INTERROGATIVE!
TEN MINUTE GRAMMAR PLAY
By Donna Latham
Copyright © MMV by Donna Latham
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INTERROGATIVE!
INTERROGATIVE!
By Donna Latham
SYNOPSIS: Jewel struggles with the latest chapter of her whodunit, fearing
that she has written herself into a corner. Gramps, a Sherlock Holmes
aficionado, shares his knowledge of the mystery genre. Bill asks Jewel for
help with his homework on the four sentence types. He reviews what he
knows about sentences - - they are comprised of subjects and predicates - and begins to describe the sentence types. He explains that exclamatory
sentences express emotions or strong feelings; at that moment, Gram bursts
into the room, exclaiming, "Mercy me, I can't find it!" Discovering that
Gram can't locate her precious ruby ring, Gramps seizes the opportunity to
engage in sleuthing. Using interrogative sentences to ask questions and
imperative sentences to make requests, Gramps, dressed as Sherlock
Holmes, takes charge. "Addie, activate your sniffer," he requests. Always
eager to please, Addie sniffs around the living room and kitchen, assuming a
pointer's stance in front of the oven and using the declarative sentence,
"Gram's baked oatmeal cookies." As Bill takes notes, the family gathers
clues and attempts to solve the mystery. When the sleuths locate a bit of fur,
a feather, and some tracks, Gramps insists that an "errant rodent" and a
"rogue fowl" snatched Gram's ring. However, Gram wonders if she may
have lost ring in the garden. Gramps, Gram, Jewel, and Bill go to the garden
to search for the ring. Roscoe, the reticent parrot, calls Addie's attention to
the ring, which hangs from the mirror in his cage. Addie confesses that she
took Roscoe out of his cage earlier when no one was home. Another
brouhaha over, the family returns to earlier activities. Bill lists three sentence
types, but forgets the last. "What am I forgetting?" he asks, prompting
Roscoe to respond with "Whodunit?" Aha! Bill recalls the final type - interrogative!
CAST OF CHARACTERS
(3 MEN, 3 WOMEN, FLEXIBLE)
JEWEL (F) ........................a vibrant, inquisitive, and studious student
GRAM (F).........................her kind, gentle, and nurturing grandmother
GRAMPS (M)...................her courtly, proper grandfather, a retired British
brigadier general
BILL (M) ..........................her up-for-anything younger brother
ADDIE (M/F)....................their lovable lug of a talking dog
ROSCOE (M/F) ................their pet parrot
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BY DONNA LATHAM
The Stratford Family
A tightly knit intergenerational family, the Stratfords are an energetic,
verbally adept bunch. The family dynamic is chatty, nurturing, and
supportive; together, they tackle problems that arise in their ongoing
adventures with the English language. As Gramps says, "English is quite a
sticky wicket of a language to master!"
Gramps is a retired British brigadier general, devoted to his bride, Gram, a
kind, nurturing soul. Gramps is a lover of history and literature, while Gram
enjoys tending to her garden and whipping up new recipes in the kitchen. A
still-vigorous pair, Gramps and Gram remain young at heart with the
presence of their grandchildren. Jewel, an industrious teenager, is a multitalented multi-tasker! She aspires to be the next J.K. Rowling and is
currently writing a whodunit. Bill, her spontaneous younger brother, is up for
anything! Thoroughly living in the moment, he is not actively planning for
the future, as Jewel is. In fact, he is consumed these days with teaching
Roscoe, the world's most bashful parrot, to talk. Add a lovable, loyal talking
dog, Addie, to the mix and the family is complete!
SETTING
The play uses a fixed set, with a cozy kitchen and an adjoining living room
area. At left, is the kitchen, with a table and four chairs. The kitchen includes
a stove, sink, and several cabinets. At right, is a living room area, with a
sofa, coffee table, and wing chair; an oversized cushion is on the floor.
Windows appear at opposite sides of the stage; curtains hang from rods. In
Interrogative! Roscoe is housed in a birdcage in the living room area but
may appear off stage in other plays. Addie's dog bed is currently in the living
room next to the sofa but may appear elsewhere in other plays.
Staging Suggestions:
As Interrogative! opens, Jewel and Roscoe are onstage. The door to Roscoe's
cage is open; unseen by the audience, an oversized ruby ring dangles from
the mirror inside. Jewel is visibly struggling to perfect her writing; her laptop
is opened on the table, and she wears a feather boa as she envisions herself in
the role of her detective, Madame Carlotta. When Jewel allows the
characters to take over and "talk" to each other, she mimes the conversation,
but it is extremely animated. Her portrayals of the clever Madame Carlotta
and the sullen bad guy, Matthew Milton, are clearly delineated for the
audience, in the style of an oral interpretation. Gramps is so engrossed in his
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INTERROGATIVE!
reading that he does not immediately notice Jewel. When Addie enters and
realizes that she has left Roscoe's cage open, she hurries to shut it, without
Gramps or Jewel observing her actions. This bit of business will have
importance later in play, as the audience begins to piece together clues, so it
should be handled delicately. Addie should not appear guilty in shutting the
cage; instead, she should appear concerned. When the missing ring is
revealed in Roscoe's cage, a spot should be used to light the cage. In this
play, Roscoe is most effectively played by a prop bird, while an offstage
actor voices his lines. You may wish to have one of the actors, perhaps
Addie, hold Roscoe for the curtain call.
PROPS
Pencil
White feather boa
Laptop
Sherlock Holmes book
Birdcage
Bird
Mirror in birdcage
Oversize ruby ring
Bowl of apples
Deerstalker cap
Calabash pipe
Notepad
Pen
Oversized magnifying glass
Oversized piece of brown fluff
Tape measure
Large colored feather
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BY DONNA LATHAM
AT RISE:
JEWEL is seated at a table in a cozy kitchen. She wears a white
feather boa and has a pencil wedged behind one ear. She stares with
great intent at her laptop, which is opened on the table. Then, she
mutters indistinguishably to herself as she reads aloud what she has
written. She shakes her head and stares off, thinking. Suddenly, she
leaps up and, with great animation and gesticulation, mimes a
conversation between two of the characters she is writing about.
JEWEL turns to and fro, assuming the stance of each character. As
she portrays Madame Carlotta, a detective interrogating the bad guy,
JEWEL throws the boa around herself; as she portrays the sullen
culprit, she drops it to her side.
GRAMPS: (Enters with his nose buried in a Sherlock Holmes book.)
Come along, Addie. (Sits on sofa; reads.)
ADDIE: (Follows GRAMPS with her stuffed bear; stops to toss and
catch it, and, noticing that the birdcage is open, closes it without
the others seeing.) Hello! I can't leave that open! Roscoe might
go AWOL.
For a moment, all are fully absorbed in individual activities; then,
JEWEL sighs. GRAMPS becomes aware of her, gawking in
amazement.
GRAMPS: Jewel, what the dickens are you engaged in over there? I
do believe you're arguing with yourself.
JEWEL: Oh, Gramps, I'm laboring over a new chapter in my novel. I
just can't seem to get it right. I've decided to let the characters
have at it for a while. Maybe they can work it out!
GRAMPS: (Crosses to her.) May I assist you?
JEWEL: (Nods; gestures to laptop.) As you know, I'm writing a
whodunit.
GRAMPS: Quite so.
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INTERROGATIVE!
JEWEL: I've established the crime and laid out a few clues in
previous chapters. Now, my detective, the great Madame
Carlotta, (Throws boa over shoulder.) is busily interviewing
suspects. I'm at a point where she's interrogating the bad guy,
Matthew Milton. I don't want to give away too many clues and tip
off my readers that Matthew's the jewel thief.
GRAMPS: Ah, yes, my dear, but in the irrefutable laws of the
whodunit, the author must present all clues and suspects to the
reader . . . Otherwise, it's an utter injustice if the culprit appears
out of the blue. The reader indubitably feels bamboozled!
JEWEL: (Teasing.) It's a sticky wicket, as you'd say. I need to
discover a way to elegantly provide clues without being too
obvious and spoiling the mystery.
GRAMPS: Ah, the time-tested conundrum of the mystery writer!
BILL: (Enters; greets ROSCOE.) Hello, Roscoe. Hello. (Waits;
shrugs.) Hey, Jewel, can you give me a little help on my
homework? We're studying the four kinds of sentences, and I'm
not sure I get it. You're the writer 'round here!
JEWEL: What do you need?
GRAMPS returns to the sofa and resumes reading; ADDIE rests on
the floor beside him.
BILL: I know that a sentence has a subject and a predicate.
JEWEL: Right! A subject can be a noun, a pronoun, or even a phrase
that tells what the sentence is about.
GRAMPS: Quite so. A subject might be a person, such as brilliant
Jewel; a place, such as fair England; or a thing, such as a dog!
(Pets ADDIE.)
ADDIE: Ahem! Who you callin' a thing?
All chuckle.
BILL: Got it! I know that the predicate tells what the subject does. For
example, Bill - - the subject - - tossed an apple - - the predicate.
(Takes an apple from a bowl; tosses it to JEWEL.)
JEWEL: You know your stuff! So what can I help you with?
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BY DONNA LATHAM
BILL: I have to write examples of the different sentence types. One is
the exclamatory sentence, which expresses emotions or strong
feelings, and . . .
GRAM: (Enters with great excitement.) Mercy me, I can't find it!
BILL: (Gestures to GRAM.) Like that sentence. Others are
interrogative; they ask questions.
GRAMPS: (Crossing to GRAM and placing his arm around her
shoulder.) Now, now, what's troubling you, my dearest?
GRAM: Has anyone seen the ruby ring my cousin Rosa gave me?
ADDIE: (Gestures to GRAM and GRAMPS.) Like those sentences!
GRAMPS: (Soothingly.) Don't fret. Please assist me in determining
what occurred.
JEWEL: I just heard a couple of imperative sentences from Gramps!
They make requests or give commands.
GRAM: Dear, dear, that ring is precious to me!
JEWEL: We know it is, Gram. We'll find it.
BILL: The last type is declarative, which makes a statement - - and
you just made two, Jewel.
GRAMPS: By Jove! I absolutely adore a good whodunit, don't you,
Jewel? Now, let us examine the scene of the crime.
GRAM: Goodness! Do you really think there's been a crime?
GRAMPS: My dear, let us keep all options open and consider every
eventuality. (To BILL.) Come along, Watson!
BILL: (Looking around.) Who, me?
GRAMPS: Yes! Addie, activate your sniffer, please. We'll return
momentarily.
ADDIE raises her snout into the air and dramatically sniffs left, right,
up, and down, as GRAM and JEWEL watch expectantly. ADDIE sniffs
around the sofa and then enters the kitchen. She sniffs under the
table and then stops abruptly at the stove; she assumes a pointer's
stance.
GRAM: Aha!
JEWEL: What do you smell, girl?
ADDIE: (Inhaling with rapture.) Ahhhh, Gram's baked oatmeal
cookies.
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INTERROGATIVE!
GRAM: (Laughing weakly.) Oh, Addie!
GRAMPS, dressed in a deerstalker cap and carrying a calabash pipe,
enters with BILL, who carries a notepad and pen.
GRAMPS: Now, let us all review our activities. When did you last
have your ring, my dearest?
GRAM: I removed it before I went out to the garden. I'm certain I left it
on my dresser . . . I remember, because I looked at a picture of
Rosa on the dresser and started thinking about how much I
missed her and . . . .
BILL: (Teasing.) Just the facts, ma'am.
GRAMPS: Bill, where were you?
BILL: I was in my room doing my homework. Addie was with me.
GRAMPS: Let us scour the premises for clues. Jewel, Bill, please
minutely survey the kitchen. Addie, (To GRAM.) my dearest,
please assist me in the living room. (Removing a large magnifying
glass from his pocket, he hunts for clues, as ADDIE, sniffing,
assists him.)
ADDIE: (To audience.) My great-uncle was a bloodhound.
GRAMPS: (After a moment.) Good gravy, I do believe I've found
something!
JEWEL: What is it?
GRAMPS: (Holds it up.) It appears to be a fragment of fluff . . . (BILL
writes in his notebook.)
GRAM: Mercy, Addie! Isn't that your fur?
ADDIE: (Indignantly.) Well, I never! I am not such a drab color!
Humph! (Tosses her ear over her shoulder.)
JEWEL: She's right, Gramps. That fur looks too mousy brown to be
Addie's.
GRAM: Oh, dear, don't say "mouse"!
BILL: (At the window.) Uh-oh! You'd better take a look at this!
JEWEL: (Running to him.) What is it?
BILL: Something tunneled through the window frame . . .
JEWEL: . . . and left itsy-bitsy little tracks under it! (BILL writes in
notebook.)
GRAMPS: (Crosses to window.) By jove, we're onto something now!
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BY DONNA LATHAM
JEWEL: Are you saying that a little critter broke in?
ADDIE: Critter?
GRAM: Dearie me! Was it (Gasps.) a mouse?
GRAMPS: Judging from the gnaw marks, I do believe it was an errant
rodent.
ADDIE: Rodent? Not on my watch!
JEWEL: I have just one comment: Ewwww! (Hops from one foot to
another, as ADDIE joins in.)
GRAMPS: However, its tracks appear to be larger than those of a
mouse. I surmise that it was a chipmunk.
BILL: There's your culprit, Gram - - an errant chipmunk. (Writes in
notebook.)
GRAM: (Sighing.) Oh, I don't think so!
GRAMPS: (Takes a series of measurements with tape measure;
nods to himself.) Hmmmm, yes. According to my calculations, he
illegally entered the premises, dashed about willy-nilly, left his telltale tracks, snatched the bauble, and beat a hasty retreat.
As GRAMPS speaks, BILL re-enacts the movements of the
chipmunk, wrinkling his nose, scurrying about, making squeaking
sounds, beating a hasty retreat, etc.; all laugh.
GRAM: Bill, you're my sunshine. I can always count on you to cheer
me up. But I don't believe it was this - - this rodent. He never went
near my dresser - - as we see from his tracks.
ADDIE: You're right, Gram. The tracks go into the living room and
then right back out.
GRAM: I believe he broke in, looked around, and returned to the
great outdoors. Now, I swear I left that ring on the dresser! At
least I think I did . . .
BILL: Look at this, everyone - - another clue! (He picks up a large
feather from the floor and wags it at the group.) He must have
had an accomplice! Some kind of feathered friend.
GRAMPS: Aha, a rogue fowl flew the coop!
JEWEL: Wait a second, Bill. That's probably from Madame Carlotta's
boa. (Waves the boa at him.)
GRAM: Who, dear?
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INTERROGATIVE!
JEWEL: Madame Carlotta, the detective in my whodunit. I was acting
out her role after I worked myself into a corner with my novel.
BILL: (Shakes head.) I don't think so. This feather's not white.
GRAMPS: (Collapses onto the sofa; wearily rubs eyes.) By jiminy, I
don't know how Sherlock Holmes does it! This is entirely too
confusing! (Takes BILL's notes and looks over them.)
GRAM: I certainly appreciate everyone's sleuthing, but I have a hard
time accepting that an errant rodent and a rogue fowl snatched
my ring. Perhaps it's not so sinister, after all. Maybe I merely
thought I had removed it, but was actually wearing it all along. I
may have lost it in the garden.
JEWEL: Then I suggest we search the garden to explore that option.
GRAMPS: Good thinking, Watson!
BILL: (Joking; pointing to self.) I thought I was Watson.
GRAM: Addie, please activate your sniffer again. Make sure that
there are no other 'visitors.' (Shudders.)
ADDIE: I'm on the trail, Gram.
The family exits. ADDIE sniffs around the kitchen. ROSCOE flutters in
his cage.
ROSCOE: (Offstage voice.) Awwwwk!
A spot lights the cage and reveals an oversized ruby ring hanging
from ROSCOE's mirror. ADDIE retrieves the ring, holds it high above
her head, and does a happy dance. The family enters, shaking their
heads, as ADDIE hides the ring behind her back.
GRAM: Oh, I'm befuddled! I don't know where I could have . . .
ADDIE: (Jubilantly holds up ring.) The remarkable retriever does it
again!
GRAM: (Gasps.) How did you find it?
ADDIE: (ROSCOE flutters in his cage.) A little birdie told me!
GRAMPS: I beg your pardon.
ADDIE: Roscoe had it.
BILL: What? That's impossible! He never left his cage today.
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BY DONNA LATHAM
ADDIE, head down, guiltily attempts to slink off.
JEWEL: Hold on there, girl. Where are you slinking off to?
ADDIE: All right, all right, I confess! Every dog has its day. While you
kids were at school and Gram and Gramps went to the store, I
took Roscoe for a walk. He likes that. He grabs onto my fur with
his teeny-tiny claws and . . .
BILL: Just the facts, ma'am.
ADDIE: He must have spotted the nice, shiny ring and snatched it.
GRAMPS: As the incomparable Sherlock Holmes says, "When you
have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however
improbable, must be the truth."
GRAM: (Chuckling.) Ah, me, another brouhaha comes to an end!
(Pats a stray hair in place.) Thank you, Addie. (Takes ring from
ADDIE and puts it on.) I'm going back to my nice serene
garden . . .
GRAMPS: I'm taking a well-deserved nap. By jumbo, this little caper
has positively worn me ragged!
JEWEL: (Adjusts boa and sits at her laptop.) Bill, before I get back to
Madame Carlotta, are you settled with the four sentence types?
BILL: I actually heard each type right here. Some of Gram's
sentences were exclamatory, since she expressed strong
feelings.
JEWEL: When Gramps located clues, his statements told us about
them; he used declarative sentences. When he asked us to do
things, his imperative sentences made requests.
BILL: (Imitating GRAMPS.) Right-o! (He mutters the three mentioned
sentence types to himself, ticking off each on his fingers and
appearing puzzled.) Exclamatory, declarative, imperative . . . Am I
missing one? What is it? What am I forgetting?
ROSCOE: (Fluttering in his cage; offstage voice.) Awwwwk!
Whodunit?
BILL: Aha! The kind that asks questions . . .
JEWEL AND BILL: Interrogative! (They high five.)
CURTAIN.
THE END
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INTERROGATIVE!
MINI-LESSON: SENTENCES
Hey, it’s that time already! Are you set? Then listen up, please. This is an
exploration of sentences.
Complete Sentences:
A complete sentence contains a subject and a predicate. The subject tells
what the sentence is about. The predicate tells what the subject does.
Examples
o These five detectives (subject) are renowned in our state
(predicate).
o The suspect’s slippery trail (subject) eventually took the
investigator to Chicago (predicate).
Sentence Types
o There are four different types of sentences. Each has a purpose.
o Interrogative sentences ask questions.
o Declarative sentences make statements.
o Imperative sentences make requests or give commands.
o Exclamatory sentences express emotions or strong feelings.
Examples
o Exclamatory: Wow, that detective is amazing!
o Interrogative: Where were you on the night of April 25th?
o Declarative: Her fingerprints are on the window.
o Imperative: Please tell me what happened.
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BY DONNA LATHAM
MINI-TEST
A. Directions: Read each sentence from the play Interrogative! Underline
the subject once and the predicate twice.
1.
2.
The reader indubitably feels bamboozled!
The tracks go into the living room and then right back out.
B. Directions: Read each sentence and identify which type it is.
3.
I do believe you're arguing with yourself.
a. exclamatory
b. interrogative
c. declarative
d. imperative
4.
Oh, dear, don't say "mouse"!
a. exclamatory
b. interrogative
c. declarative
d. imperative
5.
Are you saying that a little critter broke in?
a. exclamatory
b. interrogative
c. declarative
d. imperative
6.
Now, let us examine the scene of the crime.
a. exclamatory
b. interrogative
c. declarative
d. imperative
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INTERROGATIVE!
Answers
A.
1. The reader indubitably feels bamboozled!
2. My great-uncle was a bloodhound.
B.
3.
4.
5.
6.
c.
a.
b.
d.
Activities
o Example Sentences: Help Bill with his homework! Write an
example of each type of sentence. Read aloud your completed
sentences. Use your voice to illustrate how the sentences express
feelings, ask questions, make statements, or give commands.
o Sentence Scramble: Work in a group. Have each person write a
complete sentence on a strip of paper. Then cut the sentence strips
in two so that the subject is on one half and the predicate is on the
other. Put all the subjects into one bag and all the predicates in
another. Then have each person select a subject and a predicate
from the bags to put together a kooky new sentence.
Read All About It:
Diary of a Spider by Doreen Cronin, illustrated by Harry Bliss.
HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2005.
Diary of a Worm by Doreen Cronin, illustrated by Harry Bliss.
HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2003.
Laugh out loud at these witty, hilarious stories as you scout through them for
examples of sentence types.
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BY DONNA LATHAM
NOTES
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INTERROGATIVE!
NOTES
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