LITTLE MATCH GIRL (CONT'D) WONDERFUL LIKE A THOUSAND CONSTELLATIONS WONDERFUL LIKE A SEA OF CANDLES RISING TOWARD THE SKIES
ALTOS WONDERFUL
SOPRANOS WONDERFUL
T E N O R S A N D B A S S E S WONDERFUL
L I T T L E M AT C H G I R L C A N T B E L I E V E M Y E Y E S
ALTOS WONDERFUL
SOPRANOS WONDERFUL
T E N O R S A N D B A S S E S WONDERFUL
L I T T L E M A T C H G I R L C A N T B E L I E V E M Y E Y E S
ALTOS WONDERFUL
SOPRANOS WONDERFUL
T E N O R S A N D B A S S E S WONDERFUL
L I T T L E M AT C H G I R L C A N T B E L I E V E M Y E Y E S
NARRATOR I "The lights of the Christmas tree rose higher and higher, 'til they looked to her like the stars in the sky. Then she saw a star fall, leaving behind it a bright streak of fire."
L I T T L E M A T C H G I R L "Someone is dying," NARRATOR 1 —^thought the little girl, for her old grandmother, the only one who had ever loved her, and who was now dead, had told her that when a star falls, a soul was going up to God. She again rubbed a match on the wall, and the light shone around her; in the brightness stood her old grandmother, clear and shining, yet mild and loving in her appearance."
SMALL PART GUY (AS GRANDMA) Hello, Bubbelah.
L I T T L E M AT C H G I R L (Slightly confused) Grandma?
GRANDMA " Ven a star falls, a soul is going up to God."
NARRATOR 1 [OR MUSIC DIRECTOR] Okay remember how we went over that Danish thing?
(This discussion is very casual, very much side-lined banter among musicians)
N A R R AT O R 2 I think he's doing Jewish Danish.
DRUMMER [OR ACTOR PLAYING JACK] I love a good Jewish Danish.
N A R R AT O R 3 What would that be, like, a strudel?
NARRATOR 2 (Knows it's a terrible joke and offers it as such) I t h i n k i t ' s " / / a w j e w - t a s c h e n "
SMALL PART GUY This is serious guys. I'm interpreting the role as a tribute to the Danish people for saving Jews during World War II. Don't you remember that great story about how during the Nazi occupation of Denmark, when all the Jews were ordered to wear yellow stars, the King of Denmark said, all right, then all Danes will wear yellow stars; and that way, the Nazis couldn't deport anyone without deporting everyone. I mean that's a King, man. That's leadership. The Danes are my heroes.
NARRATOR 1 Okay, but you have one line.
SMALL PART GUY Well, did I even ask to play this part? Some people have pivotal dramatic roles and the rest of us get, what "Heartless Party Giver Ignoring Starving Child," "Post Nasal Drip Guy," and "Poor Dead Grandma?!"
NARRATOR 1 You ever hear a saying about how there are no small parts, only small actors? SMALL PART GUY Yes and it's entirely wrong. There are small parts. I'm playing them.
NARRATOR 3 He's got a point.
NARRATOR 2 To be fair, some of us didn't want to do the Little Match Girl.
(Depending on production decisions, DRUMMER'S lines can be done entirely by HAPPY FOLEY)
DRUMMER I wanted to do the Little Drummer Boy.
SMALL PART GUY — I was so with you on that.
ACTOR PLAYING THE MAN And we had a vote, and the Drummer Boy lost.
DRUMMER Yeah, but we should vote again. (Perhaps to other band members, looking for support) You ever see that old-looking video clip on MTV? Bing Crosby is home alone, sitting in his comfy chair and smoking his pipe, and there's a knock at the door, and who should come in but his "next door neighbor," David Bowie! And Bowie comes in with his orange spiky hair, and his zoot suit and thin tie, and the two of them have a really strange and awkward conversation.
SMALL PART GUY Right, and then to make things even weirder they say, you know what we should do, we should sing "The Little Drummer Boy."
DRUMMER That's the one.
SMALL PART GUY And even with that ridiculous set up IT STILL WORKS! Because you can't ruin the Little Drummer Boy!
DRUMMER Exactly.
NARRATOR 1 Be that as it may, we're not doing the Little Drummer Boy. We're doing the Little Match Girl, and we're pretty far along in the story. So could you accept the fact that every little thing might not be all about you, and say your one damn line!?
(Small beat as he takes that in)