the little prince after the snakebite
TRANSCRIPT
The Little Prince after the snakebite
Theatrical play: written in collaboration, by pupils of D1 & D2 Primary Classes of Pentalofos. They used brainstorming and theatrical improvisation. The book, by Antoine de Saint Exupery, inspired them. Text Editing-‐translation in English: Maria Panousiadou Characters: Little Prince (8 pupils), Rose (4 pupils), Gardener, School Director, Fox, baobab, Clouds-‐feelings (3 pupils) Roses-‐emotions (9 pupils) Pilot (1 pupils) Star-‐Hope (1 pupil)
Scene I The little prince awakens on his planet after the snakebite. The planet is full of baobab and about to be destroyed. The little prince sees the planet and says happily: Little Prince 1: My Planet! (Looks around at the destruction and says with despair) My planet ... And my rose? Is she saved or lost forever? (Searches underneath the babobabs) No! Where can she be, my rose? She was here when I left. Baobab: Which rose are you looking for? Little Prince 1: That special, unique rose. My rose. Baobab: As our roots were growing, your rose was more and more weakened. Shortly before wither, a traveler from the earth uprooted it and took her with him. Little Prince 1: He took her with him to earth? I must to find her. If it’s necessary, I’ll go back to earth for my flower.
SCENE II The little prince travels to earth with migratory birds. As he approaches the earth, his feelings appear as clouds. Cloud-‐suspense: Will I find it? We must be reunited. Cloud-‐doubt: Did the big baobab envied my rose and lied to me? Maybe the traveller didn’t take her with him. Or maybe the baobabs uprooted her? Cloud-‐confidence: I will find my flower no matter what. I will never give up!
SCENE III
The little prince arrives in Pentalofos in the schoolyard. The school director leaves the office in a hurry and sees the little prince. School Director: What are you doing here? How did you get in? Little Prince 2: I am seeking my flower. School Director: There is no pupil-‐flower in this school. Here we only have children as pupils. Little Prince 2:You do not understand ... I am seeking my rose, my unique, my special rose! For a year I haven’t seen it, you must help me! School Director: The only flowers that we have, are planted by our gardener. Maybe he can help. There he is, in the rose-‐garden. Little Prince runs to the garden. He sees the gardener and he asks in anguish. Little Prince 2: Excuse me Sir have you seen my rose? Are you the traveler who took it from my planet? Gardener: What planet? What are you talking about child, I do not understand… Little Prince 2: In my planet I had a unique, a special rose. But I left a year ago and just left her all by herself. When I returned, the baobabs had covered the planet and my rose was gone ... The big baobab said that a traveler from the earth uprooted her and took her with him. Are you that traveler? Gardener: No my boy, I’m not. I am very sorry. Here I have many roses, if you want why not choose one of them? I would gladly offer it to you! Little Prince 2: None of these roses are like my rose. They are beautiful, but not special, because I did not take care or them, I did not share beautiful moments with them. No, I want back my rose. Gardener: Unfortunately, I cannot help you my child. I have to go now, but you can just sit in the garden for a while. Please reconsider. You might change your mind. (The gardener leaves the scene) The little prince kneels in front of roses and begins to cry: Rose-‐compassion: Little boy, do not cry I’ll start crying too. What happened to you? Little Prince 2: I lost my flower. It’s my fault; I shouldn’t go and leave her all alone. She was unprotected and vulnerable. And I never said to my flower how much I love her. Rose-‐jealousy: That’s enough with this rose! What does that she has that we haven’t got? I’ve had enough of this rose! Rose-‐arrogance: I am the most beautiful of all. Look my petals! Have you seen petals more beautiful than mine? I’m the one you should take with you. Little Prince 2: I love my flower so much! She was demanding and dandy, but with my rose I’ve leaved the most beautiful moments!
In the other half of the scene, we see the little prince with the flower on his planet. We see the happy moments they lived together. These are excerpts from the book. Rose 1: (yawns and stretches) Ah! I am scarcely awake. I beg that you will excuse me. My petals are still all disarranged . . . Little Prince 3: Oh! How beautiful you are! Rose 1: Am I not? And I was born at the same moment as the sun . . . Little Prince 3: What fragrance! The whole planet smells so nice! Rose 1: I think it's time for breakfast. Would you be kind enough to think of my needs? The Little Prince runs and brings cool refreshing water and waters the flower with the watering can. Then, he brings his chair next to the flower and they look at sunset together. Little Prince 3 and Rose 1: I love sunsets! Back in the school garden. Rose-‐admiration: Oh! You had such a wonderful time together! And you were bonded with such a great love! Rose-‐Loneliness: You must feel so alone away from your flower... Rose-‐fear: And you certainly do fear something bad happened, perhaps it withered and you will never see her again. Little Prince 3: I am very sad. I want to find her again! I promise that I will never leave her anymore. Rose-‐Anger: Why do you want her back, this rose? All she said was “I WANT, I WANT, I WANT...” She only made demands and offered nothing. It was a good decision to leave her, how much more to endure? In the other half of the scene we see the little prince with the flower on the planet. The Rose is capricious. These are excerpts from the book. Rose 2: (shows it’s 4 thorns to the little Prince) Let the tigers come with their claws!
Little Prince 4: There are no tigers on my planet. And, anyway, tigers do not eat weeds.
Rose 2: (answers sweetly) I am not a weed. Little Prince 4: Please excuse me... Rose 2: I am not at all afraid of tigers, but I have a horror of drafts. I suppose you wouldn't have a screen for me? Little Prince 4: (talks to himself) a horror of drafts--that is bad luck, for a plant. This flower is a very complex creature . . . Rose 2: At night I want you to put me under a glass globe. It is very cold where you live. In the place I came from… Little Prince 4: But you came as a seed. You could not have seen other worlds. Rose 2: (Embarrassed over having let herself be caught on the verge of such a naïve untruth, she coughed two or three times, in order to put the little prince in the wrong.) The screen?
Little Prince 4: I was just going to look for it but you started chatting! Rose 2(Coughs 3 times so that he should suffer from remorse just the same) Back in the school-‐garden.
Little Prince 5: I ought to have judged by deeds and not by words. She cast her fragrance and her radiance over me. I ought never to have run away from her . . . I ought to have guessed all the affection that lay behind her poor little stratagems. Flowers are so inconsistent! But I was too young to know how to love her . . . On the other half of the scene, we see the little prince with the flower on the planet. Played the parting moments. These are excerpts from the book. The little prince pulled up, with a certain sense of dejection, the last little shoots of the baobabs. He believed that he would never want to return. But on this last morning all these familiar tasks seemed very precious to him. And when he watered the flower for the last time, and prepared to place her under the shelter of her glass globe, he realized that he was very close to tears. Little Prince 6: Goodbye. Rose does not answer. Little Prince 6: Goodbye. Rose 3: (Coughs 3 times) I have been silly. I ask your forgiveness. Try to be happy . . . Little Prince 6: How come you don’t complain? How you can you keep so calm? Don’t you love me? Are we not friends anymore? Rose 3: But of course I love you, and certainly we are friends. You never understood and it’s my fault. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. But you were silly too. Try to be happy ... Take the screen away. I do not want it anymore. Little Prince 6: But the wind... Rose 3: My cold is not so bad as all that . . . The cool night air will do me good. I am a flower after all. Little Prince 6: Yes, but the animals... Rose 3: Well, I must endure the presence of two or three caterpillars if I wish to become acquainted with the butterflies. It seems that they are very beautiful. And if not the butterflies and the caterpillars, who will call upon me? You will be far away . . . As for the large animals… I am not at all afraid of any of them. I have my thorns. So go. Don’t just stand there go now! Back in the school-‐garden Little Prince 7: She did not want me to see her crying. She was a very proud flower. Rose-‐love: Trust your heart little Prince. Only then you will find your favorite flower. Little Prince 7: My heart is telling me to go back to my planet. If I stay here a little longer, my planet will be destroyed. And then I will have neither a flower nor a planet. Rose-‐optimism: Never forsake love! Surely in your planet you will find the answer. Song Love endures all And you're a morning flower, Something ephemeral that passes by, But it 's love that brings out the truth in everything. Your mistakes are big And your every mistake hurts,
But it 's love that brings out the truth in everything. Love does not know dirge, Love does not know beginnings and ends It beats like an invisible clock And the earth keeps on turning-‐ and the earth keeps on turning. Love endures all, Love is hopeful It gives life to the world And the earth keeps on turning-‐ and the earth keeps on turning. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y_lgHO8qcA The little prince returns to his planet with migratory birds. On the way he meets the pilot in his plane.
SCENE IV Pilot: Little Prince! Is it you? How I’ve missed you! Little Prince 5: Hello my pilot friend! I’ve missed you too! (They laugh with joy) Pilot: Come, I will take you to your planet with my plane. And I have another friend with me. Fox: My little prince, finally we meet again! Little Prince 5: My fox! My fox! Wait for me, I’m coming! The Little Prince gets on the plane and they disappear in the sky. Star-‐hope: When you keep hope alive, the truth will always appear.
SCENE V The Little Prince cleans the planet, removes baobabs and takes his chair and sits to see the sunset. Little Prince 8: I love sunsets. Especially when I'm sad. And now I'm sadder than ever. The rose garden in the schoolyard said that I would find the answer here. But I cannot find it. I lost my only friend on the planet. The only thing left is to remember our beautiful friendship. Little Prince remembered the fox and her words Fox: Here is my secret, a very simple secret: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. The time you wasted on your rose is what makes the rose so important. People have forgotten this truth. But you must not forget. You'll be forever responsible for those who have tamed. You are responsible for your rose ... The Little Prince starts crying. From the soil a rose begins to grow. Suddenly he sees his rose before him. Rose 4: My Dear Friend, you came back at last! But ... are you crying? Little Prince 8: My Rose! Is it really you? My dear friend, I thought I had lost you! Rose 4: My little Prince, I was right here and I waited patiently for you to come back. The baobabs gave me a hard time, they were jealous and wanted the whole planet to themselves.
Little Prince 8: You don’t need to worry anymore about anything. I pulled out the baobabs and cleaned the planet. Rose 4: How was your trip? What wonders did you see and hear? Tell me everything. Little Prince 8: I learned a lot! I made 2 new friends: a pilot and a fox. The pilot sends you a gift. Look! A sheep! But don’t worry; it’s not going to eat you, it has a muzzle. Little Prince and the rose continue talking. The choir sings Song Friendship is above all Friends are never separated They share beautiful moments Our Hearts beat as one and Laugh and overcome loneliness The day is bright When we are together The world feels like new And life is colorful When we are together https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4giFmRt_ZjU&index=2&list=PLvUCF9p58RoRCZWZiybe68dl3MpGfPmcn