India Assembly

India Assembly
Cast of 30 - easily adaptable up or down
Duration - minimum 10 minutes reading time - this, as explained in Production Notes, could be increased to 30 minutes plus
The cast (should that be caste?!) of this Indian Assembly or Class Play is anything but equal with the appearance of three gods - two with 4 arms and the other with 4 heads - which one is the narrator supposed to address?
Just one of the many problems facing our narrator - the main one being sheer volume of music, colour, joy and .. well everything that makes India such a vibrant country!
Sample Text:
Music 2
(Shiva dances across ‘the stage’)
(Narrator tries to stop him but is confused by the number of arms – four)
Narrator: Er, em, excuse me … but who are you and what are you doing?
Shiva: What am I doing? Isn’t it obvious? I’m dancing, of course!
Narrator: Well, I think we can all see that. But who are you?
Shiva: (Exploding) Who am I? Who am I?
Narrator: Well, if you put it like that – yes, who are you?
(Whole cast gasps in horror)
(Child 7 goes over to Narrator)
Child 7: (Aside) Surely you know who this is?
Narrator: (Irritably) Well, do you really think I’d be asking if I did?
Child 7: It’s Shiva – the Destroyer!
(Narrator gasps)
Narrator: Oh no! Not that god with the power of life and death?
Child 7: That’s the one!
Narrator: (To Shiva) Oh I am most dreadfully sorry! I had no idea that it was you, Shiva!
Shiva: Oh I’ll forgive you! I guess I do look (waving arms around) pretty ‘armless!
Narrator: Well, I wouldn’t say that! I mean, I think I counted … four arms?
Shiva: Oh that’s nothing! When you compare it with number of names I have!
Narrator: And they are? (Holds up fingers to start counting on) Now, let’s see. Starting with Shiva …
Shiva: Er, I don’t think we have time to run through the others – there are over one thousand of them!
This is one of several assemblies written by Sue Russell on different countries. Others include England, Scotland, Wales, Great Britain, Holland, Australia, France, Spain, Malta and India plus ‘Around the World in 20 Minutes’.
Other Indian scripts:
Divali and the Story of Rama & Sita (as a play within a play - a little like Midsummer Night’s Dream!)
plus scripts on Gandhi and on the Indus Valley Civilisation.