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THE PRINCE By George Halitzka The Frog Prince 2
CAST OF CHARACTERS, who lives on a lily pad outside the palace, a snobby teenager, father to the princess SETTING The Royal Palace and a nearby pond on a warm summer day. DEDICATION This one is for Joie she knows why. The Frog Prince 3
THE PRINCE (The enters, speaking into his cell phone.) Hi, I d like to order a large pizza for delivery.... Two toppings? Flies and spiders, please.... Yeah, this is Rupert J. Bullfrogg, second lily pad from the corner of... Whattayamean, you only serve my kind on a plate? Frog legs are murder, lady! (He angrily flips his phone shut. The enters carrying a ball and wearing a tiara. When she sees the, she immediately begins complaining.) Eewwww... I m telling Daddy there s a nasty frog in my pond again! Hey, what have I ever done to you? You re disgusting! I don t want ugly things in my pretty pond. Ugly is only skin deep. I m a nice frog: I eat flies, croak merrily at night I wish you d croak Ohh, just because you re a Princess I can get anything I want. And that means you out of my pond! I m gonna play with my pretty ball over here where I can t see you. Yeah? I hope you get warts! Nobody knows the trouble I ve seen, Nobody knows my sorrow... (The pointedly turns her back on the. He sighs and begins to sing loudly and off-key.) The Frog Prince 4
(The throws up her ball and catches it, going higher each time. After a few throws, she finally gets fed up at the S singing and throws the ball at him! But she misses, and it flies offstage into the pond. ) Oh, Mr. Froggy... nice, kind Froggy... Could you get my ball out of the pond? Hmm, let me think about that... HA! HA! My Daddy will turn you into frog sushi! Sticks and stones may break my bones Pleeeeaase? Pretty please with sugar on top? You haven t been a very nice princess lately I didn t mean it and I m really sorry. Pleeeeaase get my ball? Well... since you apologized Thank you, Froggy! Um, would you mind rinsing it off? (The retrieves the ball and brings it to the.) It was just in the water But then you touched it, and you re gross. The Frog Prince 5
Okay, that s it (winding up to pitch the ball back into the pond) I just asked you to rinse it Maybe I ll turn it into a lily pad Pleeeeaase can I have my ball? I ll do whatever you want Whatever? Within reason Then I want to go the palace with you, and eat from your plate, and sleep on your pillow, and get a big good-night smooch! The frog thinks he s a comedian No smoochie, no ballie! (sighing) Okay, fine whatever... So you ll do it? Sure. Then here s your ball. (The hands her the ball.) The Frog Prince 6
Thanks, Froggy I mean, sucker! (She runs offstage. The calls after her.) We had a deal! (shaking his head) Never trust a princess. I guess I ll have to do this the hard way. (The leaps across the stage and knocks at an imaginary door.) (disembodied voice; strong echo effect) Who dares darken the door of the King s Palace? Hi, Your Majesty. It s me, down here Rupert J. Bullfrogg. And what boon do you seek from His Majesty? Well, I made a deal with your daughter. The snotty one who insults frogs? Teenagers. Can t live with em, can t live without em. She promised that if I got her ball out of the water, I could live in the palace and eat from her plate and sleep on her pillow and get a big good-night smooch. Then she took off and left me up the pond without a paddle. (thundering) My daughter? Princess, get your royal booty in here! (running onstage she s been listening in) But Daddy, that thing is gross Did you make a promise to this frog? The Frog Prince 7
I didn t mean it No daughter of mine makes empty promises! But Daddy Don t But Daddy me! You take this frog to the royal kitchen right now and feed him from your plate or you can forget going to the ball this weekend! That s not fair! He s ugly Ugly is only skin deep. (tantrum) I don t wanna I don t wanna! NOW! (thundering) All right, Gross Frog... come with me. (The takes the over to a small table. She plops a plate of food in front of him rudely.) Here. (The begins eating sloppily from the plate.) Mmm... better than flies! Aren t you having any? I m not hungry. (pouting) The Frog Prince 8
Okay, more for me! (The eats some more, then wipes his mouth on his sleeve.) Now where s this princess pillow of yours? I can t wait to try it out! (The slams a pillow onto the table.) Here. (laying his head on it) Ahhhh... thanks; I ll try not get too much pond scum on it. Could be hard when you are pond scum. Now, Princess... Anything else before bed, Your Grossness? Just my good-night smooch. No way! You promised I told you, I didn t mean it So the princess is a liar? No, I just hate gross things The Frog Prince 9
Should I get Daddy? Go ahead! He won t make me do Frog Kiss Torture! Oh, your Majesty... No, don t tell (calling off) Then I get my smoochie? (The takes a moment to weigh her options.) If you give me warts, I ll see you on a plate! Rrrrribbit! Pucker up, baby! Eewwww... (The gives the a big dip-kiss. As they dip, she pulls off his frog mask, and he s human again.) Did it work? (The spits and wretches with her back turned to the.) I m gonna be sick Princess, look at me! Did it work? I m PU! Is that what you wanted, you slimy little The Frog Prince 10
(She turns to see the without the mask now, he s handsome!) Hello you re cute! Hallelujah, it worked! Where did you come from? I m the frog! No, seriously (cont d) I was a prince until this evil witch put a spell on me He s a prince; I think I m in love And it could only be broken if somebody kissed my frog puss. Are you serious? Do frogs like flies? Then I have to introduce you to Daddy! And we ll dance at the ball, and fall in love, and send out wedding invitations, and Whoa! Slow down, Princess You re a prince, right? Yeah The Frog Prince 11
And I broke your spell, right? Sure So what s left besides Happily Ever After? How do I know you mean it? What? Happily Ever After. What if you run off with another frog? As long as you re hot, we re good You didn t take me to the palace when you promised Of course not you were disgusting! Well... I can t trust somebody who s only nice to get what she wants. But I didn t know you were cute! (The shakes his head and sighs.) Princess, ugly is only skin deep. You sound like Daddy. But kindness? That lasts forever. The Frog Prince 12
( flashes him the whatever sign.) Seeya around the pond, Princess. Wait what about the Royal Ball? (cont d) This was much easier when you were gross! (singing dejectedly) Nobody knows the troubles I ve seen, Nobody knows my sorrows... (The exits. The calls after him ) (Blackout.) THIS IS A SAMPLE SCRIPT. It is provided for personal reading and evaluation purposes only. You may not perform this play until you have purchased a licensed copy of the script from www.dramabygeorge.com. Copyright 2011 George Halitzka. All rights reserved. The Frog Prince 13
PRODUCTION NOTES Synopsis: A snotty Princess wants nothing to do with the palace pond s resident Frog. Of course, that s before he turns into a prince. But this version of the story doesn t end happily ever after instead of a date for the ball, the Princess gets her just desserts! Character Education Connections: Judging based on appearances, kindness, the consequences of our actions. Running Time: 8 minutes. Cast: 2 males, 1 female (one of the male roles is an offstage voice). Staging Requirements: One side of the stage represents a pond; the other side, the interior of the palace. The frog sits on some sort of lily pad. In the palace, there s a table covered with a rich-looking cloth. Lighting & Sound Requirements: No special lighting effects. You ll need a door-knocking sound effect when the Frog arrives at the palace. The King should deliver his lines from an offstage mic with reverb (echo effect). Costumes: The wears a rubber full-face frog mask (until the pulls it off to turn him into a human again). His apparel should be fairly nice he is, after all, a prince. The wears a fashionable dress, expensive-looking jewelry, and a tiara. Props: Cell phone (), pink ball (), ornate plate containing finger food, pillow in satin case (on the table in the palace kitchen). The Frog Prince 14