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Swoop by Lindsay Price play script cover

Swoop

adapted by Lindsay Price Canadian Author from The Birds by Aristophanes

No laws. Just wings.

This high-energy play blends absurd humour and universal questions of control and conformity as it reimagines the Ancient Greek comedy The Birds for a modern audience.

Two fed-up clowns, Persi and Goho, reject the restrictive rules of Athens and venture into the wild to seek total freedom. What begins as a comic complaint about laws escalates into a revolutionary proposal: a city in the sky where birds are king. Or so they think. What happens when a clown decides they want total control? Are freedom and power the same thing?

A dynamic chorus of birds and opportunities for inventive costumes, masks and physical comedy. Lots of doubling options!

Comedy Classical Adaptation

Also available in a competition-length version here

Recommended for High Schools and Middle Schools

At a Glance

Running Time
About 45 minutes
Approximate; excludes intermissions and scene changes
Cast
18 Characters
3 M 2 F 13 Any Gender
Plus Chorus of Birds. Doubling Possible.
Set
Simple set
Free Excerpt

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Performance Royalty Fees

Royalty fees apply to all performances whether or not admission is charged. Any performance in front of an audience (e.g. an invited dress rehearsal) is considered a performance for royalty purposes.

Exemption details for scenes and monologues for competition.

18 Characters

  • 3 Males
  • 2 Females
  • 13 Any Gender
  • Plus Chorus of Birds. Doubling Possible.

Characters in this play are currently identified as male or female. Directors are welcome to assign any gender (binary or non-binary) to any character and modify pronouns accordingly.

  • PERSI (PERSUASION) Male 205 lines
    Goes by Persi. A clown who wants to escape from Athens’ rules & laws.
  • GOHO (GOOD HOPE) Any gender 99 lines
    Goes by Goho. A clown who wants to escape from Athens’ rules & laws.
  • SHOEBILL Any gender 30 lines
    Servant to Terry Pops.
  • POPS Male 36 lines
    A bird who was once human, and is now king of the birds, though no one treats him like a king.
  • CHORUS OF BIRDS Any gender 66 lines
    As many as your stage can handle. This crowd is violent at first, then deferential.
  • CHORUS MEMBERS (3) Any gender 19 lines
    Individual speakers from the Chorus of Birds.
  • POET Any gender 6 lines
    Claims to be the official poet of Cloud Cuckoo Land.
  • PROPHET Any gender 7 lines
    Claims to be the official prophet of Cloud Cuckoo Land.
  • MESSENGER Any gender 3 lines
    Brings word from the wall.
  • IRIS Female 7 lines
    A messenger from the Gods.
  • HERALD Any gender 5 lines
    Brings word from earth.
  • A PARRICIDE Any gender 2 lines
    Wants to be a bird. And kill their father.
  • A BARD Any gender 3 lines
    Wants to be a bird. And sing.
  • PROM Any gender 11 lines
    Has important information, but is also hiding from Zeus.
  • ARTEMIS Female 11 lines
    An ambassador. Goddess of the Hunt.
  • HERACLES Male 16 lines
    An ambassador. A demigod.
  • TRIBALLUS Any gender 0 lines
    An ambassador. A barbarian god. Speaks only gibberish.

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