Plays/Readers Theatre
If you’ve already done the Famous Five- been there, done that- how about a Readers Theatre script about some other parts of our history?
I suggest Readers Theatre because it takes all the stress out of a dramatic presentation- no memorizing which means it’s not nearly as nerve wracking.
Earlier this year, eg, I was invited to an event at the Calgary Winter Club. “You’ll be surprised,” the organizer told me.
So I trotted off and lo and behold the members of a seniors group presented a piece of theatre I had written several years ago. In fact, I had almost forgotten it but here it was again. The female participants took it all very seriously. They rehearsed and then read their parts with gusto, they dressed up for the occasion, they brought their husbands and in the end, they/we had a wonderful time. It was a great success for both the audience and the participants.
One of the readers said to me after the performance, “It was like our school days when we took part in events, when we didn’t just sit and watch other people on television or on the stage. We’ll have to do it again, it was so much fun.” Another admitted she had been nervous about performing in front of an audience “just like I used to be in school. I made a few mistakes but it didn’t matter. We just had fun.” I was tickled pink. So were they. To be able to combine history with pleasure- like this group did- what could be better? That’s why I went home and resurrected various Readers Theatres that I had written through the years….and wrote some new ones as well.
They can be read by students to make an interesting program at school. They can be part of the local library’s programming or fund raising efforts. (Check with the Claresholm library- they’ve twice used these dialogues as Readers Theatre for library programs and both the audience and the players had a fine time.) They can be used by local historical societies to vary their programs. They can be used at monthly meetings for a bit of program, as described above. And so on.
Have fun with them.
The Famous Five
There are separate Readers Theatre pieces for each of the Famous Five women-
Emily Murphy, Nellie McClung, Irene Parlby, Louise McKinney and Henrietta Muir Edwards.
The scripts can simply be read before an audience or used in a classroom or used in the old fashioned way- by memorizing the lines and putting on a play. They are each about 15-20 minutes, depending on the one selected.
Contact Nancy Millar (403 547-3919) if you have questions. If you’d like a sample of the scripts, that can be sent along as well.
Famous Five: Fashion Show
There’s a script for a fashion show that features the Famous Five women.
Each woman comes out in an outfit suited to their personality and a moderator gushes over them…just as fashion show moderators do.
20 minutes total or so.
Christmas Dialogue
There’s also a Christmas dialogue that involves the Ladies Aid and a child who wouldn’t behave in church on Christmas Eve.
Also 20 minutes or so.
Contact Millar @403 547-3919.
Effects of Women's Underwear on the History of the West
There’s a dialogue about the effect of women’s underwear on the history of the west. Queen Victoria is one of the actors in that scenario.
Good opportunities for dressing up in this one.
It takes about 45 minutes. It’s ideal for museum programs, school theatre classes, history based events, women’s club programs.
Contact Nancy Millar for the text and more information @403 547-3919.
Women's History:Woman on the Edson Trail
There’s a larger collection of readings about women’s history that includes the tale of a woman on the Edson Trail, the woman who fiddled and sewed to keep the family together, the lonesome young school teacher, the mother who couldn’t stand to see her son go overseas to fight, the Ladies Aid and their ice cream at the picnic, Martha Bielish- the first woman from Alberta to be finally named to the Senate.
As for the cost of these scripts, that depends. If you make a ton of money from a production, the author should get an honorarium but if the scripts are to be used in school or for a good cause, there’s no charge. If you are using the readers theatre pieces to learn about the Famous Five at your monthly book club meeting, then no cost.
If you’re using them in school classes, no cost, but if you invite the parents and charge them, then there might be a stipend…although the author is most likely to say…Oh. never mind.
Call me at 403 547-3919 if you have any questions. I’m easy to get along with.