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When we stop looking inward, we start to see who’s really in the boat with us. Boat is a powerful middle school vignette play about empathy, connection, and realizing we’ve never been alone. Click to learn more!

The First Herald Angel

The First Herald Angel

by John Donald O'Shea

On the first Christmas Eve, a poor shepherd happens across a small child in the hill country about Bethlehem. To the shepherd's surprise, the child explains she is an angel practicing to be a herald angel so she can announce the Saviour's birth.

The shepherd, taken by the child's sincerity, believes the child's story, and asks to see the Saviour. The shepherd's wife, however, has her doubts.

Dramedy Character Study Holiday Young Audiences

Average Producer Rating:

Recommended for High Schools and Middle Schools

About 25 minutes
Times given are approximate and do not include intermissions/scene changes/breaks
5 Characters
1 M | 2 F | 2 Any Gender
Unit Set
15 pages

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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.

5 Characters
1 M, 2 F, 2 Any Gender
MICAH [A] 53 lines
James’ guardian angel
JAMES [M] 36 lines
A shepherd
SUSANNA [F] 29 lines
James’ carping wife
ASREAL [F] 15 lines
An archangel, and Micah’s supervisor
LION [A] 21 lines
A mangy old lion

Praise for The First Herald Angel

Leigh Melville
St George’s Grammar School
Excellent addition to the programme for the end of year Carol Concert. A different take on the Christmas story with some humour. It went down very well with the audience.

From the Drama Teacher Learning Centre

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