The Mitten Play Script

‘The Mitten’ is an old Ukrainian folktale. As with many folktales, the original author is unknown. The story was passed down from generation to generation by storytellers. In the story, a young boy asks his grandmother to make him a new pair of mittens. When she is finished, she warns the boy not to lose them. He ventures out into the snow, and soon drops one of the mittens. One by one, the creatures of the forest climb into the mitten to get warm, until the mitten bursts, sending it flying skyward. The boy finds the mitten on his way back home, where the grandmother wonders why one mitten is so much larger than the other.

Excerpt from the play:

CAST:

Narrator One
Narrator Two
Lucas, a little boy
Mema, his grandmother
A Sparrow
A Hedgehog
Two Moles
A Crow
Two Rabbits
A Snowy Owl
Two Badgers
A Raccoon
Two Foxes
A Wild Boar
A Brown Bear
A Field Mouse

Settings-A little house on the edge of a village. A field covered in snow.

Narrator One: Once upon a time, a little boy named Lucas lived in a small village in a country called “Ukraine.” In the winter, everything was covered with soft blankets of white snow.

Narrator Two: Lucas loved the snow, but his old brown gloves were wearing thin. He wanted a new pair of mittens, he went to his grandma, who he called “Mema.”

Lucas: Mema, will you make me a pair of mittens as white as the snow?

Mema: What if you lose it in the snow? You’ll never be able to find it?

Lucas: Oh Mema, I promise to be very careful.

Narrator One: So, Mema set to work making Lucas a soft white pair of snow-white mittens. When she was all done, she called Lucas to her side.

Mema: Now, Lucas, I want you to have fun playing in the snow, but when you come home, I will check to see that you still have your mittens.

Narrator Two: Lucas was very happy to have his new mittens. He ran over the hill and through the trees, but soon, one of his mittens fell upon the snow and was lost.

Narrator One: Soon after, a sparrow came hopping by, looking for seeds.

Sparrow: I’m so cold, and this mitten looks comfy!

Narrator Two: The little sparrow hopped inside.

Narrator One: Just then, a hedgehog came waddling along. Hedgehogs look like they are covered in fur, but they are actually covered with quills.

Hedgehog: This mitten looks like it would keep my belly warm.

Narrator Two: He started to nudge his way inside.

Sparrow: Hey, I was already here. This mitten isn’t big enough for both of us!

Hedgehog: Sure it is. We’re both small enough to share.