Муниципальное бюджетное общеобразовательное учреждение

 средняя общеобразовательная школа №3

 города Чехова Московской области

Literature Club

«In the world of ballads»

                        Учитель английского языка:     Толмачёва Л.Н.

1 Presenter.        If you enjoy thrilling mysteries, romances and stories of fate and ghosts…

2 Presenter.        If you adore noble knights, faithful ladies and witty warriors, you are welcome to our Literature Club today.

1 Presenter.        Today we are for ballads.

Enters MYSTERY

Mystery.        Ladies and Gentleman! I’m afraid you can’t do without me today. Be so kind to let me join your conversation.

1 Presenter.        Of course, you are welcome. But who are you?

Mystery.        Me? I’m Mystery…

2 Presenter.        Oh, it’s so enigmatic. So mysterious.

Mystery.        But isn’t mystery in the heart of the ballad’s heart?

1 Presenter.        It surely is! Join us!

Shows MYSTERY to the table. MYSTERY sits down and looks through the manuscript on the table.

1 Presenter.        Let’s talk about the ballad.

1 Presenter.        Meet our guests! (PRESENTERS leave. Enter STUDENTS)

1 Student.        The ballad appeared in France and Italy in the Middle Ages being originally a folk dancing song.

2 Student.        It’s reflected in its name which derives from Latin verb ‘ballare” – to dance. Ballads were performed in rich castles by musicians and troubadours and in town squares and taverns by wandering singers.

3 Student.        Ballad lyrics is an epic poem. What makes it ballad is the author’s emotion.

4 Student.        English and Scottish ballads are particularly interesting. In 14th or 15th century a new ballad hero appeared in England. His name was Robin Hood. Dear Mystery, could you please tell us something about this mysterious person?

Mystery.        Nobody can tell you whether there lived the real person mentioned. Legends and ballads say there was Robert from Locksley in 12th century. The knight Robert Locksley followed Richard the Lionheart in his Crusade to Palestine that had been conquered by Arabs. On returning to England Robert found out that his castle was captured by Nottingham Sheriff. So he became a villain Sherwood Forest – he robbed the rich and helped the poor. Farmers called him a hero and made legends about him. Robin Hood – a noble villain and a beloved hero of English folk appeared.

1 Presenter.        Dear Mystery, you’ve introduced the enigmatic and noble hero in the best way possible. The only thing missing is…

2 Presenter.        Some lines from a ballad about Robin Hood. There are lots of them. During 15th and 16th centuries there were made such corpuses of ballads as ‘The Little Geste of Robin Hood’ and a later one called ‘A Geste of Robin Hood’.

1 Presenter.        We are going to hear one of the ballads right now.

4 STUDENTS read extracts from the ballad ‘Robin Hood and the Bishop’

Mystery (Claps).        Brilliant! I wish I could see Robin Hood here and now.

1 Presenter.        You will!

Mystery.        Is it possible?

2 Presenter.        Everything is possible in the Third School!

Robin Hood’s Adventures

Characters:

Robin Hood

Men in green, his friends

Sheriff

Helen

Mary

Scene 1

(Helen and Mary are walking before the curtain They see a large notice. And stop to read it.)

Mary: Helen, read what is written in this paper.

Helen: «Fifty pounds for Robin Hood! The Sheriff of Nottingham.» Ha! Ha! Ha! The Sheriff hopes that Robin Hood will be brought to him for fifty pounds! How foolish of him!

Mary: We must tell Robin Hood about it. He must be careful!

Helen: You are right! Let’s run to Sherwood Forest and tell Robin Hood about it.

(They run away. The curtain rises. Now, the scene represents Sherwood Forest. Robin Hood is sitting on a tree stump. The children come running to him.)

Helen: Robin Hood! Robin Hood! We have something to tell you.

Robin Hood: Hello, Helen! Hello, Mary! What has happened?

Mary: We saw a paper on a wall in the town of Nottingham. It says fifty pounds for you!

Helen: The paper is written by the Sheriff. Be careful, Robin Hood! He wants to catch you. He will give fifty pounds to the man who will tell him where you are.

Robin Hood: Don’t be afraid for me, children! I am not afraid of the Sheriff. I shall go to see him myself, and he will give me fifty pounds to find me.

Mary: Oh, Robin Hood! Don’t go to Nottingham.

Robin Hood: Don’t be afraid, he will not know me. Come with me and see that. Wait for me here, I’ll be back in a minute.

(The children sit down to wait. Suddenly an Old Man with a long white beard comes in. He comes up to them.)

Old Man: Children, can you tell me the way to the place where Robin Hood lives?

Helen: What do you want there?

Mary: Nobody knows where Robin Hood lives! Go away! Go away!

 ( Suddenly the Old Man begins to laugh. He pulls off his long white beard, and the children see that it is Robin Hood himself.

Helen: Oh, it’s you, Robin Hood!

Mary: I was afraid of the Old Man.

Robin Hood: Now, children, let’s go to Nottingham. I am going to see the Sheriff myself. Come with me.

( They go away. The curtain falls.)

Scene 2

(The Sheriff’s office. He is sitting at the table and writing. The door opens, Robin Hood and the children come in.)

Sheriff: What do you want, Old Man?

Robin Hood: I can show you the way to the place where Robin Hood lives.

Sheriff: Can you? I shall give you fifty pounds if you take me to Robin Hood.

Robin Hood: Come to the old tree near the forest tomorrow and you will see him.

Sheriff: Very well, I shall come. I’ll take two men with me.

Robin Hood: Don’t forget to bring the fifty pounds.

Sheriff: And who are those children?

Robin Hood: They are my grandchildren and my friends. I am an old man, and they help me. Come, children, we must go now.

(They leave the room. The Sheriff is very glad. He rubs his hands, smiles and begins to sing.)

Scene 3

(In the middle of the stage there is a large old tree. Robin Hood in his usual  clothes, some of his Men in Green and children are at the tree.)

Robin Hood: My friends, be ready to see the Sheriff here!

First Man: Why, is he coming here?

Robin Hood: Yes, he will be here any time. I’ve invited him to this tree. He promised to bring me fifty pounds.

Second man: I can’t believe it. Is he so brave?

Robin Hood: He will bring two soldiers with him. Be ready to meet them!

Helen: Robin Hood, they are coming.

Robin Hood: Hide behind the tree, friends!

( They all hide behind the tree. The Sheriff and his two men come in.)

Sheriff: This is the old tree. But I don’t see the Old Man.

( Robin Hood comes out from behind the tree.)

Robin Hood: Here I am, Sheriff!

Sheriff: Run, it’s a trap!

( Robin Hood’s men catch them and place them before Robin Hood.)

Robin Hood: So you have come, Sheriff. You haven’t broken your yesterday’s promise.

Sheriff: I didn’t see you yesterday.

Robin Hood: Yes, you did. I was the Old Man who came to your office and told you where to find Robin Hood. Now I want my fifty pounds.

Sheriff: So you were The Old Man with two children! You have played a trick on me today, Robin Hood, but I shall catch you some other day!

Robin Hood: I am not afraid of you! But now I want my fifty pounds.

Sheriff: I will not give you the money!

Robin Hood: Then you and your men won’t leave the forest. A promise is a promise.

Sheriff: You live in the forest and you don’t need money.

Robin Hood: I don’t want the money for myself. I want to give it to poor people.

( The Sheriff has nothing to do but to give Robin hood the promised money.)

Robin Hood: That’s right. Now, children, take this money, go to Nottingham and buy some new clothes for yourselves. You helped me to get this money.

Helen: Thank you, Robin Hood!

( She takes Mary by the hand and they run away.)

Robin Hood: Now, my friends, let the Sheriff and his men go home.

Sheriff: Remember, Robin Hood, I shall catch you some day.

Robin Hood: One! Two! Three! Try and catch me!

( The Sheriff and his men go away. Robin Hood and his men are laughing.)