A Victorian Christmas drama for children

The play was written for year 5 and 6 pupils at a village primary school. It was featured in a Junior Education project on Victorians in September 1983 and it is suitable for any key stage 2 children as a Christmas production. The play is set in England in the 1850s. Mr Grimstone is overmaster to a group of chimney sweeps. He is a hard cruel man with no spark of humanity. He has a strange habit of carrying a small box with him wherever he goes. The play opens with one of the sweeps, Choke, being carried into the sweeps’ garret after falling down a chimney and injuring himself. When Grimstone discovers this, he throws Choke out on the streets. In his place, Grimstone introduces Twister, an orphan sold to him by the boy’s greedy aunt. To cheer him and themselves up, the sweeps hold an imaginary banquet which is broken up by the irate Grimstone.
Twister is terrified at the prospect of climbing chimneys and when forced to do so runs away. Grimstone and the sweeps mount a search and eventually corner Twister. In the hubbub Grimstone is knocked over and drops his curious box. Out falls a miniature picture which breaks. Grimstone appears distraught and returns home.	The sweeps decide to spend the money they had scraped together for a Christmas dinner on repairing the picture. On Christmas Eve, Grimstone resolves to be stricter than ever and orders the sweeps to work on Christmas day. They give him the repaired picture and his heart melts.
The sweeps discover that the picture is of his wife, Dulcie. Inside is a newspaper cutting from which they learn that Grimstone’s wife and their son died on Christmas Eve some years ago.The sweeps had always believed that Dulcie had been hanged for thieving.	The final scene is on Christmas day. The sweeps enter in darkness. Grimstone appears and the room to reveal a great feast and proclaims himself a changed man. He leaves and returns almost at once with Choke, whom he has sought and found. The play ends amid much rejoicing.
Now here is a sample of the play, and you can click to hear Choke's Lament	You can buy a copy of the script for £25. A cd of the songs costs £7.50 . To order, please send an email to enquiries@plays4kidz.com Thank you for your interest in my work. I look forward to hearing from you.

Grimstone's Glory Scene 1 (The scene is a grim Victorian garret dimly lit, shabby, sparsely furnished, the dominant feature is a large Regency style fireplace. There are signs of habitation, a table, pewter mugs, palliases, doors left and right. The only windows high up and barred. On some of the palliases there are some children asleep; they are scantily dressed and extremely dirty. Off stage there are the sounds of a struggle).
SMUDGE	Come on Choke, not much further
SPIKE	Nearly there Choke, try a bit harder.(Cry of pain from Choke. - the door opens and there enters a party of four, one of whom is obviously injured. With the noise of the entrance the sleeping children gradually awake and come to see what has happened).
FERRET :	Here, come on you lot, give us a hand, can't you see poor old Choke's done in? Help him over to the bed; come on Smoke, don't just stand there.
BRISTLE	What happened Ferret? What's he done? Smudge, Spike, what happened?
SMUDGE :	(Still busy with making Choke comfortable). He fell.
BRISTLE :	Fell, fell where?
SMUDGE :	Fell down
BRISTLE	Fell down, fell down where?
SPIKE	Leave off Bristle!
BRISTLE	Just tell us, where did he fall, how did he .........?
FERRET :	Look, instead of standing there asking stupid questions, make yourself useful, get him a drink, he needs one.
BRISTLE :	Well, I just wanted ....
FERRET :	MOVE!
SMUDGE :	There you are Choke, you'll be all right. Drink this, there, you'll be right as rain, you'll see. (Choke falls asleep, crying and sniffing, the others move away)
SPIKE :	What do you think Ferret?
FERRET :	I don't know, don't look too good to me.
SPIKE :	Smudge, what about you?
SMUDGE :	He's had it, he won't walk again!
BRISTLE :	(Almost shrieking) Will you tell us what happened?
SPIKE :	We were in a nob's house up Regent's Park, you know, chimneys wide as a mile. Choke and me were going up, near the top we were when Choke lost his hold, a brick came loose I think, and down he went like a stone.
SMUDGE :	He hit the grate with a terrible thump. I thought he was dead, gave me the fright of my life, then he moved and groaned.
BROOM :	Then what happened?
FERRET	The master of the house came running, must have thought we were up to no good. Anyway, when he sees Choke he tells us to get out, doesn't want no dead sweeps in his house, pays for a cab to bring us back here and here we are.
BRISTLE :	What are we going to do? If Mr Grimstone should find out there'll be terrible trouble and poor old Choke ...
SPIKE :	Never you mind Bristle, Mr Grimstone won't find out. (Enter Mr Grimstone, stage right, a large well fed well-dressed individual. He carries a cane and a box. The cane is mostly used for poking people with).
GRIMSTONE :	What's all this noise, can't a man sleep in his bed after an honest day's work without being woken in the middle of the night by you ruffians. What's going on?
FERRET	Nothing Mr Grimstone, Sir.
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Grimstone's Glory

Scene 1