The (Not-So) Grimm Fairy Tale

 by Kevin M Reese

Performance Length: 30 Minutes. Recommended for Ages 7-10

History:
The Not-So-Grimm Fairy Tale was first presented by the Wichita Children's Theatre Professional Touring Company. It opened February 27, 1995 and played for nine performances, touring the Wichita Public Schools. It was directed by Kevin Reese.

Characters:
Narrator -- Modern day clothes. Great rapport with kids. (M or F)
Little Red Riding Hood -- Typical Little Red-- with an attitude. (F)
Pigs - Same actor plays all three pigs from 3 LITTLE PIGS. (M or F)
Wolf -- Typical wolf from LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD and 3 LITTLE PIGS (M or F)
Rocky -- Modern-day Tough Guy. Leather jacket, biker boots, etc. Be careful that he wears nothing that can be confused as being gang apparel. (M)

Original Cast: 5-- 3 Men, 2 Women.

Little Red Riding Hood, the Three Little Pigs, the Big Bad Wolf, and one contemporary Tough Guy/Bully are brought together by a storyteller (Narrator) to discuss their stories and the influence/necessity of violence. The audience helps show Rocky, the Tough Guy, that violence doesn't have to be his first choice to solve problems. LOTS of participation and problem solving for the audience.

The Storyteller reads the original, violent version of two fairy tales (Little Red and 3 Little Pigs, ) from the storybook and Rocky raves about its effectiveness. The fairy tale characters then relate the alternate, non-violent version (of course Rocky chides the weak, sissy change) and is backed up by the audience as being an effective alternative. Rocky tells us how violence is the ONLY solution to the situations HE encounters. The audience suggests alternative solutions to his story and Rocky is ultimately given confidence that he can react to life differently, in a non-violent way.

THEME: "Non-violence"

SONGS:
#1 Once Upon a Time - Narrator
#2 Violence Rap - Little Red, Pig, & Wolf
#3 Life's Too Short - All
#4 You Gotta Work It Out - All
#5 Squash It! - All

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