Fluency - Readers' Theater Example

The Bremen Town Musicians
A German Folktale
Characters: (8): Narrator 1, Narrator 2, Narrator 3, Narrator 4, Donkey, Dog, Cat, Rooster Narrator 1:    The Bremen Town Musicans, a German folktale.
Narrator 2:      Once upon a time a donkey worked long and hard for his
master.  As the years went by the donkey grew old and weak.
Narrator 2:      One day the donkey heard his master say that he was going to get rid of him.  When the donkey heard this he said...
Donkey:              I will run away to the town of Bremen. I have a strong voice. I will become a fine singer.
Narrator 4:          So the donkey left the farm and headed down the road to Bremen.
Narrator 1:      By and by the donkey met an old dog.
Donkey:          Good morning, Dog! How are you this fine day?
Dog:                 I am old and weak. My master wants to get rid of me. I don't know what to do.
Donkey:          Why not come with me to the town of Bremen? Together we can be fine musicians.
Narrator 2:      So the dog and the donkey headed down the road.
Narrator 3:      By and by they met a cat.
Dog:        Hello, Cat! How are you this fine day?
Cat:        I am old and weak. My master wants to get rid of me. I don't know what to do.
Donkey:          Why not come with us to the town of Bremen? Together we can be fine musicians.
Narrator 4:          So the cat, the dog, and the donkey headed down the road.
Narrator 1:      By and by they met a rooster.
Cat:             Hello, Rooster!  How are you this fine day?
Rooster:        I am old and weak. My master wants to get rid of me. I don't know what to do.
Donkey:          Why not come with us to the town of Bremen? Together we can be fine musicians.
Narrator 2:      So the rooster, the cat, the dog, and the donkey headed down the road.
Narrator 3:      The animals walked all day but they did not reach the town of Bremen.
Donkey:              Come, my friends. Let's rest under this big tree for the night.
Narrator 4:      The rooster flew up into the tree to get a look around. Suddenly he called out...
Rooster:         We are in luck my friends! I see a light. Perhaps there is a house for us to sleep in.
Narrator 1:      The animals followed the rooster to the light. There they found a little house. The donkey peeked in the window.
Narrator 2:      The donkey saw a band of robbers inside the little house. The robbers were so busy counting their money that they did not see the donkey.
Donkey:          My friends we must think of a way to frighten those robbers away.
Narrator 3:      It wasn't long before the animals had hatched a good plan.
Narrator 4:      The donkey stood on his hind legs. The dog climbed on the donkey's shoulders. The cat climbed onto the dog's back. The rooster perched on top of the cat. 
Narrator 1:      And then the animals call out... 
Donkey:          Hee haw!  Hee haw! 
Dog:             Woof!  Woof!  Woof! 
Cat:             Meow!  Meow!  Meow!
Rooster:         Cock-a-doodle-doo! 
Narrator 2:      The noise scared the robbers. The robbers dashed out of the little house and ran away.
Narrator 3:      The robbers did not take their gold. They did not take their food. They just ran away as fast as they could. 
Donkey:           What good luck, my friends!  Now we have a cozy house, tasty food, and all the gold we'll ever need. 
Narrator 4:      The animals never went to the town of Bremen. They lived happily ever after in the tiny house in the woods.
All:             The End.