It’s Chr-i-i-i-stmas!
By Andrew Oxspring & Ian Faraday
Nativity/Christmas musical for the whole school (ages 6-11)
Running time approx: 50 minutes
Independent scenes, easy to rehearse and perform in group bubbles
We’ve added some glitter to the traditional Christmas story, as we count down the hits to see who is top of the festive pop charts! There’s a bit of Motown round the manger with ‘Gabriel’s Soul Patrol’, while glam-rock shepherds, ‘The Crooks’, bring the beat to Bethlehem in their platform heels! Also contenders for the top spot are boyband trio ‘The Wise Guys’, bickering folk-punks ‘The Landlords’, 60’s pop icons ‘Don Kee & The Animals’ and the brassy ‘Herod & The King’s Swingers’! With delightful parodies and pastiches of our favourite Christmas anthems, this is a nativity musical that will get your school rocking!
*FREE Word doc. of the script to edit yourself*
- Songs
- Plot
- Characters
- Line Count/Costumes
- Script Sample
- Score Sample
- What do you get?
- Reviews (29)
- Digital Backdrops
Plot Summary
As final preparations are made for the Christmas Chart Show, in the TV studio the directors prep the assembled crowd to be loud and energetic as the show’s theme tune kicks in! It’s then over to hosts Tim Tinsel, Holly Bush and Sam Frost, who welcome the audience and tell us about the show’s format. The acts performing on stage tonight will all be characters from a very special story, and their songs will tell of the roles they played in that story. The hosts chat to members of the crowd, then introduce the first act, Gabriel’s Soul Patrol, who are on stage talking to the show’s roving host, Chris Cracker.
Gabriel tells Chris how he visited a woman called Mary, to give her the news that she would be doing a special job – having God’s baby! Mary joins the band on stage to tell how this news frightened her, but how Gabriel reassured her and made her realise how honoured she was. Gabriel’s Soul Patrol (with Mary) then perform their Motown-inspired song ‘The One God’s Chosen’.
The hosts then introduce the next band, The Landlords. Chatting to Chris Cracker on stage, they tell how their home town, Bethlehem, had become very busy after lots of visitors arrived to sign a new census. Trade for these landlords and innkeepers was brisk, as all their rooms soon filled up. However, one innkeeper and his wife had found it a struggle to keep on top of the rush and were overwhelmed with requests for a room, leading them to fall out with each other in comical fashion. Events are retold in their vibrant folk song ‘The Streets Of Bethlehem’
After some studio chat and banter, the hosts introduce the act Don Kee & the Animals. In their on-stage chat with Chris Cracker, we learn how Mary (now expecting her baby) and her husband Joseph had travelled to Bethlehem. Unable to find a room, they had been allowed to stay in the innkeeper’s stable where, surrounded by the animals, Mary had given birth to her baby boy, whom she named Jesus. The details are explained in the bands 60s retro-styled number, ‘There Is A Stable’.
Following some more inter-host banter, it’s time for a bit of glam rock, as The Crooks, a band of platform-heeled shepherds, take to the stage! During their chat with Chris and in their song ‘Peace And Love To All Mankind’ we learn how an ordinary night on the hillside, counting sheep, became a little more eventful with the arrival of a heavenly host of angels! After that, the studio audience goes crazy with the arrival of boyband trio, The Wise Guys! Once the squealing and wolf-whistles have died down, we hear how these three had followed a bright star from the east, carrying special gifts for the baby they knew they would find at the end of their journey. Their 80s-inspired pop song ‘The First Christmas’ gives the audience a chance to swoon! There follows some big-band swing, with the arrival on stage of Herod & the King’s Swingers! Their brassy number ‘Bad King Herod’ tells a darker side to the story, as we discover to what lengths a king will go, just to hang onto his crown!
Once all the acts have performed, it’s time to find out who has reached the coveted top spot in the Christmas chart. Following a tense run down, we hear of a new entry in at number one; it’s The Yuletiders, a super group made up of all the acts we’ve previously heard from on the show. Their single ‘Everybody Sing Along’ delivers an important message about Christmas and brings the show to an up-beat, pop-tastic finale that will get your audience dancing in the aisles!
Characters
47 Speaking parts in order of appearance – easily increased or decreased
*Click on the Line count/Costumes tab for more details
Director
Assistant Director
show hosts
Tim Tinsel
Holly Bush
Sam Frost
Chris Cracker
in the studio audience
14 Girls and Boys
from the band ‘Gabriel’s Soul Patrol’
Gabriel
Angel Backing-Singer
Mary
from the band ‘The Landlords’
The Innkeeper
His Wife
3 Landlords
from the band ‘Don Kee & the Animals’
Don Kee
3 Animals
from the band ‘The Crooks’
5 Shepherds
from the band ‘The Wise Guys’
3 Wise Men
3 Camels
from the band ‘Herod & the King’s Swingers’
Herod
3 ‘Swingers’
Ensemble characters for featured songs and scenes
Studio audience / dancers
Angels – singers and band
Landlords – singers and band
Animals – singers and band
Wise Guys backing band
King’s Swingers – singers and band
What do you get?
This musical production is available to buy in 3 different formats. When ordering, simply choose the option (details below) which best suits your requirements.
- Option 1 – Book & Audio CD.
A wire-bound book containing the full script with detailed stage directions, character information, tips and suggestions for costumes, props and scenery, and a piano score for all songs. An audio CD of all songs (backing tracks & vocal tracks) plus continuity/incidental music and sound effects where required. - Option 2 – CD-ROM & Audio CD.
A CD-ROM containing both a PDF and an editable MS Word document of the full script, with detailed stage directions, character information, tips and suggestions for costumes, props and scenery, and a PDF of the piano score for all songs. An audio CD of all songs (backing tracks & vocal tracks) plus continuity/incidental music and sound effects where required. - Option 3 – Digital download.
All the PDF and MS Word files from Option 2 above, all audio tracks as MP3 files, plus JPEG files of cover artwork for use in making posters or other promotional material. Upon completion of your order, a link will be automatically sent to the email address you provided, from which all the files can be downloaded.
Any order containing a digital download option must be paid for online at the point of ordering. Any order containing a digital download which is not accompanied by payment will not be processed.
UK schools can order Book & Audio CD and CD-ROM & Audio CD options with an invoice to be paid within 30 days. Non-UK schools and private individuals (not ordering on behalf of a school) are required to pay for these at the point of ordering.
Anonymous –
I’m Josie from Belmont C of E Primary. This year we are filming our play because of COVID-19. I’m a director in scene 2. I love my part but I wish the teachers would let me be on stage a bit more and listen to other peoples ideas but that’s on them not you!
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Anonymous –
It’s really good best song is everybody sing along and I’m in the choir
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Anonymous –
I loved it, I’m doing it at school and I’m Holly Bush. It’s funny and different, and I love it, it’s new and exciting from any other nativity that I have done before. The lines are quite easy to learn and that’s good for the people who struggle to read them, as soon as I read the script for the first time I was in love with it. The whole plot is amazing, I love how they sing songs to tell the story, and the characters are all fun and well-created, also I like how they interview the band before they start singing! Keep up the good work!
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Anonymous –
we are going to do it for the second time this year our fav song was everybody sing along
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Anonymous –
I watched it and it was amazing
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Anonymous –
amazing im director I know all my lines yay
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Anonymous –
its AMAZING we are doing it as a play in my shcool p.s im swinger 2
=D
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Anonymous –
I did this play at my school amazing I was landlord three was soooo fun
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Anonymous –
Amazing😎😎😎😎😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😂😂😂😁😁😁😁😎😎😎😎😎😎😀😀😊
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Anonymous –
It’s just great to listen to the lovely songs
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Anonymous –
It is amazing i did it at school and i was the Assist Director.
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Anonymous –
I absolutely loved it! We’ve done our performances already. I was the innkeeper! I absolutely love his part and what it has to play.
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Anonymous –
I did this in school, I was King Herod!
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Anonymous –
It’s great, enjoyable. I love all the names, clever.
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Anonymous –
It’s amazing 💕😍 I love it I recommend it.
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Anonymous –
Fun and an enjoyable play
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Anonymous –
donkee and the animals are epic
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Anonymous –
Amazing! The songs, everybody loves them.
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Anonymous –
We are doing this in school and I ma gabriel! Love this and Children enjoy it to!
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Anonymous –
AMAZING
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Anonymous –
amazing i’m doing it in school !
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Anonymous –
V. Good
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Anonymous –
AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!
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Anonymous –
It is so good! I recommend this if you’re looking for an amazing nativity! The songs are brilliant and so are the bands!
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Anonymous –
Very good
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Anonymous –
I’m doing this an find it very amusing! 😊😊
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info@edgyproductions.com –
We are LOVING this musical, the songs are super catchy and the children are relishing it! Can’t wait to get the costumes sorted…hilarious! Laura Marne, Year 5/6 Teacher
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Anonymous –
We have been doing this for Year 4
They have enjoyed the production
The best song was Every body sing-along.
Kind Regards
Year 4 teachers
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Anonymous –
cool
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