Read the Original Editorial article here
YES, VIRGINIA THE MUSICAL is a brand-new musical that has been adapted specifically for school children by Macy’s. This holiday classic is based on the 1897 true story of Virginia O’Hanlon, an 8-year-old girl who inspired the most famous newspaper editorial of all time by asking, ‘Is there a Santa Claus?’ In 2008, Macy’s partnered with the Make-a-Wish-Foundation to create their Believe campaign based on this “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus” editorial and has since adapted the story into an animated television special, a children’s book and now for the first time it is available to perform live. As part of Macy’s commitment to arts education, they have made YES, VIRGINIA THE MUSICAL available to all teachers from any school – royalty-free! And everything you need is in the Toolkit.
Perfect for Your School
YES, VIRGINIA THE MUSICAL is the perfect show for any school. The production has a 60-minute running time and an adjustable cast size to fit your specific school needs. The show has eight main roles and anywhere from four to 20 additional parts for your students! Most importantly, at http://www.yesvirginiamusical.com you can download all the scripts, music, and design ideas to use for your show. There is even a video recording of the entire musical for you to watch!
Synopsis
Eight-year-old Virginia O’Hanlon has always loved Christmas. Until the day her classmates bring up the age-old question: “Is there a Santa Claus?” Not sure what to believe, Virginia ventures into the city to find out for herself. Along the way she consults some unusual characters: a scraggly Santa ringing a bell, an excitable librarian with a shelf full of Christmas books, and her quirky doctor father. Unable to find the answers she’s looking for, Virginia writes to The New York Sun newspaper. Her letter makes its way to the desk of curmudgeonly editor Francis Church, who has better things to do than respond to a little girl’s questions. But through Virginia’s determination (and a little help from a scraggly Santa) Mr. Church is persuaded to write his answer…an answer that becomes the most famous newspaper editorial of all time.
Meet the Characters
VIRGINIA: Virginia is eight years old and lives in New York City, one of the biggest cities in the world. Virginia loves one thing more than anything else, Christmas. But when her faith in Santa Claus is shaken by a fight with a schoolyard bully, she embarks on a quest to discover the truth. Is there a Santa Claus?
OLLIE: Ollie is Virginia’s best friend. He’s a few years younger than she is, and they’re almost like brother and sister. He’s talkative, full of energy, and knows for certain that Santa Claus is real. In fact, he sees him all the time in the streets of New York City.
SCRAGGLY SANTA: Once a reporter for The New York Sun, Scraggly Santa now stands on the corner in Herald Square raising pennies for the poor. He believes in helping others, just like Santa would.
CHARLOTTE: A snooty, self-absorbed little rich kid, Charlotte is a year or two older than all the other kids, but already acts like a grown-up. She’s convinced Santa isn’t real, and will stop at nothing to make sure all her little friends know that.
EDITOR FRANCIS CHURCH: Francis Church is the gruff and grumpy editor of the New York Sun newspaper. He prints facts, and only the facts. He doesn’t have time for charity, little girls or Santa Claus—that is, until a letter from Virginia comes across his desk.
DR. PHILIP O’HANLON: Virginia’s father and one of New York City’s most prominent doctors, Dr. O’Hanlon is a firm believer in science and reason. So he’s not sure how to respond when his daughter asks him the fateful question, “Is there a Santa Claus?”
MRS. LAURA O’HANLON: If Virginia’s father is ruled by reason, Mrs. O’Hanlon is governed by her heart. She’s always there for Virginia with a kind word and the right advice, even when her quest for the truth seems hopeless.
MIRIAM: The head librarian at the newly-constructed New York City Library, Miriam enthusiastically helps Virginia and Ollie hunt down proof of the existence of Santa Claus. Maybe she helps a little too enthusiastically.
Visit www.yesvirginiamusical.com today and download everything you need to start working on YES, VIRGINIA THE MUSICAL!
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the Delaware County CommunityMarket. We’re a 501-c non profit Community Market. 20% of every dollar spent in our local goods market and deli goes back to customer’s choice local charity group. We have about 100 Delaware County, OH non profits we partner with. We’ve raised 100,000 for our community with this concept. We only get a small portion of dollars earned in our market and we want to start an annual fundraiser…. Dinner Theater… Is there any chance your offer of free royalties may be extended to our group to help make this fund-raising idea a success ? If not, may you consider a special reduced price. Because this a single night event we need to keep costs as low as possible. thank you.