Title:  Down the Chimney

Author:  Shepherd Knapp

Release Date:  January 24, 2005 [EBook #14785]

Language:  English

Character set encoding:  ASCII

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Down The Chimney

BY

SHEPHERD KNAPP

[Illustration]

1921

THE HEIDELBERG PRESS

* * * * *

TO THOSE

WHO FIRST ACTED IN THIS PLAY

TO THOSE WHO WITH SO MUCH SKILL AND PATIENCE

TRAINED THE PARTICIPANTS

AND TO THE FRIENDLY AUDIENCES OF BOYS AND GIRLS

WHO ENCOURAGE US BY THEIR APPLAUSE

IT IS DEDICATED

* * * * *

Preface

This play is intended, not only for acting, but also for reading.  It is so arranged that boys and girls can read it to themselves, just as they would read any other story.  Even the stage directions and the descriptions of scenery are presented as a part of the narrative.  At the same time, by the use of different styles of type, the speeches of the characters are clearly distinguished from the rest of the text, an arrangement which will be found convenient when parts are being memorized for acting.

The play has been acted more than once, and by different groups of people; sometimes on a stage equipped with footlights, curtain, and scenery; sometimes with barely any of these aids.  Practical suggestions as to costumes, scenery, and some simple scenic effects will be found at the end of the play.

What sort of a Christmas play do the boys and girls like, and in what sort do we like to see them take part?  It should be a play, surely, in which the dialogue is simple and natural, not stilted and artificial; one that seems like a bit of real life, and yet has plenty of fancy and imagination in it; one that suggests and helps to perpetuate some of the happy and wholesome customs of Christmas; above all, one that is pervaded by the Christmas spirit.  I hope that this play does not entirely fail to meet these requirements.

Worcester, Mass.

Shepherd Knapp.

* * * * *

Down the Chimney

The First Scene

Now the curtain opens, and you see the Roof of a House, just as Mother Goose promised.  Keep your eyes open to see what will happen next, for here comes Jack Frost, who is dressed all in white.  He walks with a quick and nimble step, and this is what he says: