In Alchemy Alive: Twelve Screen and Stage Plays, Peter Freeman transforms his acclaimed short stories from Elements: Thirteen Stories into compelling scripts for screen and stage. Organized around the four classical elements-Fire, Air, Earth, and Water-this collection brings twelve vivid narratives to life in dramatic form.
Each script captures the emotional depth, social insight, and human complexity of the original stories while adapting them for visual and performative storytelling. From time travel and political intrigue to personal redemption and environmental protest, these plays span genres and settings but share a core commitment to exploring courage, connection, and transformation.
FIRE
- Teasing Out Time - Skateboard punks grapple with the paradoxes of time travel.
- Political Persuasion - A jailed activist must navigate an uneasy alliance with a murderer.
- That Uncle of Mine - A boy confronts both fear and family dynamics with the help of a giant rat.
AIR
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Hidden Message - A refugee's desperate quest across continents becomes a story of love and hope.
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Permission - In the #MeToo era, a man searches for redemption for past harm.
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Biblical Bytes - After abuse by a priest, a boy finds justice inside a divine video game.
EARTH
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Switch - A professor's planned tryst is disrupted by unexpected presence-and conscience.
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Shelter - Three stranded mountaineers confront hierarchy and survival in a snowbound hut.
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Decision - A woman confides in her friends after discovering she's unexpectedly pregnant.
WATER
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Surf's Up! - A middle-aged man reflects on life and mortality while waiting for his doctor.
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Another Lousy Day in Paradise - Virtual reality and nostalgia collide in an unsettling way.
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Water - Salt Springers unite to fight corporate greed and preserve their island's soul.
Written with warmth, insight, and cinematic flair, Alchemy Alive invites readers, actors, and directors alike to explore the universal elements that shape our lives.
