Welcome to The Peasant and the Dragon’s Treasure! This play tells the story of Phillip, a brave young peasant who falls in love with Princess Mary. When the King challenges him to slay a dragon and retrieve the royal treasure to marry her, Phillip must prove that courage, cleverness, and true love are stronger than noble titles or riches. Children will enjoy this tale of bravery, wit, and triumph against impossible odds.
CHARACTERS:
NARRATOR
PHILLIP
MARY
KING
VILLAGE MAYOR
SOLDIERS (Non-speaking)
SCRIPT:
NARRATOR: Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, a small village had just finished its harvest and was celebrating with gusto. Thanks to the abundant bounty, there was plenty of food and drink, music, and dancing. A young man named Phillip, the strongest and most handsome in the village, found girls lining up to dance with him. But late in the evening, a new girl caught his eye.
PHILLIP: (To the audience, mesmerized) Who is she?
NARRATOR: Nobody recognized her. But that didn’t deter Phillip. He approached her and asked her to dance. She was as smitten with him as he was with her.
PHILLIP: What’s your name?
MARY: I am Mary.
PHILLIP: You’re not from around here, are you?
MARY: No.
PHILLIP: Where are you from?
MARY: From somewhere else.
NARRATOR: They danced every dance without resting for the rest of the night, and by dawn, they had fallen deeply in love. Suddenly, a loud thundering of horses’ hooves echoed from outside.
MARY: (Nervous, pulling away) I must leave!
PHILLIP: (Holding her hand) No, stay! The music is still playing! Let’s dance!
NARRATOR: At that moment, all the doors in the room burst open simultaneously. Soldiers, armed with swords and spears, rushed toward Phillip and Mary. Instantly, everyone in the room bowed down.
PHILLIP: (Confused) What’s going on?
KING: (Stepping forward, his voice booming) Take your hands off my daughter!
NARRATOR: The soldiers immediately pulled Phillip away from Mary and threw him to the floor, pointing their weapons menacingly at his face.
MARY: (Crying out) Father, please, don’t hurt him!
NARRATOR: Phillip was utterly bewildered.
PHILLIP: The King is your father?
NARRATOR: The King didn’t let Mary answer. He pointed a stern finger at Phillip’s nose and shouted.
KING: You stay away from my daughter!
PHILLIP: But… I want to marry her!
KING: (Laughing scornfully) You think I would let a peasant boy, a mere farmer, marry my daughter?
PHILLIP: Why not? I love her, and she loves me.
KING: (Scoffs) Silly boy! A princess cannot marry a common person. A princess may only marry a nobleman, a knight, or a rich man!
NARRATOR: Then the King grabbed Mary by the arm and pulled her toward the door.
PHILLIP: (Shouting after them) Your Majesty, if I become rich, may I have your daughter’s hand in marriage?
NARRATOR: The King stopped and slowly turned. He stroked his chin, a sly smile spreading across his face.
KING: I’ll tell you what. There are millions of dollars worth of gold and jewels in the treasury at the old castle. If you go there and return the crown jewels to me, you may keep the rest of the gold and jewels. And then, you may marry my daughter.
PHILLIP: That’s what I’ll do then!
KING: (Chuckling as he exits) We’ll see, we’ll see!
NARRATOR: The King, Princess, and soldiers left, riding away into the night. The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. All eyes turned toward Phillip.
PHILLIP: Why is everybody looking at me?
VILLAGE MAYOR: Do you realize what you just said?
PHILLIP: What?
VILLAGE MAYOR: You just told the King you would go to the old palace and bring back the royal treasure.
PHILLIP: Sounds easy enough to me.
VILLAGE MAYOR: Do you know why the King abandoned the old palace?
PHILLIP: Why?
VILLAGE MAYOR: Because a dragon built his nest there!
PHILLIP: A dragon? Why would the King send me after the royal treasure if he knew there was a dragon living there?
VILLAGE MAYOR: Because he doesn’t want you to marry his daughter. He wants the dragon to breathe fire upon you!
NARRATOR: Phillip stood up, dusted himself off, and walked toward the door.
PHILLIP: I don’t care. I love Mary, and I’m going to do everything I can to marry her, even if it kills me!
NARRATOR: The next day, Phillip set out toward the old palace. He soon discovered that simply getting there was no easy feat. It was a hundred miles away, over mountains covered in snow and across dangerous rivers.
PHILLIP: (Talking to himself, shivering) I have to go on, even if I didn’t bring winter clothes.
NARRATOR: By the time he climbed to the top of the mountains, he was freezing to death. As he began climbing down the other side, he slipped and tumbled, rolling endlessly down the mountain. He didn’t feel a thing; the fall had knocked him unconscious. He didn’t wake until he rolled into an icy river.
PHILLIP: (Gasps, shivering violently) Ouch! I’m too weak and cold to swim. I have to just let the roaring water sweep my body along.
NARRATOR: Just as Phillip was sure he would drown or freeze to death, the icy river emptied into an even faster river.
PHILLIP: (Disappointed) Oh no! I lost the sword I brought to slay the dragon. Now I’ll be defenseless against it. But at least this river has warmer water.
NARRATOR: After a few minutes, Phillip’s body warmed up, and he was able to swim and stay afloat. He swam to the other side of the river and hauled himself out of the water.
PHILLIP: (Looking up) Now I see the high stone walls of the castle.
NARRATOR: He also saw patches of green grass that had been blackened by the dragon’s fiery breath.
PHILLIP: (Astonished, to himself) These must be the skeletons of the men who died trying to capture the King’s treasure.
NARRATOR: Suddenly, Phillip heard the loud thumping and swishing of the dragon’s huge wings.
PHILLIP: I must find cover in a hollow log!
NARRATOR: The hollow log caught fire, but Phillip was unharmed.
PHILLIP: I have to wait here until the sounds of the dragon’s wings fade away.
NARRATOR: Then, he crawled out of the hollow log and watched it burn as he pondered a way to get past the dragon and reach the treasure without being burned to a crisp.
PHILLIP: I must find out where the dragon’s nest is. Wait, what’s that over there? It’s the treasury, where the King’s treasure is stored.
NARRATOR: Next, Phillip borrowed a scarecrow from a nearby cornfield. In the darkest part of the night, he sneaked the scarecrow inside the palace and up to the top of the wall opposite the dragon’s treasury.
PHILLIP: What’s this? I found a barrel! I’ll cut the top off the barrel and sneak it as close to the dragon as possible.
NARRATOR: Then he climbed into the barrel and fell asleep. The next morning, he was awakened by the loud thumping and swishing of the dragon’s huge wings. As expected, when the dragon awoke, it thought the scarecrow on the palace wall was a man. It flew toward the scarecrow at top speed.
PHILLIP: (Whispering to himself) Now that the dragon isn’t watching me, I’ll quickly climb out of the barrel and carry it to the treasury.
NARRATOR: He opened the double doors to the treasury and carried the barrel inside just as the scarecrow was burning to a cinder. Then, he stepped out of the treasury and shouted.
PHILLIP: Hey, dragon, over here! Come and get me!
NARRATOR: Hearing that, the dragon turned and flew at top speed toward the treasury. Phillip dived out of sight into the treasury. When the dragon landed and poked its head through the treasury doors, Phillip quickly covered the dragon’s head with the barrel. When the dragon breathed fire, the barrel directed the flames back at itself. The dragon burned to a crisp.
PHILLIP: (Relieved) It’s all over. I will return home and ask the King for the hand of Princess Mary in marriage.
NARRATOR: But when Phillip stood before the King, the King refused to give him the hand of Princess Mary in marriage.
KING: Absolutely not! A Princess may only marry a nobleman, a knight, or a rich man. You are a peasant!
PHILLIP: Not anymore!
NARRATOR: Phillip clapped his hands, and his servants brought in a large wooden treasure box. Phillip opened the treasure box and showed the King the gleaming crown jewels.
KING: (Astonished) Where did you get that?
PHILLIP: Where YOU sent me. The old palace.
KING: But what about the dragon?
PHILLIP: I slayed the dragon. And now I am a very rich man.
NARRATOR: At that moment, Princess Mary entered the room and rushed to hug Phillip.
PRINCESS MARY: (Joyfully) Thank you for what you did for me!
NARRATOR: Church bells rang and choirs sang as the King, with a broad smile, dubbed Phillip a knight in shining armor. Immediately after, the King gave Phillip the hand of Princess Mary in marriage, and they all lived happily ever after. The story of The Peasant and the Dragon’s Treasure reminds us that love, courage, and determination can defeat even the fiercest of dragons.
THE END
Author: European Folktale
Adapted by: K I D S I N C O
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