About Us

Contemporary Drama Service, a division of Meriwether Publishing Ltd., was founded in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois, by television writer-producer Arthur L. Zapel. The company relocated its headquarters to Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 1983. The founder of the family-owned corporation is now Chairman of the Board. The President is his eldest son, Mark Zapel, and the Vice President is Arthur's second son, Theodore O. Zapel.

Over the last forty years, Contemporary Drama Service has published over 1,600 plays and musicals and has over 150 theatre books in print. The company has become one of the nation's leading publishers of theatre and drama resources.

Known early on as "the house of comedy" with a license to sell scripts from The Carol Burnett Show and Saturday Night Live, the company has grown to be one of the nation's leading publishers of: one-act and full-length comedies, musicals, comedy revues, monologues, "whodunits," TV show parodies, adaptations of classics, readers theatre, clown and mime resources, plays for young audiences, melodramas, prevention plays and comedy sketches for all age groups.

Contemporary Drama Service created the playkit concept for all their one-act plays. Playkits include scripts for all performers (or script reproduction rights) and include performance rights at one location, for one affordable price (see FAQs).

Contemporary Drama Service offers the finest works of nationally and internationally known playwrights and musical composer/lyricists at a price affordable to schools and churches. New plays and musicals are published on a continuing basis to fit every producer's contemporary needs.

Contemporary Drama Service provides friendly and knowledgeable customer service during normal business hours. All orders are processed promptly and efficiently.