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Click HERE to read the Script, look at the Score and listen to the Songs
The Pied Piper
by Malcolm Sircom
Pricing & Order Info.
Now with alternative upbeat ending (The mayor gets his comeuppance!)
Why choose this Musical?
92 Speaking Roles
Flexible casting options to suit your needs
Full instructions given for cast sizes of 92, 61 or 40 actors.
Totally adaptable. See "Casting" tab below.
Editable Word Doc Script available
Unlimited chorus parts
Easy to stage and costume
Sing it! "Karaoke-Style" learning! Check out the video below...
TOP TIP: unmute the video to have a listen and a sing along!
CD of Backing Tracks & CD of Vocal Tracks available
No pianist required! Both these CDs include ALL Songs, Special Effects and Instrumentals in the order you need them enabling production and direction to take place without specialist musical expertise.
Full Performance Piano/Vocal Score available
Encompasses ALL Songs, Instrumental Music, Cues and Chord Symbols (Grade 8 standard). Click "Performance Score" in the "Script & Songs" tab below.
Easy Play Rehearsal Piano/Vocal Score available
Grade 5 Standard. Click "Easy Play Score" in the "Script & Songs" tab below.
Easily constructed and manageable props
Age range: Key Stage 2 Production (7-11 years)
A great choice for your Lower Juniors (7-9 years).
Duration: 50 minutes
NEW! Instant Scenery with our digital backdrops
A different backdrop for EVERY scene change
Supplied in both a PowerPoint presentation and as individual JPG files.
No more Scenery Painting!
This imaginative working of the well-loved story involves a large cast - children and adults from Hamelin, the Rat Pack and a gospel chorus of young rats. The principal parts - Pied Piper, Mayor, Old Rat etc. are not so large as to be over-taxing for junior actors, whilst there are plenty of cameo parts plus a choir. This challenging work is well within the scope of juniors.
Probably best known from Robert Browning's humorous poem, this show adds extra layers and facets with some delightfully modern touches - a hippy guerrilla rat pack, a rapping Pied Piper and a lively, tuneful score which includes ballad, rock and gospel styles. None of the poignancy however, has been lost, and the comedy emphasises the highly-charged emotional content. Another sure fire hit from the same stable as Ebenezer.
The musical opens with a busy street scene, early morning; Market traders setting up their stalls, with their goods carefully covered from sight. Passers-by gather round gossiping, children bowling hoops, playing hop-scotch, etc. [Song: "MARKET DAY".]
The self - important Mayor, together with his cronies on the Town Council, appear to declare the Market open. The Mayor's wife Eulalie gives him a hard time about his neglect of her interests. The citizens too are rude about his habits in the tavern, which persuades him and the council to leave the opening to an "underling" and depart for their civic (freebie) breakfast.
The "underling" - the Town Crier - declares the Market open, but when the traders reveal their wares, they find to their horror they've all been nibbled at by the rats that are plaguing Hamelin. Talk of the devil, the rats appear, and the crowd scatters. [Song: "RAT PACK".] The rats, flushed with success, reveal their plans to take over first Hamelin, then the world, then exit. [Reprise: "RAT PACK".]
The young Hamelin children enter, playing games - all except the lame Young Hans who can't keep up, but is befriended and helped by young Heidi. They rebel against playing the game - "grown-ups". [Song: "GROWN-UPS".] Their parents enter and gather them up, still scared of the rats. When the Town Crier reveals the sumptuous civil breakfast the Mayor and Corporation have just had, ignoring the rat peril, the citizens decide to revolt. [Song: "PEOPLE POWER".]
Next we see the Council Chamber, where the Mayor and Corporation are sleeping off the heavy breakfast. The citizens invade the Chamber and demand action. The Mayor and Corporation panic, not knowing what to do, thinking they'll be booted out of office, when there is a knock on the door and the Pied Piper enters. [Song: "TROUBLE-SHOOTER".] He promises to get rid of the rats and the Mayor promises a reward of a thousand guilders. The Pied Piper invites everyone to step into the street with him. [Reprise: "TROUBLE-SHOOTER".]
Outside in the street, the rats march boldly on, but are bedazzled by the Pied Piper, who then plays his pipe and leads them into the river, where they all drown. The Mayor declares that there will be a big party to celebrate. [Song: "CELEBRATION".]
We switch to a scene of an Old Rat telling a group of young rats about the Rat Wars, how he/she was the only survivor from Hamelin and the incredible music that came from the Pied Piper. [Song: "SWEET, SWEET MUSIC"] with a short Reprise of it to end the scene.
Back to the Council Chamber, where the Mayor and Corporation have giant headaches and hangovers after the previous night's celebrations. The Pied Piper turns up to claim his fee of a thousand guilders, but the Mayor reneges on the deal and offers him fifty. The Piper demands the full amount, or he will pipe in a different fashion. The Mayor & Corporation order him out of town. [Song: "GET OUT OF TOWN".]
Outside in the street all the citizens and children gather, curious. The Mayor declares the Piper to be a charlatan who is leaving town whereupon, the Piper pipes the children away and up into the mountain. Hans explains to his mother the beauty of the music and what it meant to them, how he desperately wanted to join them, but couldn't keep up, and how everything will be so dull now. [Song: "WITHOUT OUR CHILDREN".]
During this song the Mayor stands alone, a broken pathetic figure. He tries to convince the people of Hamelin that this was not his fault. The people firmly reject his pleas and tell him to leave the town. [Finale: "GET OUT OF TOWN" REPRISE.]
The musical ends with an upbeat song for the cast walk-down (bows). [CURTAIN REPRISE: "CELEBRATION".]
Full Cast List (92 Actors) In Alphabetical Order
NB. In the following list, the number shows how many spoken lines each role has. An asterisk (*) before the character's name indicates that this character ALSO has solo or featured sung lines. There is also a solo line for one of the children of Hamelin in Track 4.
| Character Name | Number of Lines |
|---|---|
| Cagney Rat | 4 |
| Carl | 2 |
| Christina | 1 |
| Citizen 1 | 1 |
| Citizen 2 | 1 |
| Corporation 1 | 10 |
| Corporation 2 | 6 |
| Corporation 3 | 5 |
| Corporation 4 | 3 |
| Corporation 5 | 5 |
| Corporation 6 | 4 |
| Crier | 15 |
| Crowd 1 | 6 |
| Crowd 2 | 2 |
| Crowd 3 | 2 |
| Crowd 4 | 3 |
| Crowd 5 | 1 |
| Crowd 6 | 3 |
| Crowd 7 | 2 |
| Crowd 8 | 2 |
| Crowd 9 | 1 |
| Crowd 10 | 1 |
| Crowd 11 | 1 |
| Crowd 12 | 1 |
| Crowd 13 | 1 |
| Crowd 14 | 1 |
| Crowd 15 | 1 |
| Crowd 16 | 1 |
| Crowd 17 | 1 |
| Crowd 18 | 1 |
| Crowd 19 | 1 |
| Crowd 20 | 1 |
| Eric | 3 |
| Eulalie (Mayor's Wife) | 23 |
| Father 1 | 2 |
| Father 2 | 2 |
| Father 3 | 2 |
| Father 4 | 1 |
| Frederic | 1 |
| Hans | 17 |
| Heidi | 3 |
| Hippie Rat | 1 |
| Hooligan Rat 1 | 2 |
| Hooligan Rat 2 | 2 |
| Hooligan Rat 3 | 1 |
| Klaus | 2 |
| Character Name | Number of Lines |
|---|---|
| Leader of the Rats | 18 |
| Ludwig | 2 |
| Man 1 | 5 |
| Man 2 | 2 |
| Man 3 | 2 |
| *Mayor | 102 |
| Mother 1 | 1 |
| Mother 2 | 2 |
| Mother 3 | 2 |
| Mother 4 | 2 |
| Mother 5 | 2 |
| *Old Rat | 28 |
| Parent 1 | 2 |
| Parent 2 | 2 |
| Parent 3 | 1 |
| Parent 4 | 1 |
| Parent 5 | 1 |
| Parent 6 | 1 |
| Parent 7 | 1 |
| Parent 8 | 1 |
| Parent 9 | 1 |
| Parent 10 | 1 |
| Parent 11 | 1 |
| Parent 12 | 1 |
| Parent 13 | 1 |
| Parent 14 | 1 |
| Parent 15 | 1 |
| Pied Piper | 70 |
| Psycho Rat | 8 |
| Rat 1 | 1 |
| Rat 2 | 1 |
| Rat 3 | 1 |
| Rat 4 | 1 |
| Rat 5 | 1 |
| Rat 6 | 1 |
| Rat 7 | 1 |
| Sophie | 3 |
| Trader 1 | 10 |
| Trader 2 | 5 |
| Trader 3 | 10 |
| Trader 4 | 2 |
| Woman 1 | 4 |
| Woman 2 | 3 |
| Woman 3 | 3 |
| Woman Rat | 2 |
| Young Rat | 2 |
Suggested Cast List For 61 Actors
NB. In the following list, the number shows how many spoken lines each role has. An asterisk (*) before the character's name indicates that this character ALSO has solo or featured sung lines. There is also a solo line for one of the children of Hamelin in Track 4.
| Character Name | Number of Lines |
|---|---|
| *Mayor | 102 |
| Pied Piper | 70 |
| *Old Rat | 28 |
| Eulalie (Mayor's Wife) | 23 |
| Leader of the Rats | 18 |
| Hans | 17 |
| Crier | 15 |
| Corporation 1 | 10 |
| Trader 1 | 10 |
| Trader 3 | 10 |
| Crowd 20 also plays Man 1 & Man 3 | 8 |
| Psycho Rat | 8 |
| Crowd 1 also plays Citizen 1 | 7 |
| Corporation 2 | 6 |
| Crowd 2 also plays Citizen 2 & Woman 2 | 6 |
| Crowd 3 also plays Parent 10 & Woman 3 | 6 |
| Corporation 3 | 5 |
| Corporation 5 | 5 |
| Crowd 9 also plays Woman 1 | 5 |
| Crowd 11 also plays Father 1 & Parent 1 | 5 |
| Crowd 12 also plays Father 2 & Parent 2 | 5 |
| Trader 2 | 5 |
| Cagney Rat | 4 |
| Corporation 6 | 4 |
| Crowd 4 also plays Parent 11 | 4 |
| Crowd 6 also plays Parent 13 | 4 |
| Crowd 13 also plays Father 3 & Parent 3 | 4 |
| Crowd 16 also plays Mother 2 & Parent 6 | 4 |
| Crowd 17 also plays Mother 3 & Parent 7 | 4 |
| Crowd 18 also plays Mother 4 & Parent 8 | 4 |
| Crowd 19 also plays Mother 5 & Parent 9 | 4 |
| Corporation 4 | 3 |
| Crowd 7 also plays Parent 14 | 3 |
| Crowd 8 also plays Parent 15 | 3 |
| Crowd 10 also plays Man 2 | 3 |
| Crowd 14 also plays Father 4 & Parent 4 | 3 |
| Crowd 15 also plays Mother 1 & Parent 5 | 3 |
| Eric | 3 |
| Heidi | 3 |
| Sophie | 3 |
| Carl | 2 |
| Crowd 5 also plays Parent 12 | 2 |
| Hooligan Rat 1 | 2 |
| Hooligan Rat 2 | 2 |
| Klaus | 2 |
| Ludwig | 2 |
| Trader 4 | 2 |
| Woman Rat | 2 |
| Young Rat | 2 |
| Christina | 1 |
| Frederic | 1 |
| Hippie Rat | 1 |
| Hooligan Rat 3 | 1 |
| Rat 1 | 1 |
| Rat 2 | 1 |
| Rat 3 | 1 |
| Rat 4 | 1 |
| Rat 5 | 1 |
| Rat 6 | 1 |
| Rat 7 | 1 |
There is also a Choir, which takes part in most of the songs. However, this is optional, and the choir part may either be omitted, or allocated to an on-stage Chorus.
Suggested Cast List For 40 Actors
NB. In the following list, the number shows how many spoken lines each role has. An asterisk (*) before the character's name indicates that this character ALSO has solo or featured sung lines. There is also a solo line for one of the children of Hamelin in Track 4.
| Character Name | Number of Lines |
|---|---|
| *Mayor | 102 |
| Pied Piper | 70 |
| *Old Rat | 28 |
| Eulalie (Mayor's Wife) | 23 |
| Leader of the Rats | 18 |
| Hans | 17 |
| Crier | 15 |
| Crowd 1 also plays Crowd 11, Mother 1, Woman 1 & Parent 1 | 14 |
| Corporation 1 also plays Corporation 4 | 13 |
| Corporation 2 also plays Corporation 5 | 11 |
| Crowd 6 also plays Crowd 16, Man 1, Parent 5 & Parent 13 | 11 |
| Crowd 2 also plays Crowd 12, Mother 2, Woman 2 & Parent 2 | 10 |
| Trader 1 | 10 |
| Trader 3 | 10 |
| Corporation 3 also plays Corporation 6 | 9 |
| Crowd 3 also plays Crowd 13, Mother 3, Woman 3 & Parent 10 | 9 |
| Crowd 4 also plays Crowd 14, Mother 4, Parent 3 & Parent 11 | 8 |
| Crowd 9 also plays Crowd 19, Father 1, Parent 8, Father 3 & Citizen 1 | 8 |
| Psycho Rat | 8 |
| Crowd 7 also plays Crowd 17, Man 2, Parent 6 & Parent 14 | 7 |
| Crowd 8 also plays Crowd 18, Man 3, Parent 7 & Parent 15 | 7 |
| Crowd 10 also plays Crowd 20, Father 2, Parent 9, Father 4 & Citizen 2 | 7 |
| Crowd 5 also plays Crowd 15, Mother 5, Parent 4 & Parent 12 | 6 |
| Cagney Rat also plays Rat 5 | 5 |
| Trader 2 | 5 |
| Eric | 3 |
| Heidi | 3 |
| Hippie Rat also plays Rat 1 & Rat 6 | 3 |
| Hooligan Rat 1 also plays Rat 2 | 3 |
| Hooligan Rat 2 also plays Rat 3 | 3 |
| Hooligan Rat 3 also plays Rat 4 & Rat 7 | 3 |
| Sophie | 3 |
| Carl | 2 |
| Klaus | 2 |
| Ludwig | 2 |
| Trader 4 | 2 |
| Woman Rat | 2 |
| Young Rat | 2 |
| Christina | 1 |
| Frederic | 1 |
The Pied Piper
"This is an excellent choice for an all school production!"Ferdi Victor, Harrow Lide School Hengqin, Zhuhai
The Pied Piper
"I love the song 'market day' and the songs are really good"Cast Member, Berkshire
The Pied Piper
"it was a hilarious performance"yeti, Oxhey First School Biddulph, Stoke-On-Trent
The Pied Piper
"A lively, funny show with great child and audience appeal. I have no reservations about recommending this show to others. The children loved singing and performing the catchy numbers and 'Without our children' was very moving. A testimony to its success was to hear children who had been in the audience singing the songs. "St. Edward's Junior school Charlton Kings, Cheltenham, Glos
The Pied Piper
"I loved acting in it at my school. I love the song 'Rat Pack'. "Chelsea - Cast Member