Cinderella #259 Puppet Plays from Favorite Stories (1977)
by Mahlman, L. & Cadwalader Jones,D.
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| That's when her Fairy Godmother appeared! |
Once upon a time, in a puppet theater run by children, there were the following characters: Narrator, Cinderella, Lena, (the skinny sister), Fatima (the fat sister), Stepmother, Oscar (the page), Prince Charming, and the Fairy Godmother.
Scene 1
Setting is the kitchen hearth; Lena and Fatima are going through a trunk of clothes. The Narrator tells us that "there were once three girls who lived with their stern mother in a little house not far from Prince Charming's castle." Lena and Fatima were not kind to Cinderella. They said things like,"lazy good-for-nothing". Her own mother ordered her around, making her do all the work. She often said something like,"You haven't picked up after your sisters! Look at this mess!" And when Cinderella pointed out that she'd been doing her other chores all day long, they all sneered. So, when an invitation to the prince's special ball came, this is what they said: Fatima:"Cinderella thinks she's going to the ball. The prince certainly wouldn't look at her." Lena: "Not in those rags she wears."
Scene 2
Narrator: "And so the two vain sisters and their wicked mother got ready for the Prince's ball". They made Cinderella help them, with stitching and ironing, curling and braiding. When finally they have gone, Cinderella sits down to cry. And that is when she hears a voice! It says,"I am your fairy godmother! I heard you crying. May I help you?" And then she provides beautiful gown, and dancing slippers. Then she says, "Here are some mice for horses, two lizards for coachmen and a pumpkin for the coach. Now watch!" And with a flick of her magic wand, they are transformed into a team of horses and a fine carriage. Now Cinderella promises to be back before midnight, and away she goes.
Scene 3
"The courtyard in front of the castle...a large clock face is on the wall." Inside, the prince's page, Oscar, asks him,"Are you having a good time at your ball, Prince?" And the prince replied, "I guess so." But he didn't sound like he meant it. And when Oscar asked whether he'd chosen a bride, the prince said no. None of the girls were just right. That's when Oscar asked him about "the third sister" who had come with their mother. They had met three girls at the house; where was she now? And then Cinderella arrived! The prince saw her and said, pretending that he was not the prince, "I'm sure the prince would welcome a beautiful lady such as you at any time. Let me take you inside," They danced together all evening, but suddenly, Cinderella shouts, "I must go!" and runs away. Though the prince pleads with her, she will not come back. In running away, one slipper is left behind.
Scene 4
Narrator: "Cinderella rushed back to the little house as the coach disappeared and a pumpkin rolled into the gutter." All night, she dreams of the man she danced with, and the next morning she is late getting up. Her mother scolds her, but just then, "there is a knock at the door". It is, of course, the prince, carrying Cinderella's lost shoe. Of course Fatima and Lena try like anything to get their feet into the shoe. But Fatima's foot is "about a foot too long" and Lena nearly breaks the shoe in half, her feet are so wide. Then the prince says, "Perhaps we had better let the other girl try." And Cinderella steps into the room saying, "I've finished cleaning." That is when the fairy godmother appears, and says, "Let her try [the slipper on], my good woman." to the mother. So Cinderella does, and the shoe fits. "Impossible!" cries the stepmother, denying that the slipper fit, and that Cinderella had been to the ball. But the prince recognizes her and says, "Will you marry me?" Cinderella says that she will, and that she loves him "with all my heart".
Narrator:"And so the prince married Cinderella and they all lived happily ever after — except for Lena and Fatima — ever after. (Curtain)
From Puppet Plays from Favorite Stories by Mahlman, L. & Cadwalader Jones, D. (1977)
