Book by Rachel Nelson Fortner
Music and Lyrics by Mimi Sparks
A Pocket Full of Plays
Gruff © 2011 A Pocket Full of Plays
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970-628-1960
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CAST
GOATS
MAMA GOAT………………………………………………………………………………
GABBY………………………………………………………………………………………
GERTIE………………………………………………………………………………………
GILLIAN…………………………………………………………...…………………………
GRETEL………………………………………………………….………………………….
BILLY…………………………………………………………………………………………
GARDENIA…………………………………………………………………….……………
RABBITS
COLONEL RAMBEL.…………………………….…………….………… ……… ……….
MRS. RAMBEL……………………………………………………..………………………
ROBIN….……………………………………………………………………………………
RIXIE…………………………………………………………………………………………
BUGSY………………………………………………………………………………………
BUTTERFLIES
FLUTTER……………………………………………………………………………………
FLAP……………………………………………………………………...…………………
FLIT………………………………………………………………………………………..…
FLOAT………………………………………………………………………………………
FLUFF………………………………………………………………………………………
BUMBLEBEES
BABE……………………………………………………….…………………………………
BELL…………………………………………………………..………………………………
BIZZY…………………………………………………………….…………………………..
BETTY LOU…………………………………………………………..……………………..
TROLLS
MR. TITMIRE ……………………………………………………………………………
MRS. TITMIRE……………………………………………………………………………
TOMMY TITMIRE…………………………………………………………………………
TABITHA TITMIRE…………………………………………….…………………………
GRANNY TITMIRE………………………………………………………………….……
Gruff © 2011 A Pocket Full of Plays
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970-628-1960
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Overture
Musical begins following a brief overture highlighting tuneful snippets of songs within the script.
Following the applause, the lights come up on the colorful scene of the entire cast spread throughout the
stage, singing the opening number.
FOOD CHAIN
Food chain, food chain
Everybody’s linked on the old food chain
Run and hide, squawk or fuss
Or be somebody’s dinner
Yeah, the feast is us.
First comes bugs, crawly bugs
Butterflies and bumblebees and garden slugs
Next come birds with their mighty wings
Claws and beaks and other scary things.
Birds swoop down, give bugs a fright
Cats leap up, birds take flight.
Dogs give chase, cats run up a tree.
So exactly where does that put you and me?
The tippy-top of the food chain, food chain
Everybody’s linked on the old food chain
Except with nanny goats, the chain goes smash
They’re quite unique,
‘Cause they just eat trash!
La la la la la la la la la la la.
Song ends, curtain closes, and cast exits stage right and left.
Bridge should be placed onstage at this point.
SETTING: Curtain opens on a lovely meadow background. Bridge is situated upstage left.
AT RISE: Mama Goat is found alone on a brightly lit stage.
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970-628-1960
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MAMA GOAT: Oh, my little babies are so sweet. When I kissed them goodbye, they were so
warm and muzzy from sleep that I hated to leave them. But I have to go; they need a green
salad, and pickins’ have been slim around here lately, so I have to go farther away to find
the succulent green plants they need to maintain the flora in their little tummies. (Sigh) I
might as well get going. The upside is it’s a beautiful day. The downside is I have to cross
over the troll’s bridge to get to the meadow. Oh well…
MAMA GOAT’S SONG
(Mama Goat)
Goodbye, my darlings,
My heart fills with dread
Crossing that bridge
I’d rather be back in bed
I don’t mind saying
I’ve no wish to roam
You know if I leave you
I’ll always come home
Mama Goat crosses the bridge and exits stage left. The Titmire family has been hiding behind bridge
during the previous scene. They now crawl out from under the bridge for the following scene.
MRS. TITMIRE: Well another sunny morning here underneath this bridge. Say husband,
what does your day look like?
MR. TITMIRE: Same as always--scare folks and try to catch me a goat to eat.
GRANNY: Oh son, I’m glad to hear it. It’s been slim pickins’ for quite some time! I’ve had me a
real hankerin’ for a nice, thick, juicy, goat stew!
TABITHA: Granny, please don’t be so barbaric!
TOMMY: Dad, why must you roar and chase goats and terrorize everyone?
TABITHA: We don’t have any friends because everyone is scared we’ll eat them.
MRS. TITMIRE: Titmire, Tabitha and Tommy have a point. We’re never invited anywhere,
and these little trolls have not a playmate to speak of.
TABITHA: Who’d want to play with funny-eared folks like us?
TOMMY: Not to mention the fact that we live under a bridge?
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MR. TITMIRE: Now, if livin’ under bridge is good enough fer me, then it’s good enough fer
the both of you.
TROLL’S SONG
(Trolls)
We are the meanest guys in town
We turn this meadow upside down
Everyone hears our grumbly roars,
A scary sound that no one ignores
All critters cower and squeal with fright
Oh what fun on a Saturday night
During the day we’re rarely seen
But every night is Halloween!
And still we wonder why we have no friends
Is it too late, you think, to make amends…Yeah!
(In rap style)
Who’s that walking?
Trip trap tropping
Who’s that walking on my bridge?
I’m gonna eat you
I’m gonna eat you
I’m gonna eat you…UP! Yah! (Laughter)
GRANNY: Your pappy is right! Now, run along and scare something.
MR. TITMIRE: Wife, let’s get under the bridge and hope for a fat goat to come trotting
along—you comin’ Ma?
GRANNY: ‘Course I am! I love watching you work!
Mr. and Mrs. Titmire with Granny exit under bridge. Tommy and Tabitha move center stage and sigh
and exit upstage right. The Bees and Butterflies enter from both stage right and stage left. They fly in a
variety of directions, stopping occasionally to drink from imaginary flowers.
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970-628-1960
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BABE: Hey Flutter, what’s the buzz? (Lands on imaginary flower next to Flutter)
FLUTTER: Babe, you better bug off! I was here first.
BABE: Flutter, when did you become so aggressive?
FLAP: She’s just doing what we’re all doing—flapping, fluttering, and floating.
FLIT: Trying to survive out in this meadow of madness.
FLUFF: Taking one minute at a time.
FLOAT: So buzz off, Babe!
BELL: But need you be so nasty about it?
BETTY LOU: Really! Life’s too short.
BIZZY: You know what they say, don’t you girls?
FLOAT: Oh yes, we know…
FLUFF: You’ve told us a million times!
FLUTTER: You attract more bees with honey than vinegar.
THE THINGS WE HAVE IN COMMON
(Bees and Butterflies)
We should stop and remember the things we have in common,
When we’re feeling testy with each other.
There are sweet and lovely thoughts our little minds could dwell on,
Like underneath the carapace, we’re brothers.
Why should we fuss?
We all have wings.
And isn’t sipping nectar on our list of favorite things?
There are things out there that can give us quite a scare
So we need to stick together, don’t you see.
So let’s all stick together, you and me.
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970-628-1960
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FLUTTER: Come on girls, enough singing for one day.
FLIT: Let’s go drink some nectar from those lovely flowers over there.
Butterflies start to go offstage right.
FLAP: (Suddenly stopping and pointing off stage right) Oh my goodness. Will you look at that
pathetic little tribe of goats coming this way?
FLOAT: They look like poor wee orphans!
BABE: Say, didn’t you butterflies hear about those tragic goats?
BELL: It’s the talk of the whole meadow.
FLIT: Flutter, Flap, Float, what are they babbling about?
BIZZY: It’s a very distressing story.
BETTY LOU: The mamma of those little kids went to check out the grass on the other side of
the bridge, and no one has seen her since!
BUTTERFLIES: No!
BEES: Yes!
FLUFF: Now these kids are hungry and scared.
FLIT: Oh this is absolutely dreadful! We must get help.
FLUTTER: I know! We can fly over to Colonel Rupert Ramble’s hole and see if he and his
brood can come to the aid of the destitute little goats.
FLAP: We best hurry. By the looks of things they will certainly qualify for free carrots at least.
Butterflies and Bees fly off stage left. At the same time, Goats enter from stage right.
GABBY: My hooves hurt, and I’m hungry!
GARDENIA: Well my tail hurts, and I could eat a whole bag of mail.
GILLIAN: Oh, what are we going to do?
GRETEL: We’ve not eaten for a least an hour, and the meadow is looking so barren.
GERTIE: Ever since Mamma left to see if the grass is greener on the other side of the bridge,
things have been challenging at best.
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970-628-1960
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BILLY: Where is my mama?
GARDENIA: I want my mommy!
LITTLE GOAT’S SONG
(Baby Goats)
It makes us sad, mad, the opposite of glad
To find ourselves parted from you.
All we do is sigh, cry, and loudly wonder why
You left us alone and so blue.
Come home, dear Mama, our hearts fill with dread;
We miss you, besides which, we need to be fed.
We don’t mind saying we’ve no wish to roam,
We want our mommy, we want to go home.
Baa, baa, that’s us filled with sadness,
Baa, baa, please take away the badness.
Baa, baa, restore all the gladness,
Come home, dear Mommy, come home.
GABBY: Come on kids. Crying will do us no good.
GARDENIA: Mamma said we must always be brave.
GRETEL: Let’s sit over here and rest our hooves for a bit.
GILLIAN: Good idea!
GERTIE: Maybe we can think of a way to find our mama.
BILLY: Find her and get her back—because I’m hungry! (Little Goats move over to sit stage right.
Rabbit family enters from upstage left.)
COLONEL RAMBEL: Come along troops. We must maintain a brisk pace. Chop chop.
MRS. RAMBEL: Rupert, darling, I daresay I shan’t keep up with your rugged tempo. Please let
us take a short reprieve.
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970-628-1960
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ROBIN: Daddy may we stop?
RIXIE: Please Daddy.
BUGSY: We are simply exhausted!
COLONEL RAMBEL: Don’t you understand? Our fair meadow has been stricken with
poverty, homelessness.
ROBIN/RIXIE/BUGSY: Huh?
MRS. RAMBEL: Is that why you hurried us from our hole with such horrific haste?
COLONEL RAMBEL: Yes, my dear. As the chairman of the Board of Directors for Meadows
in Trouble, it is my duty to see that all of our citizens are well watered and fed.
RABBIT FAMILY MARCH
(Rabbits)
Lately when we’re marching,
One thought is overarching
Our back legs seem to give an extra kick.
It doesn’t seem too dignified
But what else could it signify?
We don’t so much march as we skip!
Skipping, skipping always to our goal
Never mind the hardship
If we can save a soul.
We’re skipping to the rescue
Through marsh and swamp and fescue
The obstacles are many in our path.
How many miles we’ve covered
While danger lurks and hovers
Who cares? We’re way too tired to do the math.
Skipping, skipping always to our goal
Never mind the hardship
Gruff © 2011 A Pocket Full of Plays
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970-628-1960
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If we can save a soul.
ROBIN: Daddy look! There are the poor little nanny goats!
RIXIE: My, my, they do look rather fatigued and undernourished!
BUGSY: Papa, what are you going to do? They are in dire need of assistance!
MRS. RAMBEL: Rupert, I daresay we will need help in this endeavor. There are an extensive
number of them.
COLONEL RAMBEL: Come, come, Rebecca, there is no job too difficult for Meadows in
Trouble! Now, let us proceed! (They move downstage right toward the goats.) Say there, young
goats! Are you in some sort of dilemma? (Little Goats tremble in fear.)
MRS. RAMBEL: Oh my dears, don’t be frightened! Colonel Ramble is merely trying to help!
Can you tell us what is troubling you?
GABBY: We’re lost!
GARDENIA: We’re tired!
GILLIAN: We’re cold.
GRETEL: We’re thirsty!
BILLY: We’re hungry.
GERTIE: And we’re depressed!
ALL GOATS: WE WANT OUR MAMA! (They all begin to cry.)
LITTLE GOAT’S SONG (Reprise)
(Baby Goats)
Baa, baa, that’s us filled with sadness
Baa, baa, please take away the badness
Baa, baa, restore all the gladness
Come home, dear Mommy, come home.
ROBIN: This is dreadful.
RIXIE: Why the poor little chaps!
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970-628-1960
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BUGSY: Father, we must take them home!
COLONEL RAMBEL: Good gracious, Bugsy, they would never fit into our humble burrow!
We need to find a long-range solution!
The Bees and Butterflies enter from all directions.
FLUTTER: Colonel Ramble, emergency! Help! Help!
BABE: The trolls are approaching!
FLAP: Everyone must take cover!
BELL: They look hungry!
FLIT: We’re all in grave danger!
BIZZY: If they see us we’re done for!
FLUFF: Please Colonel Ramble, we must alert the meadow immediately!
BETTY LOU: Especially these baby goats!
FLOAT: They just love goats.
Enter Tommy and Tabitha from upstage left. All others cover the Little Goats and freeze in fear as if
caught by the fiercest creatures in the meadow.
TOMMY: Hi everyone!
TABITHA: Is this a party or something?
TOMMY: Do you mind if we join you?
TABITHA: We’ve never been to a party.
TOMMY: We think it’s the ears. (Points to his ear)
MRS. RAMBEL: Dear me no! If one is considering ears, I fear we rabbits would prove to have
the most outrageous!
TOMMY: Well if it’s not our ears, why aren’t we part of the fun?
TABITHA: Is it because our Pa hides under a bridge and scares folks?
TOMMY: Please don’t hold it against us! We don’t follow that family tradition!
TABITHA: We would rather have friends.
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970-628-1960
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MRS. RAMBEL: Why how lovely, don’t you think? (She turns to the others for approval.)
COLONEL RAMBEL: I say old chaps, we could certainly use such enthusiasm among the
ranks!
ROBIN: I would be delighted to have you as a companion!
RIXIE: Your ears look charming to me!
BUGSY: Do you like to hop about like this?
FRIENDS
(Cast except oldest Titmires)
Friends, friends, friends
I got some friends, friends, friends.
I’m happy as can be.
It’s just my friends and me
Goin’ to the meadow to play some games
Runnin’ and laughin’ and calling out your names
You’re my friends, forevermore.
(Dance interval)
Friends, friends, friends
I got some friends, friends, friends.
I feel so good
Part of the brotherhood
Dancin’ in the moonlight, runnin’ in the sun
Playin’ together, it’s fun, fun, fun!
You’re my friends, forevermore.
FLUTTER: Say, if you two want to be friends, maybe you could help us with a very serious
situation!
BABE: Good idea, Flutter! (Moves to Trolls) Since you live under the bridge, maybe you know
something about the mother of these poor little kids. (They step aside and reveal the little
goats.)
FLAP: She disappeared, and these little goats have no one to look after them!
BELL: All we critters in the meadow are worried about what will become of the little fellows
without their mommy.
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970-628-1960
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COLONEL RAMBEL: I had hoped my nonprofit organization could handle the situation, but
with the number of them and their reputed appetites, I feel it is a bit more than even we can
manage.
TOMMY: Oh no! Pappy did chase after a goat a few days back…
TABITHA: But I don’t remember Granny cooking any stew. Do you Tommy?
TOMMY: No! All we’ve eaten lately is turnip stew.
GERTIE: Our mama went over the bridge to find us a safe place to live!
GARDENIA: And to find us some nice green dinner.
GILLIAN: She said she’d hurry back!
GRETEL: But we’re still waiting for her.
BILLY: We miss her so!
GERTIE: And we want that green dinner she promised!
(Enter Mr. and Mrs. Titmire with Granny from upstage left.)
MR. TITMIRE: What in tarnation is going on around here!
MRS. TITMIRE: Tommy, Tabitha, was you singin’ and dancin’ around just now?
GRANNY: That is no way for fierce little trolls to behave. Trolls don’t sing—they scare folks!
MR. TITMIRE: Now git on back home under the bridge ‘afore I give you a lickin’!
TOMMY: But Pa…
GRANNY: Don’t you back talk yer pa! He’s is the meanest, nastiest, troll ever was, and I’m
proud to be his ma!
COLONEL RAMBEL: Please forgive my bold manner, but we were merely talking to your
descendants about a missing mother goat.
MRS. TITMIRE: The only missing goats we would know about have been put in Granny’s
tasty stew.
EVERYONE: Gasp!
TABITHA: But Mamma, we haven’t ever had Granny’s goat stew!
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970-628-1960
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GRANNY: Well it ain’t my fault! The goat catchin’ business has been a little slow lately.
MRS. RAMBEL: Pardon me madam, I don’t mean to be impolite. These baby goats seem
convinced that their mother crossed your bridge in search of sustenance. I daresay you saw
her!
GRANNY: Look, lady, if any goat crossed our bridge, my son would a nabbed her. (Turning to
Mr. Titmire) Right boy? You ain’t seen a goat cross our bridge lately?
MR. TITMIRE: Well…
GRANNY: Speak up, boy!
MR. TITMIRE: Ah…
MRS. TITMIRE: Titmire, did you let a goat cross our bridge?
MR. TITMIRE: (Pause) Yes! (He drops to the ground and weeps loudly.) I knew I shoulda’ nabbed
her but… (Sob)…I jist couldn’t.
GRANNY: What do mean you couldn’t?
MR. TITMIRE: I chased her a little bit, but when she looked at me with them perty big
eyes…I jist didn’t have the heart!
EVERYONE (but Granny): Hooray!
GRANNY: Well I never!
MRS. TITMIRE: Oh Titmire, don’t cry! Bein’ mean jist ain’t fer everyone! Besides, I kinda’ like
turnip stew anyway!
Mama Goat enters from upstage left.
FLUTTER: Hey, everyone look over there!
BABE: Over the bridge.
FLAP: Could it be?
BELL: It sure looks like a mamma goat to me.
FLIT: Well, she’s wearing an apron!
BIZZY: Hey little goats, is that your mama?
GOATS: Mama! Mama! (They run toward Mama Goat, who has just crossed the bridge.)
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970-628-1960
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MAMA GOAT: Little Goats! Little Goats!
FLUFF: Oh happy day!
BETTY LOU: The meadow is a joyful place again!
FLOAT: The goat family is reunited.
MAMA GOAT: Oh my little darlings! I missed you! It took me much longer to find a safe place
for us to live—a place where there are no trolls to scare us, and we can live peacefully.
ROBIN: But Mrs. Goat, you needn’t leave our meadow!
RIXIE: You will be safe here from now on.
MAMA GOAT: Oh, how can that be when there are trolls in the vicinity?
BUGSY: Our neighbors, the Titmires, are off goat meat.
MAMA GOAT: I don’t understand. Trolls love to nab goats!
GABBY: Not anymore, Mommy.
MAMA GOAT: Not anymore? Why, what on earth do you mean?
GARDENIA: They like turnip stew better.
GERTIE: We don’t have to be scared anymore.
GRETEL: We can now live as one unified community.
GILLIAN: Yea!
BILLY: So how about that green dinner!
MAMA GOAT: Coming right up.
COLONEL RAMBEL: By Jove, we can do better than that. Let’s have a celebration like this
meadow has never seen before! (Everyone cheers.)
FINALE
(Cast)
We don’t fuss, we don’t fight
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970-628-1960
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Livin’ life is easy ‘cause we’ve seen the light
Being good is no big deal
It turns out turnip stew’s our favorite meal
Food chain, food chain,
Everybody’s free from the old food chain
To sum it all up as our little play ends,
The moral of the story is you don’t eat friends!
Friends, friends, friends
I’ve got some friends, friends, and friends.
I’m happy as can be
It’s just my friends and me
Goin’ to the meadow to play some games
Runnin and laughin’ and callin’ out your names.
You’re my friends, forevermore…Yah!
THE END
Gruff © 2011 A Pocket Full of Plays
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970-628-1960
THIS IS A PERUSAL SCRIPT. ABSOLUTELY NO COPYING PERMITTED.