Some of our favorite plays and movies are based on fairy tales written a long time ago. If the pros can use something that already exists, so can we!!!

Hi! My name is Danielle and I have enjoyed writing plays for my children and our homeschool friends and would love to share how to write a play, so you or your child can write one too.

One of the easiest ways to get started is to write directly from a fairy tale. Many fairy tales are very short in length, so it lends itself well to a short little play. 

First thing you need to know is that you must either ensure that the fairy tale is no longer under copyright and therefore in the public domain, or you must get permission from the author of the fairy tale. Since there are a lot of popular books now in the public domain, it’s easier to go this route instead of having to get permission. Just be sure to check that it can be used freely to create derivative works like a playscript. 

For our example, I am going to use a portion of the story “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” from Mother’s Nursery Tales by Katharine Pyle:

"Presently she came to a little house, standing all alone in the forest, and as she was tired and thirsty she knocked at the door. She hoped the good people inside would give her a drink, and let her rest a little while.

"Now, though Goldilocks did not know it, this house belonged to three bears. There was a GREAT BIG FATHER BEAR, and a middling-sized mother bear, and a dear little baby bear, no bigger than Goldilocks herself. But the three bears had gone out to take a walk in the forest while their supper was cooling, so when Goldilocks knocked at the door no one answered her.

"She waited awhile and then she knocked again, and as still nobody answered her she pushed the door open and stepped inside. There in a row stood three chairs. One was a GREAT BIG CHAIR, and it belonged to the father bear. And one was a middling-sized chair, and it belonged to the mother bear, and one was a dear little chair, and it belonged to the baby bear. And on the table stood three bowls of smoking hot porridge. 'And so,' thought Goldilocks, 'the people must be coming back soon to eat it.' "

Since the whole fairy tale is very short, we could use the entire story for our play, but we are going to reference this portion of the story to give an example how the script could be written.

OPTION 1: Narrator tells what is happening.

As you can see, you do not need to come up with any creative verbiage for this option. You simply copy what the story is saying into your script. The actress who plays Goldilocks can act out what the narrator is saying and then speak a few lines here and there. This is a good option for younger students who cannot memorize a lot of lines, or if you want to do a short play and only have a little time to rehearse. We use this method for our Nativity Play with our neighbors during the Christmas season. (You can read more about that here.)
 

OPTION 2: Goldilocks says in her own words what the storyteller is describing.

With this option, there is still a narrator, but Goldilocks is saying the majority of the lines. As with the first option, you do not have to come up with your own lines. It’s the same story, just from a different perspective.

You Can Write a Playscript from a Fairy Tale!

As you can see it’s easy to write a play if you start from something that is already created like a fairy tale. Using this method, you or your child can start writing a play today. Check out all the blogs in the series, How to Write a Play. Next we’ll talk about how to write a playscript from the book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

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Inspired by our blog series, check out our full How to Write a Playscript curriculum for more details to help you start writing a play today!

Too busy to write your own play, don’t worry we’ve got you covered with a variety of plays including The Big Race – A Montage of Aesop’s Fables and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland 30-minute play. Check out our drama bundles and save on a collection of short play scripts.

Thanks for joining us!

Danielle at homeschooldrama.com