A Christmas Stocking Full of Plays

A CHRISTMAS STOCKING FULL OF PLAYS:

SHORT PLAYS FOR THE CHRISTMAS SEASON
AND CHRISTMAS EVE

by

Delvyn C. Case, Jr.

Copyright ©2017 by Delvyn C. Case, Jr.
All Rights Reserved
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Table of Contents

The Four Gifts of  Christmas………………………………………………… 1
A Christmas shopper discovers the four gifts of Christmas
she should give others at Christmas.

The Best Christmas Party Ever…………………………………………….. 9
An unexpected complication develops as three women from a church plan a Christmas party for residents of a nursing home.

The Writing of ‘I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day’………… 18
During the dark days of the Civil War, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow finds hope in the message of Christmas to write his famous Christmas carol.

The Tale of the Innkeeper’s Wife………………………………………… 25
After the birth of Jesus, the Innkeeper’s Wife returns to the stable
to feed the animals—an interactive play with the children in the
congregation.

The Nativity…………………………………………………………………….. 30
The birth of Jesus—an interactive play with Narrator, the children in the congregation (playing the roles in the Nativity story), and the Congregation.
    

The Four Gifts of Christmas (Copyright © 2011, 2012, and 2017)

The Best Christmas Party Ever (Copyright © 2011, 2012, 2016, and 2017)

The Writing of ‘I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day (Copyright © 2015 and 2017)

The Tale of the Innkeeper’s Wife (Copyright © 2015 and 2017)

The Nativity (Copyright © 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, and 2017)



THE FOUR GIFTS OF CHRISTMAS
by
Delvyn C. Case, Jr.


Characters

MARY, 30’s

GABRIELLA, 30’s


Time
Days before Christmas.  Present

Place
The Mall

Set/Costumes/Props
Bare stage.  MARY and GABRIELLA  are dressed in casual clothes for Christmas shopping.  MARY carries a Christmas list and a pocketbook.  GABRIELLA carries two large shopping bags each containing two brightly colored, wrapped Christmas presents.  Each gift is wrapped differently.


THE FOUR GIFTS OF CHRISTMAS

(As the lights come up, MARY enters the stage from the stage left stairs. She is weary and discouraged.  She carries a Christmas list.  She crosses slowly to center stage and stops.  MARY looks at list, then at stage left door, up center aisle, and stage right aisle looking for a place to shop.  She sighs and taps head with list, then looks at list)

MARY: Am I in the right place?  Is the mall the right place to buy gifts…(holding list out forward) for the people on my list?  (shrugging shoulders) Frivolous gifts seem…almost OBSCENE.  (pointing at list with other hand)  Holly: Up the street with breast cancer struggling with chemo.  My sister:  Every time I call, there’s screaming in the background and she begs my pardon as she yells back at them.  Mom.  She’s never recovered from dad’s death  My husband:  (shaking head) ‘Fraid I’ve ignored him with all the stuff going on.  (looking around)  Where’s the right store with the right gifts?  I can’t solve all their problems with gifts but….  (whiny)I NEED HELP.  What should I give them?  (looking ahead)  I need Santa’s little helper…somebody, something.
(MARY looks down at list)
(waving off)
I’m losing the Christmas spirit.  I’m going home.

(GABRIELLA enters from stage right stairs and crosses to MARY.  MARY starts to turn toward stage left stairs)

GABRIELLA: Mary?

(MARY stops,  looks up at GABRIELLA,  and wonders who is addressing her.)

GABRIELLA (cont’d):  (tapping chest) (upbeat)  It’s Gabriella.

(MARY looks askance at GABRIELLA.)

GABRIELLA (cont’d): (pointing at MARY)  Isn’t it illegal to walk  ’round the mall without at least…(holding up one bag) one shopping bag?

(MARY holds up list to GABRIELLA.)

Mary: I just started.  (tentatively) Do I know you?

GABRIELLA: (making running motions) I run on your street.  Past your house.  

(MARY scratches her head.)

GABRIELLA: (cont’d) (making grand waving motions)
Remember waving at me?

(MARY waves back tentatively and shakes head)

GABRIELLA:  (cont’d) (shaking finger)
I shop on Commercial Street, near your office.  

Mary: Commercial Street?  Where’s that?

GABRIELLA: (waving off) I’m there all the time.  

(MARY thinks.  GABRIELLA puts bag down)

GABRIELLA: (hands on hips) I know a lot of other things ’bout you as well.

Mary: Like?

GABRIELLA: (hands up) You love to shop.  Right?  

Mary: What girl doesn’t?

GABRIELLA: And shoes.

Mary: Ditto.

(MARY and GABRIELLA laugh heartily, then MARY looks discouraged.)

GABRIELLA: Looks like you’ve lost the Christmas spirit.

(MARY nods wearily.)

GABRIELLA:  (cont’d) What’s with your list?

Mary: I don’t know where to start.  

(MARY shows list to GABRIELLA as GABRIELLA crosses
closer.)  

Mary:  (cont’d) I don’t know if I can find anything in these stores for them.

GABRIELLA:  (looking around) There’s lots of stores here…a hundred?  You can’t find anything?

Mary:  I haven’t look very long…(firmly) but no.  They need…

(GABRIELLA motions toward her bag.)

GABRIELLA:  Then you should start with these.

(MARY is intrigued.  GABRIELLA takes out one of the
gifts and hands it to MARY.)

GABRIELLA:  How  ’bout this one?

(MARY looks at gift and shakes it)

Mary:  (with a laugh) What is it?  It’s wrapped.  How can I tell what it is?

(GABRIELLA takes back gift.)

GABRIELLA:  We all wrap our presents differently.  (tapping gift)  This one’s Hope.  The hope we have at Christmas fully realized in Jesus Christ..  Hope in Him as He walks with us now and Hope for eternal life.  He gives us so much.  What measure of hope can we give others?

(MARY looks up and thinks, then she looks at GABRIELLA.)

Mary:  Holly at the top of the street…

GABRIELLA:  I run by her house every day.

(MARY nods.)

Mary:  I could have her over for coffee and remind her what her doctors have said.  The big picture—(with determination) she’s gonna get better! She can’t see it ’cause of the misery of the chemo.

(GABRIELLA smiles.  She continues to hold the first gift  
and takes out second gift.)

GABRIELLA:  (tapping gift)  Peace.  The Peace we have with God ’cause of what Jesus has done on the cross. He’s done so much for us.  What measure of peace can we give others?

(MARY looks up and thinks, then looks at GABRIELLA)

Mary:  My sister doesn’t get a break with her kids.  I should go over and babysit her sons, so she can get out of the house.

(GABRIELLA smiles.  She holds both gifts and takes out
third gift.)

GABRIELLA:  (tapping gift)  Joy.  The Joy we have in Christ, even in times of trouble when we’re not happy, can’t be happy.  What measure of joy can we give others?

(MARY looks up and thinks, then looks at GABRIELLA.)

Mary:  Dad died this year and Mom can’t get beyond her loss.  I should bring the kids over to show her she has family she can live for.

(GABRIELLA smiles.  She holds all three gifts and takes out
fourth gift.)

GABRIELLA:  (tapping gift) Love.  The Love of God as expressed in giving us His only begotten Son:  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  What measure of love can we give to others?

(MARY looks and thinks, then looks at GABRIELLA.)

Mary:  I haven’t given my husband the love and attention I should, with all that’s going on.

(GABRIELLA smiles and put gift into bag.  She looks into shopping bag and finds no other gift. She then looks up at MARY.)

GABRIELLA: Looks like you could make good use of these gifts of Christmas.

(MARY thinks.)

Mary:  They…

GABRIELLA:  Represent the four Sundays of Advent, the time of year we prepare ourselves for Christmas.  They’re four gifts Christ has given us and four gifts we should give others.

Mary:  (tapping pocketbook) And they’re free.

(GABRIELLA leans toward MARY.)

GABRIELLA:  But can you afford to give them?

(MARY is puzzled, then thinks.)

Mary:  (slowly) Can’t afford not to.

GABRIELLA:  Hope (puts first gift into bag)…Peace (puts second bag into bag)…Joy (puts third bag into bag)…Love (puts fourth bag into bag).  Don’t need to look far for people who need them.

Mary:  They’re gifts my family and friends really need.  

(GABRIELLA nods and smiles broadly.)

Mary:  (cont’d) (holding up list) Should I still shop for these…(shrugging shoulders) little things?

GABRIELLA:  (kindly)  Why not?  It’s Christmas.

(MARY and GABRIELLA laugh.)

Mary:  I STILL don’t know if I recognize you.

GABRIELLA:  (nudging MARY) (with a smile)  I’m Santa’s little helper.

Mary:  (tentatively) Right.

GABRIELLA:  Merry Christmas!

Mary:  Merry Christmas!  Thanks.

(GABRIELLA turns toward stage right stairs and starts to cross toward stairs.  She leaves bags in place.  MARY looks at list.  GABRIELLA exits off stage right stairs.)

Mary:  (cont’d)  (looking up)  Gabriella?  (MARY looks up in the direction of GABRIELLA.   MARY looks around looking for GABRIELLA.)   (holding up arms in amazement)  Where’d she go?  WHO WAS WHAT?  (sheepishly) What was that?  (MARY looks at bags on floor)  (calling out toward stage right stairs as she holds up bags) YOU FORGOT THESE!

(MARY shakes her head.  MARY puts list into pocketbook.  She picks up bags.  She crosses to stage right stairs.  She stops and takes out one gift out of bag.  She looks at bag and smiles.  She puts gift back into bag.  She crosses to stage right exit and exits stage right.)

(black out)


END OF PLAY


    Please purchase the script to read more of the plays.

A Christmas Stocking Full of Plays

Author: Delvyn Case
Delvyn served as Director of Drama at First Baptist Church in Portland, Maine for 20 years, and is now Director of Drama at First Presbyterian Church in Bonita Springs, Florida. At the churches he has written and directed a large number of his one-act and full-length plays developed in connection with the church services and holidays. Delvyn is also passionate about international social justice. Several of his plays concerning the Rwandan genocide have been commissioned by Central Africa Vision U.S.A. and have been performed under Delvyn’s direction in Rwanda and Burundi. Delvyn’s plays have been performed in a number of churches and festivals including The Maine Playwrights Festival, Karitos Conference, Art of the Play Festival, Northern Writes, Crowbait Club, Snowlion Repertory Company Playlab, Maine Restaurant Week, Boston Theater Marathon, Northport One-Act Play Festival, the Samuel French One-Act Play Festival, THE SEVEN One-Act Play Festival, and Stage It! 10-Minute Play Festival. He has won the Maine Literary Award for Drama, Writer’s Digest Writing Award (Drama), and the Christians in Theatre Arts Play Award. Most recently Delvyn has studied Drama and Literature in summers at the University of Oxford. Delvyn is a full member of the Dramatists Guild of America and Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers (SDC). He has been designated as an Emerging Artist by the SDC. Delvyn is published by Drama Source.

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