fayro, including sweet, simple, Raynerd Chisum, pull together and save their town is a testament to Southern strength and ingenuity - and a recipe for total hilarity. A laugh-out-loud farce and a stand-alone play in its own right, SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY is the third play in the trilogy that began with DEARLY BELOVED and continued with CHRISTMAS BELLES | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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'Til Beth Do Us Part | ||
| 1st Produced: | Asheville, NC | 2009 | ||||
Company: | ACT | |||||
| 1st Published: | Dramatists Play Service, NY, 2009 | ISBN/ASIN: | 978-0-8222-2377-1 | |||
| Music: | - | doollee no | #95853 | |||
To Buy This Play: | If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies | |||||
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Genre: | Farce | |||||
| Parts: | Male | 2 | Female | 4 | ||
Parts other: | - | |||||
Notes: | Written by Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten | |||||
Synopsis: | With a super-charged career demanding most of her attention and energy, Suzannah Hayden needs a lot more help on the home front than she's getting from her husband, Gibby. Lately, nurturing his marriage of twenty-seven years hasn't been the highest priority for Gibby, but pretty soon he'll wish it had been. Enter Beth Bailey, Suzannah's newly-hired assistant, a gregarious, highly-motivated daughter of the South. To Suzannah's delight, Beth explodes into the Hayden household and whips it into an organized, well-run machine. This couldn't have happened at a better time for Suzannah, since her boss, Celia Carmichael, the C.E.O. of Carmichael's Chocolates, is flying in soon for an important make-or-break business dinner. Gibby grows increasingly wary as Beth insinuates herself into more and more aspects of their lives. As Suzannah's dependence on Beth grows and Gibby's dislike of the woman deepens, Suzannah gives Beth carte blanche to change anything in the household that "will make it run more efficiently." And the change Beth makes is convincing Suzannah that Gibby must go! When he realizes it's Suzannah's career Beth is really after, a newly-determined Gibby sets out to save his marriage aided by Suzannah's best friend, Margo, a wise-cracking and self-deprecating divorcee and her ex-husband, Hank, who is in the midst of his own mid-life crisis. Their efforts to stop Beth at any cost sets up the wildly-funny climax in which things go uproariously awry just as Suzannah's boss arrives for that all-important dinner. Whether you're married, single, rethinking your divorce or currently being controlled by someone up to no good, you're sure to enjoy this brand new laugh-out-loud Jones Hope Wooten Comedy! | |||||
Further Reference: | - | |||||
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