Let s Pretend -- Dick Whittington and his Cat

Transcription

1 Page 1 1. MUSIC Opening theme: Cue # 2. NARR This is the Let s Pretend story of Dick Whittington and his cat. 3. CHILDR 4. VOICES Come one, come all, the big the small, we re here at Let s Pretend, You ll laugh, you ll cry, and wonder why until the very end. The joy of story telling to all we do extend, So give a cheer, cause look who s here, Ano-ther Let s Pretend. 8. NARR Hi, Pretenders. 9. VOICES Hi, Uncle Ted. 10. NARR 11. You know, if you want a faithful companion, you ll probably choose a dog. But for a pretty independent creature, that likes to sit in your lap, you d choose a cat. 12. EMILY A cat also has quite a special talent for catching mice. 13. NARR 14. Yes, Emily, and wait till you here how the hero of our story profits from that. Lance, suppose you tell us how we travel to meet him. 15. LANCE Well, the cat in the story goes off in a sailing ship. Could we travel that way, too? 16. NARR Why not? John, will you arrange the magic? 17. JOHN 18. Glad to Uncle Ted. Magical supply man, we d like a fine full-rigged sailing ship. (slowly) One two threeee. 19. SFX Slide whistle --- Ship s bell 20. NARR 21. And there we are. All aboard, everybody. We ll haul up the anchor, set the sails, and we re off for the Land of Let s Pretend, and the story of Dick Whittington and his cat. 22. SFX Water sound and music: MD Cue # 23. NARR Once upon a time, when the bells of London rang morning, noon and night, a poor orphan boy came to the city to seek his fortune. But it wasn t so easy to find work as he d hoped. Finally, one night, he stopped, tired and hungry, before a rich house on a quiet street. Down the road, the bells sounded. (SFX: bells tinkling) At last, he gathered enough courage to around to the back door. (SFX: knocking on door) 29. SFX Crickets : MD Cue # Door opens

2 Page 2 1. COOK Well. Well who is it and what do you want? 2. DICK COOK DICK COOK 9. Please. Please, ma am. It s only because I m starving. If you could spare a bit of bread. I thought so! Another good for nothin beggar. Go on now, get away from here. We ve nothin for lazy loafers like you. But I can t walk another step. I ve been walking all day and ah and I was walking all yesterday. I m so faint now, I I Oh! Oh, and now you ve fallen down on my clean doorstep. Oh, I ll get Mims to haul you off into the gutter where you belong. (calling) Mims! Mims! 10. ALICE My goodness, Cook, what s the matter? 11. COOK Oh, Miss Alice, I was callin the butler to get rid of this lazy loafer here. 12. ALICE Oh, Mims is off on an errand for Father, but Cook! Why that poor boy. He s ill. 13. COOK Oh, he s just tryin to cadge a free meal. 14. DICK No. I ll I ll work. I ll I ll do... anything 15. ALICE No, no, no! Don t try to get up. (Calling) Father! Oh, Father! 16. COOK Botherin Captain Fitzwarren with this no-good. Leave it to me. I ll get rid of him 17. CAPT 18. (Interrupting) What s all the excitement out there, Alice? Cook? Wha Well, who s that? 19. ALICE Oh, Father, it s a poor, young lad, half starved. We must help him. 20. CAPT 21. Yes. Yes. Yes, you re right, Alice. Here. Here, boy, let me help you up and into the kitchen. 22. SFX Footsteps and shuffling 23. COOK 24. Well, of all the soft-headed (pause) How do you know he s not a thief or a murderer. 25. ALICE Oh, Cook, now stop it. Just look at him and you ll see he means no harm.

3 Page 3 1. CAPT 2. Just go get some milk now, Cook, some bread, too, while I help him into this chair. (Grunts) There! There you are, boy. 3. DICK I I thank you, sir. More than I can say. I m I m sorry to have collapsed. 4. SFX Tinkle of a glass 5. CAPT Now. Now, now. The cook has some milk for you. Drink it, here. Slowly, though. 6. COOK CAPT Well and bread as ordered. And a bit of pudding, too. Since we re out to feed the riff-raff of London, should I get him a fowl, too? Easy now, Cook. I m no more anxious to encourage vagrants than anyone else. But this lad has a good face, and he s not much older than Alice, here. Well, feel better boy? 11. DICK Yes sir. Thank you. That milk was wonderful. 12. CAPT Like to tell us your name now. 13. DICK My name is Dick Whittington, sir. 14. ALICE Dick Whittington? 15. DICK CAPT 18. And I ve come to London looking for any kind of honest work. I don t seem to have had much luck. But anything I can do for you to repay this kindness Well, get to work on that bread and pudding right now, Dick, and after that, Cook can find you a place to sleep in the loft. 19. DICK Oh, sir, oh thank you. 20. CAPT And tomorrow, I guess we can find something for you to do around here. 21. DICK Oh, you shan t be sorry, sir. I ll work hard. 22. CAPT I m sure you will. Well, good night now, Dick. 23. ALICE Good night, Dick Whittington. 1. SFX Music bridge followed by tinkling bell striking hour of six.

4 Page 4 1. COOK All right, boy. (yells) Hey, you! Up there in that loft. 2. DICK Yes, Cook. Coming right away. 3. SFX Clopping sound like climbing down a ladder 4. COOK 5. When those Bows Bells ring for six o clock, I want you down here, boy. There ll be no sleepin the morning through while you re workin for me. 6. DICK No, ma am. But what was it you called those bells, ma am? 7. COOK DICK COOK 13. Bow Bells, of course. Their the bells on the church of Mary Le Bow, right down the street. Bows Bells? You know, Cook, this morning, and last night too, it almost seemed as if those bells were saying something to me. It almost seemed as if I heard words a message. Heard words? Hah! So it s not a thief or a murderer the Captain s wished on me. It s a looney, that s what. And what were the bells sayin, if I may ask? 14. DICK I a I couldn t really tell. I I guess it was just a fancy, Cook. 15. COOK 16. Well, you can give over fancies now --- if you want to stay healthy around here, boy. Come on now. Get the fire started. 17. DICK Yes, ma am. 18. SFX Rattling of pots and pans 19. DICK Could I ask you just one more thing, Cook? 20. COOK Hurry with that fire. 21. DICK Yes, em. It s about the rats up in the loft. 22. COOK The rats, ay? Hah! Were they sayin somethin to you, too? 23. DICK COOK 26. No. It s just that there are so many of them, Cook, I could hardly sleep at all for their scrabbling and scurrying and squeaking. Well, isn t that a pity now? Want me to tell the Captain he best move you to the best bedroom at once? It bein more in keepin with what you re used to.

5 Page 5 1. DICK 2. Oh, Cook, no I I only wondered if there wasn t something I could do about the rats. I wondered if you had some sort of trap? 3. COOK Want to get rid of the rats? Get yourself a cat. 4. DICK A cat? 5. COOK A lean, hungry cat s the best rat trap there is. 6. DICK A cat. Oh, yes, and she could keep me company, too. I wonder where I could get one. 7. COOK Out in the alley any dark night. You can take your pick of a dozen. 8. DICK 9. Oh, no. No, I I wouldn t want to just take one. I d want her to be my own, honestly purchased and paid for. 10. COOK With what? 11. DICK 12. Yes, that s the trouble, I haven t a penny. But maybe maybe I ll find a way to earn a few running special errands for Captain Fitzwarren someday. 13. COOK Maybe you ll find yourself out of a job entirely if you don t hurry a bit with those fires. 14. DICK They re all started now, ma am. Burning nicely. What can I do next? 15. COOK 16. Go draw the water. Then you can peel the potatoes. Step, now! And let s have an end of your talk about cats or rats, and bells that talk. The water now, Dick Whittington. 17. MUSIC Cue # 18. SFX Footsteps 19. TABBY Meow 20. DICK Ah, Puss. You were waiting for me, were ya. Heh, heh. Look at ya, winding about my ankles. Glad to see you too, Tabby. And glad I am I bought you. Why, you re the only friendly creature I see from one day s end to another TABBY Meow 24. DICK 25. Excepting for the rare times I see Miss Alice. Or the Captain. They re nice. But that Cook!

6 Page 6 1. COOK (Calling) Boy! Hey, boy? 2. DICK (Unhappy) Oh! Ya here, Tabby? 3. COOK I m callin you, boy! 4. DICK I hear ya, Cook. 5. COOK Well come then. Be quick about it. You re wanted in the house. 6. DICK 7. All right, I m, coming. Well here I go again, Tabby. You ve caught all the rats long since, so I guess you ll just have to nap again til I get back. 8. COOK (Screaming) Boy! 9. SFX Hurried footsteps 10. COOK You may be glad to know it s Captain Fitzwarren you re keepin waitin now. 11. DICK Captain Fitzwarren wants me? 12. COOK 13. Yes! Come on! Step along. He s in the library and you re part of the household too he says. He seein us all this afternoon. Ah, here we are. 14. SFX Knocks on door 15. CAPT Come in. Come in. Ah, yes, Cook and you have Dick. Good. Hello, Dick Whittington. 16. DICK Good afternoon, Captain Fitzwarren. Good afternoon, Miss Alice, ma am. 17. ALICE Hello, Dick 18. CAPT 19. Well, now. We re all here -- Cook, Mims, and Dick. I guess you re the only one who may not know what it s all about. 20. DICK No, sir. 21. CAPT Well, my ship, the Unicorn, is ready to sail tomorrow morning for a year s voyage to the orient. It s the custom here for every servant in the captain s household to send something aboard the ship to bring us luck, and insure a safe voyage. You be thinking what you will send while I ask the others. Mims, you re first.

7 Page 7 1. MIMS CAPT 4. Ah, I m sending twenty pounds, sir, hoping it will be doubled in trade with the merchants of other lands and my humble respects into the bargain. Very good, Mims, very good. I hope I do bring you back forty pounds for your investment. All right, Cook, how about you? 5. COOK Well, sir, I ve made you a plum pudding knowing it s your favorite sweet 6. CAPT 7. (Interrupts with laughter) Yes, it is indeed, Cook. And, I m glad glad to carry that aboard. Now, Dick Whittington. 8. DICK Oh, sir, I m 9. ALICE Don t be bashful, Dick. It can be any little thing. 10. DICK 11. Yes, Miss Alice. The trouble is I haven t anything at all that s really mine, nothing at all except Tabby. 12. CAPT Eh, Tabby? 13. COOK DICK Aha, a scrawny, good for nothin cat he bought with some pennies you gave him one day, Captain.. Begging your pardon, ma am, Tabby s not scrawny. And she s cleaned up all the rats in the stable. She s a fine cat, Captain Fitzwarren, and Captain? Could I send Tabby on the voyage? 18. CAPT Oh, ho, ho, ho, ho! A cat? 19. ALICE DICK CAPT COOK 26. Oh, Dick, you don t mean that, do you? I know how fond you are of Tabby. You d miss her very much, I know. Yes, of course I would, Miss Alice, but I would like to send something. And perhaps Tabby would bring the ship good luck. Very well, my boy. If that s how you wish it, that s how it shall be. Tabby will go with us as the mascot of the Unicorn. Ha! A cat! Huh! Well now you ve made a fool of yourself, boy. Go get the ugly creature you ve wished on the Captain. 27. CAPT (Laughs) Cooks bark is worse than her bite, I know, but run along now, Dick, as

8 Page she suggested get your cat and then you can all wish me God speed. 1. MUSIC Cue # 2. NARR And so Captain Fitzwarren sailed off aboard the Unicorn, but alas, he was wrong about one thing the cook s bark wasn t worse than her bite. At least so far as Dick was concerned. As soon as the Captain had gone Cook wasted no time in treating Dick as badly as possible. She kept him jumping from dawn till late at night. And if he was the least bit slow, 7. DICK (SFX: whipping sound) Ow! 8. COOK (SFX: whipping sound) That ll teach you to dilly-dally when I send you on an errand. 9. DICK But Cook, I wasn t dilly-dallying. I had to wait at the butcher s and I 10. COOK (interrupting) Be quiet! Or I ll switch you again. 11. DICK 12. Oh, if Captain Fitzwarren were home he wouldn t let you mistreat me as you do. Or Miss Alice. If she knew how you beat me, she d 13. COOK Just let me hear you tellin her, my lad, just let me hear of you speakin to her 14. DICK Let go of me. You re hurting my arm. 15. COOK 16. I ll hurt you more, unless I get your promise you won t be speakin to Miss Alice. The way I choose to train a no good servant boy is my business. 17. DICK Of course I won t tell her. I never would have. Let go! 18. COOK 19. All right. Watch the fires. I have to down to the green grocers now, and I ll be gone an hour or more. 20. DICK Yes, Cook. 21. COOK DICK And I ll know if you ve sat around do nothin whilst I was gone. Ha, ha! Moonin about that cat you sent off to sea. Ha, ha. Pity you didn t send yourself with the creature (SFX: door opens) and fall over-board. (SFX: door closes) Oh, I can t stand it any longer. I can t. It s no use. Oh, why do I stay on here when all I get is slaps and beatings from morning till night. I m leaving. First thing before dawn tomorrow I m leaving London and all its troubles for good!

9 Page 9 1. MUSIC Cue # 1. SFX Footsteps 2. DICK 3. Ooh! Ooh, it s cold at this hour. And this street it s so dark and deserted. Turn here I guess. 4. SFX Carriage wheels come a stop 5. COACH DICK 8. Whoa! Where ya bound for laddie? If you re headin in toward the market, I ll give you a lift. Thank you, sir, you re very kind, but I m bound the other way. I m leaving London for good. 9. COACH Well, sounds like you don t like the place too much. 10. DICK There s no luck in London for me I ve decided. That s why I m turning my back on it now. 11. SFX Bell rings six times 12. COACH Hark! Bow Bells are ringing six. I must be on my way now. Giddy-up! Giddy-up my lad! Giddy-up! 13. SFX Coach wheels - fading 14. DICK Bow Bells. I ll miss them when I m gone from London. 15. BELLS (SFX: bell tinkling) Turn again, Whittington. Thrice Lord Mayor of London. 16. DICK The Bells they re speaking again. And and this time 17. BELLS (SFX: bell tinkling) Turn again, Whittington. 18. DICK Turn again, Whittington. That s what they re saying. 19. BELLS (SFX: bell tinkling) Thrice Lord Mayor of London. 20. DICK Thrice Lord Mayor of London. Can it be? Is it really a prophesy that one day I might be Oh, it isn t possible. But who knows. If fate is speaking through the bells, I m going back. Maybe there is luck for me in London, yet. 1. MUSIC Cue #

10 Page NARR So he did turn back. And now we find him in the kitchen of the Fitzwarren house again. 2. ALICE Dick! Dick Whittington. 3. DICK Oh, Miss Alice. Here I am. May I help you in some way? 4. ALICE Oh, yes, Dick. Poor Mims, the butler, is ill. 5. DICK Oh, no! I m sorry. 6. ALICE DICK 10. His sister has come to take him home; she ll look after him, but that means I m going to have to depend on you, Dick, to look after things that Mims always did. Would you mind, Dick? Mind? Oh, Miss Alice, thank heavens I m here to help you. Thank heavens I did listen to the bells. 11. ALICE The bells? 12. DICK 13. I.. aw you d laugh, Miss Alice. It doesn t matter what they seem to say. They brought me back. 14. ALICE Brought you back? Dick. Had you left? 15. DICK I I m sorry, Miss Alice, I I never would have if I thought you needed me. 16. ALICE It was the cook. That old cross-patch of a cook. But she shan t order you around and scream at you any more. You re going to work for me now, Dick. I know that s what Father would want. 19. DICK You can depend on me, Miss Alice. 20. ALICE I m sure I can, Dick Whittington. 21. NARR Meanwhile, far across the sea, Captain Fitzwarren s ship has put in at Morocco on the shores of Africa. And a very odd thing has happened. The Moorish king and queen, delighted with the goods in the captain s ship, have asked the captain to dinner. But no sooner do the king and queen and the captain enter the rich dining hall, then the queen cries out 26. SFX Rats squeaking

11 Page QUEEN Oh! Oh, there s another. Husband, I thought the servants had gotten rid of them. 1. KING Be calm! Be calm, Estralita. Captain Fitzwarren, I ask your pardon. 2. QUEEN (Excited) Oh, what shall we do? What shall we do? 3. CAPT Excuse me, Madam. Perhaps I could help. (SFX: rats noise) 4. KING 5. Oh, sir! We are most embarrassed. Ah I had hoped that our plague would not show itself so clearly while you were here. 6. CAPT Your eh your plague? 7. KING 8. We call it that. Swarms of little animals that appear whenever the food is set out. Look! (SFX: rats noise) 9. CAPT By all that s holy! Rats! 10. KING You know these horrible creatures? You ve seen the like before? 11. CAPT I have indeed. We suffer from the ugly pests at home, too. 12. SFX Scratching and squeaking sound, louder 13. QUEEN Oh! Oh, look at them! They re up on the table e-e-eating the food. 14. KING 15. My dear, I pray you. You ve seen them before, Captain, do you know any remedy against them? Any way to get rid of them? 16. CAPT Why, of course. Have you no cats here in Morocco? 17. QUEEN Cats? What are they? 18. CAPT 19. You don t know cats? Well! Well of all the luck. Of all the strange and improbable luck. 20. KING Captain, what is it? 21. QUEEN Oh! Oh, those dreadful, dreadful creatures. We must do something, husband. 22. CAPT 23. (SFX: rats noise) We shall, Your Majesty. At once! Only be patient for five minutes while I send a messenger to my ship for the creature who is the answer to your troubles

12 Page Dick Whittington s cat. 1. MUSIC Bridge: Cue # 2. TABBY Meow 3. CAPT Yes, here we are, your Majesties. I have Tabby, here in this basket. 4. QUEEN What an odd and pretty creature. (SFX: more sqeaking) Oh! Oh, those rats! 5. TABBY Meow 6. CAPT 7. You ll see now, your Majesty. Tabby s now only odd and pretty, she s the answer to your eh plague. Now watch her now as I open the basket. See that rat. 8. SFX Rustling --- then sound of dish being upset 9. KING She s running after it. She has it. 10. QUEEN (Excited) Oh! Oh! All the rats are running. 11. CAPT 12. After them, Tabby, atta girl. Ha, Ha! Look! Look, she has another. (SFX: More dishes being upset) She has another! 13. TABBY Meow 14. QUEEN It s a miracle. 15. KING CAPT 18. Quick as lightening she catches and kills them. Oh, Captain, (Tabby: meow) this Tabby, we must have her. Oh, what will you sell her for? Oh, I m sorry, your Majesty, she belongs to a servant boy of mine, at home, in London. He leant her to me as a ship s mascot. 19. TABBY (SFX: more squeaking) Meow 20. QUEEN KING 23. Oh! There s another rat! No! She has it. It s dead. Like the rest. There s not a rat left in the room. We must have her, Captain. We ll give you anything for that little creature. I will give you three times what I ve already paid for all the rest of your merchandise put together. 24. CAPT Yes, but that s a fortune, your Majesty. It would total over a million.

13 Page QUEEN Never mind. We must have her. We must! 1. KING A million -- in gold -- for that cat, Captain. Come! How can you say no? 2. CAPT A million? I guess I can t. Very well your Majesty, the cat is yours. 3. MUSIC Cue # 4. NARR And so the captain traded Dick s cat for a great cargo of gold, and set sail for home. But contrary winds blew steadily, the ship ran into one difficulty after another, the days mounted into months, months into a year, two years, and back home, in London 7. ALICE Oh, Dick, do you think we will ever hear from my father, again? 8. DICK Of course we will, Miss Alice. 9. ALICE 10. But three years! And he was due to return in one. And next week is my birthday. I ll be eighteen. 11. DICK Perhaps he ll be back for that happy day, Miss Alice. Try not to worry. 12. SFX Door opens 13. CAPT (Calling) Alice? Oh, Alice, my child. 14. ALICE Dick! Oh, no. Is it Father? 15. CAPT Alice? I m home. 16. ALICE Father! Oh, I can t believe my eyes. 17. CAPT 18. Ha, ha, ha. But is I all right, my dear. And how you ve grown. You re a young lady. And Dick, my lad. 19. DICK Sir. It s good to see you. 20. COOK What is it? Is it the Captain? 21. CAPT And Cook, too, to welcome me. Greetings to you all. 1. ALICE Oh, Father, when did you come into port? Was it a good voyage? Oh, tell us everything.

14 Page CAPT 2. Oh, ho, ho, yes. Yes, we came into port an hour ago. And as for it being a good voyage, well, heh, heh, heh. In here with those chests men. 3. SFX Footsteps - sound of boxes being set down 4. ALICE Father! What is it? What s in that chest? And there s another. 5. DICK And another. 6. ALICE Father! What s in them? 7. CAPT Ho, ho, ho. Gold, my girl. Sack after sack of gold! 8. COOK Oh, Captain Fitzwarren, you ve come back a rich man. Oh! 9. DICK Oh, how wonderful. Congratulations, Captain. 10. CAPT All right, men, that will be all. 11. SFX Footsteps of men leaving 12. COOK (Awed) Oh! Oh, what riches! Ah! 13. CAPT Easy. Easy now, Cook. Eh, Dick, will you step over here for a moment? 14. DICK Why, yes sir. 15. CAPT 16. Thank you for your congratulations, but they go the other way, Dick. You re the rich man. These chests of gold belong to you. 17. COOK Whaaat? Captain, sir. 18. DICK I I I I don t understand, sir. 19. CAPT 20. Well, it s a long story, Dick, and one we ll tell often, I dare say. But briefly, I traded your Tabby cat for this fortune. 21. ALICE Oh, Father! It s not possible! 22. CAPT 23. Nevertheless, it s true, Alice. Dick s cat came as a an answer to a prayer in far Morocco, where they were suffering from a plague of rats. The king offered me all this

15 Page for the cat. Did I make a good trade, Dick? 1. DICK CAPT Oh, sir, sir I I don t know what to say. But I I can t keep all this. It s yours and and Miss Alice s. Oh, no, it s yours, with my heartiest, best wishes, Dick. And I m happy to see that while I ve been gone, you ve grown into a man into whose hands I m proud to give the treasure. 6. DICK Sir. Captain Fitzwarren, it s it s like a dream! 7. COOK It s a nightmare. I thought I d see that worthless boy put in his place, but instead, 8. DICK 9. Heh, heh, heh, come now Cook, forget the old grudge and I will, too.. Oh, sir. Oh, Miss Alice 10. ALICE Dick, I m so glad. I m so happy. 11. CAPT Every dream can come true now, eh Dick? 12. DICK 13. Every dream? Well, I There s another, even dearer, Captain Fitzwarren. Dare I speak now? 14. CAPT Dare you speak? Well, heh, of course, lad. 15. DICK 16. Oh, sir, I I love your daughter, and now I can take of her. Would you consider dare I ask? 17. CAPT Well, well, this is all pretty sudden. Heh. Do you love Dick, Alice? 18. ALICE Oh, I do, Father. 19. COOK Ooooh! Oh, is there no end to the horrors? 20. CAPT 21. Ha, ha, ha. Come now, Cook. Wonders, perhaps, but not horrors. Very well children, if you love each other, my blessings on you both. 22. ALICE Oh, Father. Thank you. 23. DICK Thank you, sir. I can t tell you how happy I am. 24. SFX Bells ring

16 Page CAPT Hark! The Bow Bells. How good to hear them again. 1. BELLS (SFX: tinkling bells) Look ahead, Whittington. 2. DICK Listen! Again they speak. 3. BELLS (SFX: tinkling bells) Thrice Lord Mayor of London. 4. DICK Thrice Lord Mayor of London. 5. ALICE What? What are you saying, Dick? 6. DICK 7. You didn t hear the voice of the bells, Alice? Never mind. Fact or fancy, I believe them now. With you beside me, Alice, I could be Lord Mayor of London one day. 8. ALICE That I believe, Dick dear. 9. BELLS (Bells tinkling) Look ahead, Whittington. Look ahead, Whittington. 10. DICK (Chuckles) Yes, look ahead. Look ahead with me, Alice to our wonderful future. 11. BELLS (Bells) Thrice Lord Mayor of London. 12. MUSIC Closing theme - Cue #