| The Cretan Minotaur---half man, half
bull---has been devouring so many Athenians that it's getting impossible to organize a
softball game. Can the young prince Theseus, son of Poseidon, save the day? This may be
his last chance to prove himself: Hercules has already cleared out most of the
"really good monsters." With the help of the clever Ariadne, daughter of evil
King Minos, Theseus enters the labyrinth. Will he find his way out, or will his
unreliable sidekick use the ball of yarn to knit a sweater? Will Daedalus and Icarus fly
too close to the sun and have a meltdown? Theseus and the Minotaur has the answers, and
has been developed to work closely with your ancient history curriculum. CHARACTERS:
FLEXIBLE
CASTING:
From 12-40 students.
Use as many Athenians, Messengers, Nereids, etc. as desired; one student can also play
more than one role. Note that roles are not gender-specific: Theseus and/or the Minotaur
can easily be played by a girl, for example; see our comments on page 39 of the Teacher's
Guide. |
Theseus (THEE-see-us), son of
Aegeus
Bill (BILL), friend of Theseus
Aegeus (EE-jee-us), King of Athens
Athenians
Athena (uh-THEE-nuh), Goddess of Athens
Messengers from Crete
Minos (MIGH-nus), King of Crete
Poseidon (Poe-SIGHD'n), God of the Sea
Nereids (NIR-ee-ids), Goddesses of the Sea
A Ray (as in fish)
Daedalus (DEDD-l-us), builder of the labyrinth and slave of Minos
Icarus (ICK-er-us), son of Daedalus
Ariadne (ar-ee-AD-nee), daughter of Minos
Maidens, attendants of Ariadne
Minotaur (MINN-uh-tor)
Two Bards (or two small groups), narrators of the story
and a Chorus made up of all students who are not playing
roles at the time.
(The CLASS enters, or is already on stage, forming a semi-circle facing the audience. The
music starts. As it builds, a member of the CHORUS quickly strides forward to the very
front of the stage, facing the audience; then another CHORUS member moves forward, then
another, until there are THREE standing by themselves in front)
THREE:
Song 1
Long ago and far away in ancient Greece
The folks just had one name.
Socrates and Sophocles and Sosicles
They start to sound the same.
Someone chased a Gorgon, someone fought at Troy
And one guy roamed the sea
Gotta be a genius just to keep it straight
It all is Greek to me.
CHORUS:
THREE SINGERS:
Theseus and the Minotaur
It's got a familiar ring
Theseus and the Minotaur
Something 'bout a ball of string?
CHORUS and THREE:
Theseus and the Minotaur
It's no mythological fluff
This one is classic stuff.
CHORUS:
THREE SINGERS:
Long ago and far away in ancient Greece
La la la
The folks just had one name.
La la la la la la la la
Socrates and Sophocles and Sosicles
La la la
They start to sound the same.
La la la
CHORUS:
Someone chased a Gorgon, someone fought at Troy
THREE SINGERS: Oh yeah he did
CHORUS:
And one guy roamed the sea
THREE SINGERS:
Bee dee dee, bee dee dee, bee dee dee
CHORUS:
Gotta be a genius just to keep it straight
THREE SINGERS:
I wish I could
CHORUS and THREE SINGERS:
It all is Greek to me.
CHORUS:
THREE SINGERS:
Theseus and the Minotaur
It's got a familiar ring
Theseus and the Minotaur
Something 'bout a ball of string?
CHORUS and THREE:
Theseus and the Minotaur
It's no mythological fluff
This one is classic stuff.
(CHORUS exits or sits down. BARDS enter, carrying large books from which THEY read with
appropriate drama. There can be two BARDS (A and B), or two small groups of BARDS (groups
A and B). The two different bards or groups of bards wear different colors-e.g. one blue,
the other yellow. If there is more than one bard in a group, the spoken parts should be
distributed among them.)
BARD A: Ancient Athens was once ruled by good king Aegeus. He had a son named
Theseus, who wanted to become a famous hero.
BARD B: Lo, I see Theseus now with his trusty sidekick, Bill.
BARD A (Looking startled, HE drops formal presentation and addresses BARD B): Bill? That
can't be right. All the rest of the Athenians have long, complicated names. Erichthonius.
Philomela. But "Bill"? Are you sure?
BARD B: Of course I'm sure. What---you think I didn't read the story? You think I'm making
this up as we go along?
BARD A: It wouldn't be the first time. Didn't you once tell how the Greeks captured Troy
by hiding themselves inside a giant wooden weasel?
BARD B: What's wrong with that? I'm an artiste! I will not let tradition cramp my genius.
BARD A: Your brain has got a cramp. Come on, let's go. Theseus and...
(pause, looks at BARD B with disgust)
... "Bill" are here.
(THEY exit. THESEUS and BILL enter)
BILL: Theseus, you've got to cheer up. Your chance to be a hero will come.
THESEUS: Like the time you said I could leap tall buildings in a single bound? I was in
the hospital for a month.
BILL: I didn't mean it literally. It was a metaphor.
THESEUS: You're not helping, Bill. A trusty sidekick is supposed to help. Breaking into
this hero business is no piece of cake.
THESEUS: :
Song
2
It's tough to be a hero these days
It's hard to find employment that pays
So few monsters to awaken
All the good ones have been taken
It's tough, it's tough
BILL: Shoo bee doo doo bop
It's tough, it's tough
BILL: Shah la la la
It's tough, it's tough
BILL: Shoo bee doo doo bop
It's tough to be a hero these days.
I want all of Greece to resound with my name
But Hercules gets all the press and the fame.
He's laying waste cities while I waste my prime
While he's killing hydras I'm just killing time.
THESEUS and BILL:
It's tough to be a hero these days
It's hard to find employment that pays
So few monsters to awaken
All the good ones have been taken
It's tough, it's tough
CHORUS: Shoo bee doo doo bop
It's tough, it's tough
CHORUS: Shah la la la
THESEUS and BILL:
It's tough, it's tough
CHORUS: Shoo bee doo doo bop
THESEUS:
It's tough to be a hero these days.
I just missed Medusa
BILL: He had a sore throat
The Golden Fleece called
BILL: But he just missed the boat
THESEUS and BILL:
The Sphinx is deriddled and stuck in a zoo
I/He's gotta find something heroic to do.
THESEUS, BILL, and CHORUS:
It's tough, it's tough
Shoo bee doo doo bop
It's tough, it's tough
Shah la la la
It's tough, it's tough
Shoo bee doo doo bop
CHORUS and BILL
(holding out the word "days"):
It's tough to be a hero these days...
THESEUS:
I wanna
I wanna
I wanna
I wanna be a hero.
(THEY exit. BARDS enter)
BARD A: So Theseus and Bill tour the countryside looking in vain for epic adventures.
They've completely forgotten that today is the day that Minos, evil King of Crete, arrives
in Athens. Each year Minos comes to take young
Athenians back to Crete to be eaten by the Minotaur.
BARD B (surprised): You're kidding.
BARD A: Well, what did you think was happening each spring when the finest young Athenians
disappeared?
BARD B: You mean they weren't going to Florida for spring training?
BARD A: No! Baseball hasn't been invented yet.
BARD B: Then what's all this talk about a Homer?
(Enter AEGEUS and ATHENIANS)
BARD A: I knew you hadn't read the story.
(to audience)
Now here comes the father of Theseus, the good King Aegeus.
(BARDS exit)
AEGEUS: Come along, Athenians. I'm sorry that you must be handed over to Minos and his
terrible Minotaur.
AN ATHENIAN: But why do we have to go? Can't you just send a box of chocolates or
something?
AEGEUS: Minos demands the children of the most respected citizens of Athens as victims for
the Minotaur.
ANOTHER ATHENIAN: I swear my parents aren't respected. Nobody even likes them.
ANOTHER ATHENIAN: Me too. Dad cheats on his taxes. I don't qualify.
Song List
Click on the song name to hear samples in
mp3 format. Please note that internet song samples have low fidelity and rest assured that
the CDs we sell sound much better. Problems hearing the music? Visit our Audio Help page.
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| Vocabulary
Terms from Theseus and the Minotaur |
Socrates
Sophocles
Sosicles
Gorgon
Troy
mythological
literally
metaphor
prime
hydra
Medusa
The Golden Fleece
Sphinx |
vain
matador
olé
Bronze Age
Titanium
Zinc
bust
monarch
labyrinth
sultan
renown
boast
Grecian
reign |
corduroy
weft
woof
centaur
Cyclops
brimming
eclair
Vocabulary
From Stage Directions
stride
distributed
formal
ponder |
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Teacher Reviews:
To submit your own review, just e-mail it to ron@badwolfpress.com
Be sure to include your school name and what grade you teach.
"The music is catchy, so the kids never
forgot the lyrics. They learned key concepts while having fun. I can't wait
until the next one! I teach the kids in the gifted program in my system. Some
love to be center-stage while others have no desire to perform solo. These plays
allow me to give them opportunities to participate at a level at which each chld is
comfortable."
---Shelia Cain, Teacher, (4th-5th grade, gifted and talented), Petham Elementary, Petham,
GA
"Yesterday my sixth-graders performed
'Theseus and the Minotaur' for about 150 children, parents, and administrators. I am still
reeling from the total pride and joy I felt with their performance! The songs were
wonderful and the script kept the audience attentive."
---Joy Brilliant, Teacher (6th grade), Ventnor Middle School, Ventnor, NJ
"My 6th grade class just finished three
back to back presentations of 'Theseus and the Minotaur' yesterday: it was a hit! The
school just loved it! And as you advertise, our kit makes it nearly impossible for a
musical not to work! Because we didn't practice much, I was worried sick about the
performances. But the kids pulled it off and were awesome. The play fit perfectly with our
6th grade curriculum and standards. I enjoyed tying this aspect of multiple intelligences
into my curriculum."
---Seu Hee Kim, Teacher (6th grade), Horizon Elementary, Glendale, AZ
"The music was catchy, and it had a lot
of humor. Also, I liked the change in the ending from the original. Your guide had lots of
good suggestions. The CD was great! For those of us who can't play well enough, having the
music was wonderful. The price was reasonable. Your website with previews was very
helpful...I have seen so many extremely shy kids just blossom into confident, poised
speakers."
---Stacy Sakimoto, Teacher (2nd-6th grades) King Liholiho Elementary, Honolulu, HI
"Although my class is only second graders, we chose this play because we study
Ancient Greece. They are doing a fabulous job with this play. The
benifits were enrichment of subject matter, an opportunity for children to practice some
of the creative intelligences, and confidence building. The script is clever and
engaging and easy for them to follow. I love the fact that the guide was so clear
and helpful. The songs are fun, especially 'I'm Bad' and 'Give me that
Twinkie.' My class is so excited and motivated to present this play! The
enthusiasm from the audience was fantastic. My students have kids from kindergarten
through fifth grade stopping them in the halls to tell them how much they loved the
play. My parents were estatic! As one mom put it, 'Performing this play has
created a memory for the students and their families they will
treasure.' Thank you. I had been looking for plays for some time.
This one is perfect! Thanks againg for such a teacher-friendly, fun play to
perform!"
---Trish Brown, Teacher, (2nd grade), Olive Chapel School, Apex, NC
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