The Hula Hoop Girls: Sibling Rivalry

The Hula-Hoop Girls: Sibling Rivalry is a scene about two young girls, Jodie and Miranda, who long to join the circus. Jodie tells Miranda that she’s grounded for putting her pet snake in her sister’s bed. She explains that her sister was the one who got her into trouble. Miranda has an older brother who isn’t very nice to her. The two girls conspire to get back at their older siblings but soon realize that their siblings also do nice things for them. In the end, they figure the things they’ll teach them will make every circus want to hire them. A sweet and funny scene for children that emphasizes looking on the bright side!

David-Matthew Barnes is a best-selling author, playwright, poet, and screenwriter. Two of his young adult novels have been recognized by the American Library Association for inclusivity in young adult literature. To date, he has written over fifty stage plays that have been performed in three languages in ten countries. His literary work has appeared in over one hundred publications, including The Best Stage Scenes, The Best Women’s Stage Monologues, The Best Men’s Stage Monologues, Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Best Advice I Ever Heard, and 105 Five-Minute Plays for Study and Performance. He has also served as the guest editor of dramatic literature for The Louisville Review and as a judge for the Oregon Literary Fellowships in the category of Young Readers. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild of America and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. He earned an MFA in Creative Writing at Queens University of Charlotte in North Carolina. He has been an arts educator for over a decade.

Excerpt from the play:

CAST OF CHARACTERS

JODIE – Seven; a second-grader who has a pet snake and an older sister
MIRANDA – Seven; a second-grader who isn’t afraid of spiders but has an older brother who is

TIME: A Thursday afternoon. Present year.

SETTING: A backyard. A blank stage.

JODIE:
I can’t hang out with you today, Miranda.

MIRANDA:
Are you in trouble again?

JODIE:
I’m not allowed outside for a week. I told my mother that I was going to get the mail for her, just so I could tell you why I haven’t been around, in case you were wondering. 

MIRANDA:
I was very worried about you, Jodie. We haven’t practiced for our life in the circus in three days. I hope you still know how to hula-hoop.

JODIE:
I might be joining the circus a lot sooner than this summer. I’m in big trouble this time.

MIRANDA:
You usually are, Jodie. What did you do this time?

JODIE:
I decided to play a trick on my sister. See, she told on me for not taking out the garbage, even though it was her turn to do it. So, I went to my room and I grabbed my pet snake, Howard, and put him in my sisters’ bed, right on top of her pillow.

MIRANDA:
What did she do?

JODIE:
You should have heard her scream. It was awesome.

MIRANDA:
I wish I would have been there to see it happen. Did she really scream that loud?

JODIE:
So loud my mother spilled an entire cup of coffee all over her new dress.

MIRANDA:
No wonder why you’re in trouble.

JODIE:
I don’t even know why I have a sister.

MIRANDA:
It could be worse. You could have a brother like I do.

JODIE:
Your brother is very nice, Miranda. Everyone says so.

MIRANDA:
He’s nice to everyone except for me.

JODIE:
I wish I had a brother.

MIRANDA:
I wish I had a sister.

JODIE:
You can have my sister.

MIRANDA:
You can have my brother.

JODIE:
I’d rather have your sparkly, glow-in-the-dark, twirling baton.