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Swoop

Swoop

adapted by Lindsay Price 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

Recommended for High Schools and Middle Schools

Running Time
About 45 minutes
Approximate; excludes intermissions and scene changes
Cast
18 Characters
3 M2 F13 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 M, 2 F, 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) [M] 205 lines
Goes by Persi. A clown who wants to escape from Athens’ rules & laws.
GOHO (GOOD HOPE) [A] 99 lines
Goes by Goho. A clown who wants to escape from Athens’ rules & laws.
SHOEBILL [A] 30 lines
Servant to Terry Pops.
POPS [M] 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 [A] 66 lines
As many as your stage can handle. This crowd is violent at first, then deferential.
CHORUS MEMBERS (3) [A] 19 lines
Individual speakers from the Chorus of Birds.
POET [A] 6 lines
Claims to be the official poet of Cloud Cuckoo Land.
PROPHET [A] 7 lines
Claims to be the official prophet of Cloud Cuckoo Land.
MESSENGER [A] 3 lines
Brings word from the wall.
IRIS [F] 7 lines
A messenger from the Gods.
HERALD [A] 5 lines
Brings word from earth.
A PARRICIDE [A] 2 lines
Wants to be a bird. And kill their father.
A BARD [A] 3 lines
Wants to be a bird. And sing.
PROM [A] 11 lines
Has important information, but is also hiding from Zeus.
ARTEMIS [F] 11 lines
An ambassador. Goddess of the Hunt.
HERACLES [M] 16 lines
An ambassador. A demigod.
TRIBALLUS [A] 0 lines
An ambassador. A barbarian god. Speaks only gibberish.

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