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Battledrum

Battledrum

Book and lyrics by Doug Cooney. Music by Lee Ahlin.

Product Code: BC8000

Musical

Drama

Cast size: 4m., 1w. with doubling. May be expanded to up to 10m., 3w.


Awards: The Charlotte B. Chorpenning Playwright Award


Rights and availability

This title can be licensed and sold in the following countries:
Canada, United States

* Please note the royalty rate listed is the minimum royalty rate per performance. The actual royalty rate will be determined upon completion of a royalty application.

Available Formats
$10.95
In Stock
$10.95
(Unprintable)

Min. Royalty Rate: $90.00/perf

Synopsis

Battledrum occurs during the early years of the Civil War in Kentucky and surrounding southern states. A 10-year-old Confederate boy named Rufus has been orphaned after his family's farm has been burned to the ground. With nowhere else to turn, he tags along with a Union troop as the "second drummer, on reserve." Jackson, the Union drummer boy in command, is none too pleased to have a Confederate charge underfoot—but, in time, the two boys develop a brotherly if quarrelsome regard. When Jackson offers Rufus a thick overcoat that he has reclaimed from a Civil War battlefield, the boys find a hand-written letter in the pocket and take small comfort in reading romantic excerpts at bedtime. Things change, however, when George Washington, a runaway slave boy who got lost on the Underground Railroad, stumbles into their midst. George Washington secretly taught himself to read on the plantation and provides a more accurate and more disturbing reading of the contents of the letter. The boys learn a harsh truth about the fate that awaited Civil War drummer boys—and as the battlefield looms, the boys learn about the courage required when children are employed in battle. "The drummer boys were the communication system relaying messages for the armies on both sides," says playwright Cooney. "If the enemy wanted to disrupt your army, they took aim at the drummer boys." Battledrum offers a compelling evocation of war, with plentiful moments of comic relief and an insightful message about the use of children in the military battles. The story is energized with entertaining songs—stylistically varied but still imparting a feel for the period—and the production climaxes in a thrilling drum line performed with bravura by the entire ensemble.

Details

  • Status In stock
  • Type of Show Musical
  • Product Code BC8000
  • Minimum Cast Size 5
  • Pages of Dialogue 56
  • Min. Royalty Rate $90.00/perf
  • Approx. Run Time 55 min
  • Staging Unit set.

Categories

  • Target Audience Middle School | High School | College and Adult
  • Performing Group High School | College Theatre | Community Theatre | Professional Theatre | TYA
  • Genre Drama
  • ISBN(13) 9781583426135

* Please note the royalty rate listed is the minimum royalty rate per performance. The actual royalty rate will be determined upon completion of a royalty application.

Audio/Video

Audio

Fire mp3 Download
Like I Said mp3 Download
Fire Exit mp3 Download
Everybody Hates the Drummer Boy mp3 Download
Waltz mp3 Download
Sweet Mushy Stuff mp3 Download
We Move With the Moon mp3 Download
Glory mp3 Download
Like I Said (Reprise) mp3 Download
Make the Fear Disappear mp3 Download