The Pied Piper of Hamelin

Malcolm read music at Cambridge University before entering the theatre as a Musical Director. Probably the highlight of his career was a 4 year world tour of the ˜Rocky Horror Show'. At the same time he honed in his writing skills with a series of Pantomimes and Children's musicals, which were performed professionally all over the country including his hit 'Mr Men Musical' in London's West End.

He started writing schools musicals with 'Ebenezer', which coincided with the launching of Musicline. Since then his many follow-ups have been so successful worldwide that they have enabled him to retire from the theatre to concentrate solely on this aspect of his talents.

His major hobbies are bridge, cricket, and writing musicals for schools! People often ask him if he is a teacher, as his shows have such a rapport with kids. The answer is no - he is an entertainer pure and simple, backed by the experience of years in the professional theatre. He claims to be still a child at heart, and he loves working with children, which shows very much in the works he produces for them.

PIED PIPER SYNOPSIS

ACT ONE

In Transylvania, adults & children are celebrating [Song: “HARVEST FESTIVAL”] The adults retire and the children play by themselves, only to be interrupted by a strange figure, an  limping old man with a stick, Old Hans. He tells them that he has been searching for his childhood sweetheart Heidi ever since a strange happening of more than 60 years ago. [Song: “LONG AGO”] He asks if there are any old strangers in the country, and is told that a group live in a nearby valley. He asks the children to fetch their parents, but asks Mina – who resembles his Heidi – to stay behind. He begins to relate the strange tale that started in Hamelin all that time ago…

We switch back in time to Hamelin where adults and children are waiting for the opening of [Song: “MARKET DAY”] The self important Mayor, together with his cronies on the Town Council, appear [Song: “VIPs”] to declare the Market open. The Mayor’s wife Eulalie gives him a hard time about his neglect of her interests. The citizens, too, are rude about his habits in the tavern, which persuades him and the council to leave the opening to an “underling” and depart for their civic (freebie) breakfast. [Reprise: “VIPs”]

The “underling” – the Town Crier – declares the Market open, but when the traders reveal their wares, they find to their horror they’ve all been nibbled at by the  rats that are plaguing Hamelin. Talk of the devil, the rats appear, and the crowd scatters. [Song: “RAT PACK”] The rats, flushed with success, reveal their plans to take over first Hamelin, then the world., then exit. [[Reprise: “RAT PACK”]

While the rest have fled, Conrad, a strapping young bricklayer, after bribing his young sister Gertrude to make herself scarce, meets his love, Lisa the pretty Mayor’s daughter. Though they know her parents disapprove of their relationship, they know that Song: “LOVE WILL FIND A WAY”.  They exit, and the young Hamelin children enter, playing games – all except the lame Young Hans, who can’t keep up, but is befriended and helped by young Heidi. They rebel against playing the game grown-ups. Song: “GROWN-UPS” Their parents enter and gather them up, still scared of the rats. When the Town Crier reveals the sumptuous civil breakfast the Mayor and Corporation  have just had, ignoring the rat peril, the citizens decide to revolt Song:”PEOPLE POWER”

Back to a brief Interlude with Old Hans and Mina, then on to the Council Chamber, where the Mayor and Corporation are sleeping off the heavy breakfast. The citizens invade the Chamber and demand action. The Mayor and Corporation panic, thinking they’ll be booted out of office, and not knowing what to do, when there is a knock on the door and the Pied Piper enters. Song: “TROUBLE-SHOOTER” He promises to get rid of the rats, and the Mayor promises a reward of a thousand guilders. The Pied Piper invites everyone to step into the street with him. Reprise: “TROUBLE-SHOOTER”

Outside, in the street, the rats march boldly on, but are bedazzled by the Pied Piper, who then plays his pipe and leads them into the river, where they all drown. The Mayor declares that there will be a big party to celebrate. Song: “CELEBRATION”

END OF ACT ONE

ACT TWO

Back in Transylvania more celebrations with Song: “BARN DANCE”. Mina introduces Old Hans to the assembled citizens. He asks them about the strangers. They tell him that they are on their way over. Old Hans then continues recounting the story to Mina. Back to a Ballroom in Hamelin where the celebration is in full swing. Reprise: “CELEBRATION”  Eulalie’s Ladies’ Dance and Drama Guild perform, riotously! [There is also an option for individual performances, talent, etc – could even be in the style of X-Factor!] Then there is a calming waltz, during which Conrad dances with Lisa, but Eulalie, her mother, doesn’t like it, and gets Hermann, a young bruiser to break it up. The Mayor blames Conrad for the trouble, and bans him from seeing Lisa again, Lisa rushes out in tears, but the Pied Piper gets everyone in the party mood again with some disco music.

We switch to a scene of an Old Rat telling a group of young rats about the Rat Wars, and how he/she was the only survivor from Hamelin, and the incredible music that came from the Pied Piper. Song: “SWEET, SWEET MUSIC” with a short Reprise of it to end the scene.

Back to the Council Chamber, where the Mayor and Corporation have giant headaches and hangovers after the previous night’s celebrations. The Pied Piper turns up to claim his fee of a thousand guilders, but the Mayor reneges on the deal and offers him fifty. The Piper demands the full amount, or he will pipe in a different fashion. The Mayor & Corporation order him out of town. Song: “GET OUT OF TOWN”

Outside, by the river bank, young Hans meets Heidi and they exchange tokens: she gives him a ribbon from her hair, he gives her a marble. The Mayor, Corporation and Pied Piper enter. Brief Reprise: “GET OUT OF TOWN” All the citizens and children gather, curious. The Mayor declares the Piper to be a charlatan, and is leaving town, whereupon the Piper pipes the children away and up into the mountain. Old Hans explains to Mina the beauty of the music, and what it meant to them, and how he desperately wanted to join them, but couldn’t keep up, and how the mountain swallowed up Heidi as he called for her…

Back in grief-stricken Hamelin, Conrad claims Lisa, the Mayor & Eulalie being too broken-hearted to object. The remaining adults sing Song: “WITHOUT OUR CHILDREN”

Back in Transylvania, the grief strikes Old Hans again. He finds that Mina has gone, and an adult explains she has gone to greet her Granny Hodel, one of the “strange ones” from the next valley.  The “strange ones” enter, and Hans finds they are his old friends from Hamelin. Some strange force made them unable to return, and they settled happily in Transylvania, changing their names to more local ones. Then Mina brings forth her Granny Hodel – and it is Heidi! They exchange the tokens they’ve kept all through the years, and the happy Finale starts “Finale: THE JOURNEY’S DONE” counterpointed by the Hamelin adults appearing and singin “WITHOUT OUR CHILDREN”

THE PIED PIPER CAST

MALE

Old Hans

The Town Crier

The Mayor of Hamelin

The Corporation [minimum 6, could be Female, or mixed]

Conrad

The Rat Leader [could be Female]

Psycho Rat [could be Female]

Cagney, a drunken Rat.

Old Rat [could be Female]

The Pied Piper

Hermann, a thug

MARKET TRADERS: Baker, Fishmonger, Cloth Merchant, Spice Trader [could be Female]

FEMALE

Eulalie, the Mayor’s Wife

Lisa, her daughter

Bimbo Rat

Woman Rat

Possible Corporation & Various Rats [see MALE casting]

CHILDREN

Mina

Gertrude, Conrad’s sister

Heidi

Transylvanian children [minimum number 4, speaking & singing]

Hamelin children [minimum 8, speaking & singing]

Young Rats [minimum 6, speaking and singing]

ADULTS

Transylvanian, Hamelin & Rats

OPTIONAL CHOIR