RECOMMENDED FOR: Lower/Middle Secondary Students
A PLAY TO: read, read aloud, study, perform excerpts and scenes, use as a stimulus for creating, produce
CAST: 1M, 1F – both 11, there are some scripted lists of reasons to not go outside or to go outside and these could be interpreted as a chorus when reading the play
STYLES: Drama, comedy, wordplay, monologue, duologue
THEMES AND CONCEPTS: Friendship, anxiety, hope, the power of imagination
CURRICULUM LINKS: The Arts – Drama, English/Literacy, Health, General Capabilities – personal and social learning
SYNOPSIS: You can cos you’re Pedro. I don’t know any other Pedros. You’re it, original, unique, one of a kind Pedro. The Thing can’t take that away. The Thing can’t take me away. I’m here. It’s never completely dark. Never… Flora (p 30).
Pedro used to run and skateboard and play soccer and go to school … Not anymore. Pedro stays inside now. His best friend, Flora, thinks that’s boring and kind of freaky. But Pedro doesn’t care. He’s building a pillow fort (he would prefer you called it ‘The Death Star’) and it’s getting bigger and bigger every day. Every day it’s getting harder and harder for Flora to reach him. Pedro has the best Reasons to Stay Inside, but Flora knows what he’s missing, and she will do whatever it takes to get her best friend to come outside. You can’t stay inside your fort forever, can you? A show about that irritating best friends, dancing pegacorns, pillow forts and that weird anxious feeling.
STAGING: Throughout the production, Pedro is creating some sort of pillow fort, possibly lots of pillows and blankets and sheets and cushions and chairs or the ‘fort’ could be interpreted differently, possibly with people. Torches feature and could be a good choice to play with in scenes or a whole production.
