Molly Whuppie

by Joella Brown

Musical in 4 acts with 8 women, 4 men. One hour 10 minutes. $ 6.50

One critic called the Molly Whuppie story a "feminist Jack and the Beanstalk." For the young daughter of a widowed mother sets out on a journey to realize her dreams of castles and kings, and finds instead that she must screw up all her courage to beard the dread giant in his lair.

Molly Whuppie is set in a frame of everyday life, with fights and fun that all children recognize. Molly, the Widow Whuppie's youngest daughter, is a dreamer with her nose in a book. But when she begins to act out her storybook fantasies, her family and neighbors reappear in fairy tale guise. Neighbor Lady becomes the Giant's Wife. The neighborhood bully becomes an impoverished King, her mother a Queen. The overlay of the fantasy world on the real world gives this Molly Whuppie richness of texture and a depth that holds even very young children.