Once On This Island Jr.

Tots Production

(Performed by ages 5-8 year olds)

Two Acts, Book Musical, Rated G

Book by Lynn Ahrens
Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens
Music by Stephen Flaherty
Based on My Love, My Love by Rosa Guy

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Cast List

Quick Review

Show Dates

Production Staff

Youtube Links

Character Breakdowns

And more....

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Only will-call tickets are sold online. Please bring your ID to the show.

If all the available online tickets have been sold, please contact us directly on the main All About Theatre phoneline: (831) 345-6340, or come 30 minutes prio to showtime to purchase tickets at the door.

For directions on venue details please call the Louden Nelson Center (831) 420-6177.

Cast List:

Congratulations to all of you !!!!!
We are very much looking forward to seeing all of you at the AAT studio tomorrow from 3:45-6:00pm to hand out scripts and to start working on the show. We will be continuing the choreography for "We Dance". Please bring highlighter pens if you own them... All will be made clear tomorrow !!!

Ceci - Andrea & Gossiper #1 & Ensemble

Chloe - Storyteller & Ensemble

Collette - Gatekeeper & Gossiper #3 & Ensemble

Corinne - Storyteller & Ensemble

Dakota - Asaka, Goddess of Love

Dalyon - Daniel's Father & Daniel's Son & Ensemble

Eli - Tonton Julian

Emma - Storyteller #2 & Soloist

Gavin - Agwe, God of Water

Gracie - Gossiper #6 & Ensemble

Hudson - Little T Moune & Ensemble

Jacquie - Gossiper #5 & Ensemble

Josie - Storyteller & Ensemble

Kalen - Papa Ge, sly demon of death

Maddie - Storyteller & Ensemble

Makenna - Girl (beginning & end of show) & Gossiper #4 & Ensemble

Morgan - Storyteller #1 & Featured Soloist & Gossiper #2

Morgen - Ti Moune

Siena - Mama Euralie

Tabby - Erzulie, Goddess of Love

Tenaya - Daniel

Vada - Storyteller #4 & Soloist

Zoe - Storyteller #3 & Soloist

Page 72 & 78 - lines - Corinne, Chloe, Josie & Maddie

** Many of the cast will also be Beauhommes
** Storytellers / Ensemble etc.. are all from the same village as Ti Moune and will also sing the Frogs, Birds, Trees and Breezes as well as the Gods...

Quick Review:

With its poignant story and catchy Caribbean flavored score, ONCE ON THIS ISLAND JR. is a feast for the heart, mind, and soul. The highly original and theatrical Caribbean adaptation of the popular fairy tale The Little Mermaid garnered eight Tony nominations for its Broadway run, including Best Musical, Book and Score.

In almost non-stop song and dance, the show tells the story of Ti Moune, a peasant girl who rescues and falls in love with Daniel, a wealthy boy from the other side of her island. When Daniel is returned to his people, the fantastical gods who rule the island guide Ti Moune on a quest to test the strength of her love against the powerful forces of prejudice, hatred and death.

Show Dates:

December 9th, 10th & 11th, 2011

Performed at the Louden Nelson Center, Santa Cruz

Friday December 9th at 6:30pm
Saturday December 10th at 6:30pm
Sunday December 11th at 2:00pm

Production Staff:

Artistic Director	Lindsey Chester
Director's Aides	Diane Bock & Clara Hartman
Musical Director	Rachel Nachison
Choreographer	Allysha Leonard

Character Breakdown:

Character recommendations for the show as well as vocal range - although some genders can go either way :)

AGWE Excellent singer, "God of Water"
B - High G sharp
Rich Alto / Tenor with flexible top

ANDREA Good singer and actress, refined, educated, a bit of an elitist, Daniel's fiancee
A - D
Mezzo-Soprano

ASAKA Excellent singer, moves well, "Goddess of the Earth"
A - E
Soprano/Belt

CHOIR OF STORYTELLERS Play many roles including peasants, villagers, guests, grands hommes
A flat - E
All Voice Types

DANIEL BEAUXHOMME Good voice (pop style), moves well
C - E
Tenor

DANIEL'S FATHER Some singing, acting, not sympathetic character
Tenor

DANIEL'S SON Small walk-on at end of show
Non-singing

ERZULIE Good singer (pop style), "Goddess of Love"
A - D
Mezzo Soprano

GATEKEEPER Big, impressive voice, moves well, in one scene and ensemble for bulk of show
E - B
Alto / Tenor

GOSSIPERS 1-7 Male and Female. Good voices, one-line features
A - E flat
All Voice Types

LITTLE GIRL/ LITTLE TI MOUNE Very young girl, some group singing

MAMA EURALIE Symbolic mother of all, good actress and singer, loving, couples with Tonton
G - B
Alto

PAPA GE Good voice, the "bad guy" of the show
D - A flat
Tenor

STORYTELLERS 1-4 True leads of show, excellent singers and actors, male or female
A flat - E
All Voice Types

TI MOUNE/ PEASANT GIRL Excellent singer (pop style), good dancer, good actress
A - E flat
Soprano

TONTON JULIAN Good actor and singer, strong and supportive, couples with Mama
B flat - E
Tenor with flexible top

And many more animal and dancer roles...

Full Synopsis:

In the opening number "We Dance," the peasants describe their world; their lives are ruled by powerful gods, and their island is ruled by the wealthy "grands hommes." They explain that the peasants and the grands hommes belong to "two different worlds, never meant to meet."

In "One Small Girl" they begin the tale of Ti Moune, a peasant girl from their side of the island who fell in love with a grand homme after being "chosen by the gods for a magical fate." They describe how she was saved from a flood by the gods when she was a child and raised by loving adoptive parents. At the end of the song, Ti Moune has turned into a beautiful young woman.

In "Waiting for Life," Ti Moune, who is now working in the hot fields, yearns for an undefined future which she feels she has been promised by the gods. She reminds them they have singled her out and tells them not to forget her. A grand homme dressed in white drives past her and she decides he will someday carry her off to a new life.

Agwe, the God of Water starts by creating a night of "Rain," and causes the young grand homme, Daniel, to crash his car on a dark road. Ti Moune discovers him. Cradling the injured Daniel in her arms, Ti Moune realizes that the gods have answered her prayer.

Despite the objections of the peasants, Ti Moune cares for Daniel. As her father, Tonton Julian, goes off in search of Daniel's family, Ti Moune's mother, Mama Euralie, observes that Ti Moune has become obsessed with this boy. Tonton Julian discovers Daniel's family, who live behind the guarded gates of a fine hotel on the other side of the island. Meanwhile, the peasants fear Ti Moune's folly will bring the wrath of the gods down upon them. They "Pray" to ward off evil as a terrible storm rises.

Inside her hut, Ti Moune pledges her love to Daniel in the song "Forever Yours". She imagines him handsome and well. Suddenly, Papa Ge, sly the Demon of Death, appears to claim Daniel. Ti Moune promises to give up her own life and soul if Papa Ge will only spare Daniel. He gleefully agrees to her bargain.

Tonton Julian leads Daniel's family to him and they carry him off in a stretcher. Ti Moune insists on following Daniel. Although her parents plead with her to remain with them, they finally allow her to leave with their blessing.

Ti Moune's journey begins as the storytellers enter dressed as colorful birds, trees, frogs, and breezes. They introduce Asaka, the formidable Mother of the Earth, who promises Ti Moune that "Mama Will Provide" all the things she is likely to need on her way.

Ti Moune enters Daniel's room where he lies in bed, still feverish from his injuries. She convinces him that she has come to heal him, and he agrees to let her stay the night. As Ti Moune lies down beside him, the Goddess of Love, Erzulie, appears to preside over them in "The Human Heart."

In "Pray - Reprise" the storytellers become gossips, commenting on the unlikely union of a grand homme and a peasant girl, as Daniel and Ti Moune fall deeply in love. The gossips insist Ti Moune may be Daniel's mistress, but will never become his wife.

On a starlit evening, Ti Moune tells Daniel of her dreams for their future. He replies she is different from "Some Girls" he has known and says "some girls you marry, some you love." As he sings, another girl dresses before a mirror, her elegant movements and clothes in contrast to Ti Moune's simplicity and earthiness.

At the Hotel Beauxhomme, a ball is held and the grand hommes eagerly wait for a glimpse of Ti Moune. She arrives, dressed beautifully but simply. Daniel introduces Ti Moune to Andrea Devereaux, the girl we saw dressing for the ball. At Andrea's request, Ti Moune dances, enchanting everyone at the ball. As Ti Moune celebrates her triumphant performance, Andrea asks her to perform at her wedding, explaining it is she who will be marrying Daniel.

Daniel tells Ti Moune he was promised to Andrea as a child and "this is how things are done." Ti Moune is in shock and Daniel bluntly tells her they could never have married.

Desolate and alone, Ti Moune hears critical voices from the past, echoing in her head. Papa Ge appears and reminds her of her promise, reprising "Forever Yours." However, he says that instead of surrendering her own soul, she can choose to kill Daniel and have her own life back. Reminding her of Daniel's betrayal, he gives her a knife.

Ti Moune is thrown out of the Hotel Beauxhomme. She waits, not eating or sleeping, until Daniel and Andrea pass by her after their wedding, tossing coins to the peasants. She calls out to Daniel and he pauses by her side for a moment, then moves on. She curls up in despair, and from her hand falls the coin Daniel has pressed into it.

Mama Euralie begins a lament for Ti Moune, "Part of Us." The storytellers enact Ti Moune's death. She is passed gently from one god to the next, until at last Asaka takes Ti Moune to her breast, and lays her to rest in the earth.

Ti Moune is resurrected from the earth as a beautiful tree, one which will shelter peasants and grand hommes alike for years to come. The storytellers tell the little girl how Daniel's young son encountered a beautiful peasant girl in the tree and the spirit of Ti Moune set them free to love one another. This is "Why We Tell the Story." They sing to the little girl, "For out of what we live and we believe, our lives become the stories that we weave."

As the little girl picks up the thread of the story and begins to tell it, the storytellers resume their places around the fire and the stars come out, as the lights fade on them.

Song List:

Prologue/We dance

One Small Girl/Waiting for Life

And The Gods Heard Her Prayer/Rain

Discovering Daniel/Pray

Andrea's Sequence

Forever Yours

Ti Moune

Mama Will Provide

The Human Heart

Pray (reprise)/The Ball

Ti Moune's Dance

Andrea Sequence

Promises/Forever Yours (reprise)

Wedding Sequence

A Part of Us/Why We Tell The Story

Bows/Exit