Short, Sharp & Snappy 1 and 2 are two volumes of Southern African plays for high schools, published simultaneously by Junkets Publisher. ‘Plays are there to be performed.’ These are the first words in the book, and they spell out the intention, the promise and the fulfilment of this collection of 13 new plays. They should be played by young people in high schools in Southern Africa. The themes, the styles, the plays are often raw, gritty, even uncomfortable. Whether worked through in fierce realism, or played out in jaunty comedy, or handled through images more abstract and symbolic, these are plays for young actors to get their teeth into, and – above all else – find the reality, the truthfulness, of these scattered shards of life lived at this time in this place. The playwrights range from experienced writers for the stage to those for whom this is their first play; in age they range from 16 to 76; they come from a wide spread of places in Southern Africa, from Kwekwe to Simon’s Town and from Olievenhoutbosch to Schoenmakerskop.