The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon

"Told in a similar style to The Reduced Shakespeare Company, The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon is a madcap romp through the collected stories of the Brothers Grimm. Two warring narrators attempt to combine all 209 fairy tales into one impossibly complicated storyline in a hilarious theatrical event. Using audience participation, cross-casting, cross-dressing, quick costume changes and some creative re-imagining of the stories, the narrators utilize three other actors to tell as many fairy tales as possible. Famous stories such as Rapunzel, Rumpelstiltskin, The Frog Prince, Snow White, and Little Red Riding Hood are told alongside bizarre, obscure tales like Lean Lisa, The Girl Without Hands, and The Devil's Grandmother, all culminating in a frenetic one-man Cinderella in which one unfortunate actor is corralled into performing all of the roles in a mind and gender-bending dash to the finish line.
Fluid, fast-paced, and requiring virtually no set, this play can fit into any size arena and adapt to any location. Due to some innuendo and double entendres, this play may not be suitable for audience members under twelve years old. For everyone else, it's wild, silly fun." -donzolidis.com
The Brother's Grimm Spectaculathon was the 6th most-produced one-act in North American schools in the year 2009-2010. Also, the Brother's Grimm Spectaculathon has been translated into Swiss and published in Switzerland.
Plot
The play begins with the two narrators. The two have opposite personalities and fight often throughout the play. The rest of the play is a mash up of various stories. There is no typical plot. As in, there is no rising action, climax, and then falling action. The stories within the play are mentioned or acted out as follows: The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids, The Pack of Ragamuffins, Straw Coal and Bean, Stereotypical Fairytale, Rumpelstiltskin, Rapunzel, The Girl Without Hands, Hansel and Gretel, The Fisherman and His Wife, Jack and the Giant Beanstalk, The Elves and the Shoemaker, The Frog Prince, Snow White, The Devil's Grandmother, Little Red Riding Hood, and Cinderella. At the end there is a two minute recap of the whole play.
Characters
*Narrator 1 (female): Tries to be proper but often times loses composure. Has a bit of an attitude, is very sure of herself, and thinks Narrator 2 is a complete idiot.
*Narrator 2 (male): Very extroverted and loud personality. He is a bit of a geek and thinks he knows a lot about women.
*Actor: Typical actor until the very end when he is alone on stage with Narrator 1 and must play the roles of Cinderella, both stepsiters, and the wicked step-mother.
*Girl: Stereotypical fairytale female. She is poor and marries a prince. She is very stupid.
*Dirt Merchant: Small role. Sells dirt which the Girl cannot afford.
*Rumpelstiltskin: Very hideous. Makes a deal for the Girl's daughter's soul. Dies by breaking in half.
*Enchantress: Makes a deal with the Girl for Rapunzel's soul. Ends up taking Rapunzel. She is a feminist and lock Rapunzel away to protect her from the harsh outside world. She also makes Rapunzel use radioactive hair products.
*The Devil: Laughs at his own jokes and often makes contracts with people. He also makes a deal with the Girl for Rapunzel's soul but he lets the Enchantress keep her.
*Prince 1: Stereotypical prince. He is attractive and like the Girl because she is attractive. He does not care when his daughter is taken.
*Rapunzel: She is a moody teenager. After nine years of being locked away in a tower she can no longer carry an interesting conversation.
*Prince 2: Finds long hair attractive. However, after realizing he has nothing in common with Rapunzel he does not want to be with her. Narrator two forces them to fall in love and they do.
*Hansel: Orphaned young boy who has fallen victim to peer pressure. He smokes and is not very bright. He tries to fly but cannot, and dies.
*Gretel: Orphaned young girl who is being pressured by her brother, Hansel, into smoking but she does not want to.
*Witch: Has an edible house and enjoys eating young children.
*Girl Without Hands: Overly enthusiastic.
*Mother: Overly Enthusiastic.
*Father: Overly Enthusiastic.
*Fishergirl: Finds a talking fish but is not wise about the wishes she chooses. She ends up turning into the Witch.
*Talking Fish: Has been cursed.
*Crab Person 1: Hates humanity. Gender unknown.
*Crab Person 2: Hates humanity. Gender unknown.
*Host: Typical game-show/talk-show host.
*Giant (off-stage voice): Has booming voice. Hates Jack.
*Frog Prince: Is slightly perverted but very attractive when human.
*Elf Cobbler: Holds a grudge against the shoemaker for treating him and his friends like slaves. Also is angry because of Gubgub's death.
*Princess: Stupid and Clumsy. She is disgusted by the Frog Prince and believes she has gone crazy when he speaks to her. She only kisses the Frog- Prince because her father tells her to.
*King: Stereotypical nerd. He encourages his daughter to kiss the Frog Prince to encourage all the geeks and nerds in the world but is disappointed when he sees that the Frog Prince is attractive in his human form.
*Dwarf 1: Thinks he is a ladies' man. He enjoys watching women kiss each other and likes hitting on women. Women do not enjoy being around him.
*Dwarf 2: Has always dreamed of being Snow White.
*Snow White: Wants to be skinny but sees herself as a "modern woman."
*Witch 2: Has had various surgeries to have the perfect body and be more attractive than Snow White but can never accomplish her goal.
*Prince 3: Enjoys kissing girls in comas.
*The Devil 2: The Devil as a young child. He is adorably evil.
*The Devil's Grandmother: She loves her grandson and is sadly suffering from Alzheimers.
*Doctor: Is God's pawn.
*God (off-stage voice): Has a deep voice. He hates the Devil.
*Little Red: Is either overly sweet or a thug. It depends on the version of Little Red's Scene which you use.
*The Wolf: Is either overly sweet or wants to eat Little Red.
*Grandma: Is either overly sweet or a thug.
*Woodcutter: Either cuts open the wolf, or plays an air guitar.
*Cinderella: Is a very dramatic actress. Her dream is to win the an Oscar. She is outraged when she finds out she does not have a fairy god mother and leaves, leaving the Actor to do everything himself. However, she eventually returns to attempt to out-act the Actor. She is overly dramatic and has a bad attitude.
*Walt: Is turned into the Frog Prince. (Might be a reference to Walt Disney?)
Don Zolidis
"My name is Don Zolidis and I'm a playwright, screenwriter, and former middle and high school teacher. I’m currently professor of playwriting at Ursinus College just outside of Philadelphia. I write comedies and dramas, although at the moment I seem to be mostly known for my comedies. As of November 2010, I've published 38 plays which have been produced over 1,750 times in 20 countries. You might also have seen my work on the forensics circuit, where I am as popular as grilled cheese sandwiches. Professionally, my work has appeared at the Ensemble Studio Theatre, Bloomington Playwrights Project, Dallas HUB Theatre, the Purple Rose Theatre, The Victory Theatre Center, Mirror Stage Ensemble, Expanded Arts NYC, Tinfish Theatre, Studio 360, and many other places. I'm also working on numerous commissions at the moment." -Don Zolidis
"Zolidis' delightfully twisted and often bleak black comedy marks the local debut of a most promising playwright… raucously funny and truly fearless." -Entertainment Today.

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