The best christmas pageant ever play script

A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

• Cast SizeCast Size

  6f, 4m, 9girl(s), 8boy(s)

• DurationDuration

  60 minutes (1 hour)

• SubGenreSubgenre

  Adaptations (Literature), Theatre for Young Audiences, Christmas/Holiday

• AudienceTarget Audience

  Appropriate for all audiences

Details

Summary

In this hilarious Christmas classic, a couple struggling to put on a church Christmas pageant is faced with casting the Herdman kids--probably the most inventively awful kids in history. You won't believe the mayhem - and the fun - when the Herdmans collide with the Christmas story head on!

This delightful comedy is adapted from the best-selling Young Adult book, and has become a holiday staple for groups across the United States! Features plenty of great roles for children and adults, a few favorite Christmas Carols, and a lot of laughs!

History

The first professional production of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever was given by the Seattle Children's Theatre on November 26, 1982.

Performing Groups

• Elementary School / Primary
• Jr High/Primary
• High School/Secondary
• Community Theatre
• Dinner Theatre
• Professional Theatre
• Shoestring Budget
• Large Stage
• Church / Religious Groups

FATHER (Bob Bradley) - solid family man, 35-38
MOTHER (Grace Bradley) - trim, attractive, 35ish
BETH BRADLEY - the narrator, strong voice and presence, 10-11
CHARLIE BRADLEY - traditional kid brother, 8-9
RALPH HERDMAN - ragged, scroungy, slouching manner, touch of adolescent cool, 12-13
IMOGENE HERDMAN - loud, bossy, crafty, 11-12
LEROY HERDMAN - tough, sure of himself, 10-11
CLAUDE HERDMAN - tough, combative, 9-10
OLLIE HERDMAN - looking for trouble, Claude's usual partner in crime, 8-9
GLADYS HERDMAN - small, wiry, fiesty, 7-8
ALICE WENDLEKEN - prim, proper, pain in the neck, 10-11
MRS. ARMSTRONG - largish woman, managerial in voice and manner, 50ish
MRS. SLOCUM - pleasant, motherly woman, 35-60
MRS. CLARK - 35-60
MRS. CLAUSING - 35-60
MRS. MCCARTHY - a younger, less imperious version of Mrs. Armstrong, middle 40s
MAXINE - 10-11
ELMER HOPKINS - 12-13
HOBIE - 9-10
DAVID - 8-9
BEVERLY - 7-8
FIREMAN - 25-30
FIREMAN - 25-30
SHIRLEY - 5-6
JUANITA - 5-6
DORIS - 9-10
REVEREND HOPKINS - middle to late 40s
Extra angel choir members, baby angels, shepherds

• Time Period Present Day

• Setting A living room / dining room and a church.

• Features Contemporary Costumes / Street Clothes

• Additional Features No intermission, Physical Comedy, Play w/ Music

• Duration 60 minutes (1 hour)

• Cautions

  • No Special Cautions

Media

Music

• Vocal DemandsN/A (Not a musical)

• Chorus Size N/A (Not a musical)

Licensing & Materials

• Minimum Fee: $125 per performance

Add-Ons

Take a look below at how you can enhance your show!

• Ticketing

Authors

Barbara Robinson

Barbara Robinson wrote several popular books for children, including My Brother Louis Measures Worms, The Best School Year Ever, The Best Halloween Ever, and the enormously popular bestselling novel The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, first published in 1972, which was made into ...

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