10 Minute Musical - What's Your Wish? by Music Theatre International Australasia

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WHAT’S YOUR WISH?

Book, Music & Lyrics Thicket & Thistle

Licensing Agent

Music Theatre International 423 West 55th Street, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10019 T: +1 (212) 541-4684 www.mtishows.com

What’s Your Wish? Book, Music & Lyrics Thicket & Thistle

Licensing Agent Music Theatre International 423 West 55th Street, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10019 T: +1 (212) 541-4684 www.mtishows.com

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NICHOLAS

CHARACTER Smart, gullible, cautious, 16.

MCKENZIE

Unapologetically weird sibling of Nicholas, goth, 15.

DIANA

Single, harried, caring parent, mid-30s.

BRIAN

Down-to-earth, impulsive, Nicholas’s best friend, 16.

WITCH

A powerful, power-hungry Enchantress, with long, billowing robes and a beautiful visage. Appears to be in her 30s.

FAIRY

All wings and sparkles, she is a Fairy with a rebellious streak. Appears to be about 17. A servant to the Witch, she is trapped in a cage.

NOTE: The same actor can play DIANA and WITCH and the same actor playing MCKENZIE can also play FAIRY. The character names/descriptions fit the original casting; however, all parts can be played by any gender. Rename Nicholas to Chrysalis, Brian to Bree-Ann, and Diana to Devin. SETTING A suburban home and a magical storybook land, the present. MUSICAL NUMBERS “Overture” Instrumental “What’s Your Wish?” Nicholas, Brian “Secrets On The Wind” Witch “Dark Spirit Of The Ancient Soil” Witch, Nicholas, Brian “Make A Wish” Fairy “Dark Spirit (reprise)” Instrumental “Overture (reprise)” Instrumental

SCENE 1 - The Attic. Ten minutes to midnight. The attic of a house overlooking a forest. Music begins - “Overture” As the overture is played, the actors enter the space. DIANA holds a cupcake with a lit candle. She stands center, with NICHOLAS stage right and BRIAN stage left; and taking a big breath, NICHOLAS extinguishes the candle. Lights up to full. DIANA, MCKENZIE, & BRIAN: Happy Birthday!!! BRIAN: What’d you wish for? NICHOLAS: Brian, I can’t tell you, or it won’t come true! MCKENZIE: Do you really believe that? About wishes? NICHOLAS: That’s how wishes work, dummy. MCKENZIE: Wishes don’t work butthead! NICHOLAS: Mom!! DIANA: Your sister’s right, Nicholas, wishes don’t work. I should know. Well I will just be in the living room not wallowing in a pit of despair. Happy birthday. She eats the cupcake and exits. MCKENZIE: Bye Brian. SHE blows a kiss in BRIAN’s direction. BRIAN (shudder): Dude, I think your sister has a crush on me.

NICHOLAS: She does that to all of my friends. BRIAN: You have other friends? NICHOLAS: Yes! BRIAN: Then why aren’t they at your birthday party? NICHOLAS: Because they were all busy. NICHOLAS and BRIAN look around the attic. BRIAN: This attic kinda gives me the creeps. NICHOLAS: Yeah, it’s super haunted. So Brian, don’t touch— BRIAN: Woah! Check this out! BRIAN pulls the blanket off the chest, sending dust swirling in the air. NICHOLAS: Brian, that is literally haunted! BRIAN opens the trunk and removes a BIG LEATHER-BOUND BOOK. HE blows dust off the cover. BRIAN: Reeee-laaax. What do we have here? (reading) “To Grant Wishes.” Who’s Grant? NICHOLAS: No, idiot, it’s a storybook. It belonged to my grandfather. BRIAN opens the book, which emits an eerie light. THEY read from the book.

Song begins - “What’s Your Wish?” BRIAN: Once upon a time. NICHOLAS: ONCE UPON A TIME… IN DARKNESS BRIAN: There lived a beautiful enchantress who would grant wishes to young boys. But over time the forest grew sick, and the enchantress became a witch. And some who sought her powers were never seen again. NICHOLAS: IN A COOL AND SHADY GLEN AND SOME WHO SOUGHT HER POWERS WERE NEVER SEEN AGAIN BOTH: SHE’LL GRANT YOUR WISH UPON THE WIND TO YOU GRANT YOUR WISH UPON THE WIND THE EARTH WILL FABRICATE A PERFECT COMPASS ROSE FOR YOU WHAT’S YOUR WISH? BRIAN: THOUGH THE PATH IS FRAUGHT WITH DANGER THOUGH THE FEAR IS IN YOUR HEART THOUGH THERE IS NO HOPE OF TURNING BACK ONCE YOU START— NICHOLAS: Dude, that sounds scary! BRIAN: Nicholas, this could be the greatest adventure of our young lives! NICHOLAS: MY FRIEND, MY FRIEND, IT’S CLEARLY JUST A LEGEND LET’S GO. NO MORE. NO MORE.

BRIAN: MY FRIEND, MY FRIEND DON’T BE SO CONVINCED CAUSE YOU DON’T KNOW AND WHAT IF IT WERE TRUE? BRIAN: When you blew out the candle, what did you wish for? NICHOLAS: I can’t tell you or it won’t come trueBRIAN: Come on, what was it? NICHOLAS: Alright fine! I wished for a used car something sensible like a Camry. BRIAN: Oh my god, dude, you wasted a wish! We have to think bigger… BRIAN: WE COULD WISH FOR POWER AND RICHES NICHOLAS: WE COULD WISH FOR PERFECT LOVE BRIAN: WE COULD WISH FOR— NICHOLAS: —MORE WISHES! BOTH: FOR WINGS TO WHEEL ABOUT ABOVE! BRIAN: What’s the worst that could happen? BOTH: SHE’LL GRANT YOUR WISH UPON THE WIND TO YOU GRANT YOUR WISH UPON THE WIND THE EARTH WILL FABRICATE A PERFECT COMPASS ROSE FOR YOU WHAT’S YOUR WISH?

“Shhhhhhhhhhh...” sound and the boys travel into the storybook. Scene 2 - Death Forest. Lights up on BRIAN and NICHOLAS, at the door to the WITCH’s shed. Vines curl around the structure, it looks weathered and neglected. In a small garden, adjacent, sprout vile, magical-looking plants and herbs. The forest is dark and forbidding. NICHOLAS: Did we get sucked into the book? BRIAN: Looks like it. NICHOLAS: You got us sucked into the book. How could this get any worse? BRIAN pulls vines away from a sign, which reads “DEATH FOREST.” NICHOLAS: Bravo Brian, you got us sent to Death Forest. Of all the things we could have done on my 16th birthday, you brought me to a Forest of Death! BRIAN: Well I am sorry! I didn’t mean to get us sucked in. If you had wished for something better than a Camry maybe we wouldn’t be here at all! NICHOLAS: Shh! What’s that sound? We hear the beginning of the WITCH’s haunting song. Song begins - “Secrets on the Wind” WITCH: SECRETS ON THE WIND SKY FULL OF STARS LISTEN, YOU CAN HEAR THEM SINGING MELANCHOLY TUNE DEATH COMES ALL TOO SOON. NICHOLAS: Brian! Where are you going?

BRIAN: Maybe she knows how to get us back home! WITCH: SECRETS ON THE WIND HEARTS ALL AFIRE CRACKLING LIKE A SAPLING, FRESH CUT. YOUTH IS BUT A RUSE TRAGEDY’S AMUSING WHAT HAVE I TO LOSE BUT THIS EPHEMERAL FLESH? She ends the song softly crying. BRIAN: What’s wrong? WITCH: Oh! I didn’t see you there! How did you get in here? NICHOLAS: Well we wanted to knock but you were singing. BRIAN: It sounded sad. WITCH: It’s just... my enchanted forest is dying. And each moment it grows weaker... I grow... weaker... NICHOLAS: Well if there’s anything we can do... BRIAN: I’m really strong. NICHOLAS: And I am also... —I am a good listener. WITCH: Well, as it happens, I am missing one ingredient for my spell that only you can provide. BOTH: What is it?

WITCH: The blood of two virgins. BOTH: Well—sorry. We are not virgins. I mean we have totally had you-know-what before,—well not us, but— WITCH: Silence! WITCH draws a long ceremonial dagger and begins her incantation. Spiritus mali in sanguine virginis! Spiritus mali in sanguine virginis! Song begins - “Dark Spirit of the Ancient Soil” WITCH: MY MY MY POOR LITTLE BOYS TREMBLING IN THE FACE OF THE CHOICE TO BE SAVIORS OF THE LAND I’LL MAKE IT AS PAINLESS AS I CAN DON’T FRET DON’T CRY MY POOR LITTLE BOYS NOBODY CAN HEAR YOUR PITIFUL NOISE YOUR BLOOD SMELLS SO PURE GRADE A VIRGIN TO THE CORE OH DARK SPIRIT OF THE ANCIENT SOIL NICHOLAS & BRIAN: OH NO OH NO! WITCH: RECEIVE THIS SACRIFICE OF BLOOD UNSPOILED NICHOLAS & BRIAN: PLEASE LET US GO WITCH: MY BODY WILL BURN LIKE A RIVER OF OIL RELEASE THESE POOR LOST BOYS NICHOLAS & BRIAN: RELEASE THESE POOR LOST BOYS

WITCH: FROM THEIR MORTAL COILS OOOHHOOHH! WITCH: Oh fiddlesticks! Somebody forgot the Moon-Kissed Soil. WITCH eyes FAIRY, a beautiful fairy with an ugly name. FAIRY: Sorry. WITCH: It’s like I have to do everything myself. I’ll be right back, don’t go anywhere. The WITCH exits, cackling. Ahahaha!! BRIAN and NICHOLAS are left alone, trapped, helpless. NICHOLAS: We have to get out of here now! She is going to kill us!! BRIAN: I’m sorry, this is all my fault— FAIRY: Listen! Song begins - “Make a Wish” FAIRY: WHEN LIFE HAS GOT YOU FEELING LOW, NO ESCAPE, NOWHERE TO GO. THE WORLD HAS GOT YOU REELIN’ THOUGH YOU’RE STUCK IN A CAGE OUT OF LUCK? TURN THE PAGE... AND MAKE A WISH. MAKE A WISH AND LET YOUR WISH COME TRUE! YOU KNOW I WISH YOU WOULDN’T BE SO BLUE

THERE’S WISHES WISHING FOR SOME WISHING TO DO YOU ARE A WISH, AND THAT WISH, WELL IT’S YOU... SO MAKE A WISH The instrumental break is interrupted, when The WITCH bursts into the room, cackling evilly. The BOYS scream! WITCH: I’m baaaack!! Ick, it smells like youthful optimism in here. Lucky for me, no one feels very youthful after a blood sacrifice! Fairy, my theme! The WITCH strikes up the band and begins singing her incantation, circling the boys who are trapped! Music begins - “Dark Spirit Reprise” (underscored) BRIAN: “No not again!!” NICHOLAS: “Brian! If we wished ourselves into the book, maybe we can wish ourselves out!” BRIAN: “Then wish us home!” NICHOLAS: “I wish we were free!” The music stops. The WITCH’s spell is interrupted. The BOYS look at each other hopefully. Then it all resumes. BRIAN: It didn’t work! NICHOLAS: I already made a wish today—I must be out of wishes! Brian... YOU have to make a wish! BRIAN: I wish we were free! Uh, I wish we were in the attic! I wish I had fifty thousand dollars” This is: ridiculous, wishes aren’t real! NICHOLAS: You weren’t being sincere enough!

BRIAN: Sincerity is subjective! NICHOLAS: WE ARE GOING TO DIE!! The WITCH finishes her incantation, moves in with her dagger. WITCH: Any final words? BRIAN (closing his eyes): I wish it was ten minutes ago! The WITCH screams, the BOYS scream, everything swirls in chaos, sheets are thrown over their objects, and we arrive safely, back in the attic. Scene 3 - Back in the attic. The BOYS are breathing very hard, Downstage while DIANA enters, with a burning candle on top of a cupcake. BRIAN: We are back in the attic! NICHOLAS: Your wish worked! We made it out alive! THE BOYS hug. DIANA: Blow out your candle, Nicky! The BOYS scream. MCKENZIE: Before we die please?! DIANA: Your sister is right. We don’t have forever. NICHOLAS: I know exactly what I’m going to wish for.

NICHOLAS extinguishes the candle. Lights out. Music begins - “Overture (reprise)” Actors bow, then play themselves offstage.

END

THICKET & THISTLE is a troop of theatre makers who weave their multidisciplinary creative skills, imaginative storytelling, and humble virtuosity to create original, charming, and accessible musical theatre in which the actors are also the musicians playing multiple instruments while singing, dancing, and acting. Formed in early 2014, the current members are: Kyle Acheson, Julianna Wheeler, Jonathan Foster, Sam De Roest, Lindsay Zaroogian, and Joshua Stenseth. Thicket & Thistle’s first creation was a ten minute musical, What’s Your Wish?, for Theatre Now New York’s SOUND BITES 2.0 festival. They then developed What’s Your Wish? to a full musical and performed it at the NY Fringe Fest in 2015, Access Theatre in 2016, The Michael Chekhov Festival in 2016, and NYMF in 2018. In 2015, Thicket & Thistle performed The Waterman at Ars Nova for their Summer ANT Fest, and the following year, they began developing their 3rd original musical, Death Cruise which played at Access Theatre and the PIT in 2019. Thicket & Thistle has enjoyed residencies with Access Theatre, The PIT Theatre, and are currently participants in Theatre Now New York’s Musical Theatre Writers Lab.

ABOUT THEATRE NOW NEW YORK Theatre Now New York is an artist service organization dedicated to the development, production, publication, and circulation of new short and long-form musicals by providing ongoing support to emerging writers and their work. Theatre Now bridges the gap between early readings and fully-produced theatrical runs by offering developmental productions to pieces that are ready to live on their feet. We nurture diverse storytellers and innovative forms that showcase untold stories and push the boundaries of musical theatre. Theatre Now’s flagship event, SOUND BITES is an annual festival of 10-minute musicals performed before a live audience. Since its inception, SOUND BITES has produced musicals by over 60 new musical theatre writers, utilizing the talents of over 700 performers, musicians, directors, choreographers, interns, and volunteers. Theatre Now’s development programs for writers include our Musical Writing Lab, now entering its second year. Select musical theatre writing teams experience weekly writing sessions, early table reads of new work, readings and cabarets before invited audiences, and staged industry readings in preparation for major production. Our Musical Writing Lab teams may also submit full-length musicals for developmental workshops produced and presented by Theatre Now in an off-Broadway theatre over a two- to four-week run. Theatre Now furthers the visibility of our alumni writers with opportunities for networking, publication, and future production. In addition, Theatre Now acts as theatrical licensor for musical properties we have produced, offering musicals for production in schools, colleges, community theatres, other professional theatre companies, and venues across the country. By providing long-term support for rising artists and original forms, we entice unexpected audiences to experience the emerging voices of musical theatre. For more information about Theatre Now and our upcoming shows and programs, visit our website at www.tnny.org.