The Wise Old Woman
a play
adapted from a
classic Japanese folktale
Wise Old Woman play script
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The Wise Old Woman Play Script-
An adaptation of a Japanese fairytale What better way to learn the essence of the ancient culture of Japan than to act out one of its traditional stories. Your students will experience, first hand, the delightful story of a town which learns that the elders of their culture are to be revered and cared for because of their incredible experience and wisdom.

Synopsis:
In The Wise Old Woman, a Japanese town's young lord, thinking that the town's elderly are a burden and a waste of resources, issues a foolish decree that all people over the age of 70 are to be taken to the mountain and left to die. One young farmer cannot bear to send his old mother to the mountains, and hides her under his hut's floor. Some time later, the cruel Lord Higa and his armies attack the small town, threatening to destroy everything and everyone if the townspeople cannot perform three ridiculously difficult tasks. It is only with the help of the Wise Old Woman that the town is spared, and comes to learn the value of the wisdom of its elderly citizens.

Description:
This 20-25-minute play is a comic drama with a variety of excellent roles. There is one leading female role and three leading men's parts, and a variety of supporting chorus roles which can be increased and expanded depending on the desired size of the cast. Many parts can have interchangeable gender. For a complete list of cast, including the number of lines for each part, click here. It can be performed by elementary students, probably second and third grade on up, depending on maturity, or by middle or high school students as well, especially when playing for a children's theater audience.
Production ideas for sets, costumes, etc. and thematic curriculum ideas are included at the end. The hard copy version is 8 1/2" x 11" in size with spiral binding (which lets it lie flat on a desk, when opened) and color cover.

Here's one of our satisfied customers:
"The plays are turning out to be an absolute success! The kids love the play you sent us. Thank you for making this a wonderful summer for our camp."
-- Nyle MacFarlane, strawberry_blond80@yahoo.com
-- Theatre teacher, Summer in the Parks


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Wise Old Woman play script
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or
you can download your play immediately:

Buy The Wise Old Woman play script!
You will receive a Zip file containing a Word document.

Other ways to order than by credit card:
(click here)

Click here to go to the Classics in the Classroom page and see how a Master Artist Teacher can work with your class on this story.

Click here for more short play scripts for the winter holidays.

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