A Princess and her Five Suitors
A one-act play in verse
by
Joseph Patrick Rogers
Cast of Characters
(In order of appearance)
ROSE (a princess)
KING REGIS (her father)
SQUIRE (introduces each suitor)
SOLDIER (first suitor)
BUILDER (second suitor)
BAKER (third suitor)
PRINCE (fourth suitor)
TRAVELER (final suitor)
Scene I
SETTING : ROSE is standing at a table on which she is creating a clay sculpture. KING REGIS enters the room.
Verses should be recited using a sing-song, Dr. Seuss-like rhythm.ROSE:
Welcome, my King and Father Dear;
I’m so glad that you are here;
For I have toiled for many a day,
Seeking the form within this clay.
KING (glances at her unfinished artwork):
You will find the sculpture’s true form;
I know you shall
For you talent is as deep as a well.
ROSE:
Father, I see concern within your eyes;
Have you seen ill omens in the skies?
What brings you to my art studio today?
What concern brings you my way?
KING:
Like mother and like daughter;
She too sometimes seemed to read my mind.
Indeed there is a matter about which I shall unwind.
ROSE:
About this matter, tell me please;
Let me place you mind at ease!
KING:
Rose, time's swift passage causes my fears
For you have five and twenty years;
Your indecision I can no longer abide;
You must have a husband at your side.
ROSE:
Father, your patience I do ask;
Choosing a husband should not be a hasty task.
One day I shall find my groom;
Perhaps I'll meet him in this room!
KING:
Your choice this kingdom needs to know
Because someday upon your head my crown shall go;
So I shall invite suitors to petition for your hand;
Men shall come from throughout the land.
ROSE:
I would prefer to wait a while,
And let things work out as they will.
KING:
No, my decision has been made;
By your objections, I shall not be swayed.
Messengers I shall send forth away
Throughout the kingdom this very day.
(KING exits)
Scene II
SETTING: The next morning Rose is reading when the KING and his SQUIRE enter the room.
ROSE:
Good morning, Father. Good day, Squire.
My, you seem an anxious pair!
Why is there so much excitement in the air?
KING:
My dear, because you are so fair,
Men have responded as fast as hares.
Four suitors to the palace have come,
Arriving with this morning's sun.
ROSE (rising):
I'll see the men then, Father,
But no promises shall I make.
SQUIRE:
First I present the soldier
Returned from foreign wars.
(SOLDIER enters)
SOLDIER:
My Liege and lovely Princess,
I greet you this fine day.
KING:
Welcome, good soldier, to our castle keep.
I bid you now petition for my daughter's hand.
SOLDIER:
If she does choose to be my wife,
I'll be her bravest knight.
North and South, East and West,
This Kingdom I'll expand.
I am a great warrior,
My sword is swift and sure.
(The SOLDIER holds out his sword to ROSE)
To you, Princess, I pledge my blade;
I would be the best choice you've ever made.
ROSE:
I am grateful for the honor that to me you have paid.
(ROSE smiles and nods to acknowledge his petition.)
SQUIRE:
We duly thank you for your petition, Soldier;
Now please go out and wait.
Come in, come in now, Builder.
(aside to audience) He moves with a speedy gait.
(The SOLDIER exits and the BUILDER enters)
BUILDER:
My Lord and my Lady,
God's blessings on your day.
KING:
Welcome, good Builder, to our castle keep.
I bid you now petition for my daughter's hand.
BUILDER:
This country's banks I do control;
My wealth is world renowned.
If the Princess marries me,
Your kingdom's treasures will abound.
(The BUILDER gestures wildly)
I'll raise this palace to the clouds,
Its turrets and towers shall be beyond compare;
I'll build twin towers there! And there!
(The BUILDER holds out a gold coin to ROSE)
To you, Princess, I pledge my gold;
Of my heart, you've take hold.
ROSE:
Of your charm, I had not been told.
(ROSE smiles and nods to acknowledge his petition.)
SQUIRE:
We kindly thank you for your petition, Builder;
Now please go out and wait.
Come in, come in now, Baker,
And you may bring those pastries on a plate.
(The BUILDER exits and the BAKER enters)
BAKER:
Good King and Lovely Princess,
Delicious treats I bring today.
KING:
Welcome, good Baker, to our castle keep.
I bid you now petition for my daughter's hand.
BAKER:
Delicious food from many lands
I'll make for her each day.
Spices and sweets magnificent
I'll bring from the many kitchens that I own.
Bouquets of exotic flowers
Shall bring beauty to our home.
(The BAKER holds out the plate toward ROSE)
Try these cherries, Princess.
I can assure you that they're quite nutritious.
ROSE:
Thanks. They look delicious.
(ROSE smiles and nods to acknowledge his petition.)
SQUIRE:
We warmly thank you for your petition, Baker;
Now please go out and wait.
Come in, come in now, Prince.
(aside to audience) He arrived a little late.
(The BAKER exits and the PRINCE enters)
PRINCE:
Hello, my fellow rulers,
My own father's greetings I do bring.
KING:
Welcome, good Prince, to our castle keep.
I bid you now petition for my daughter's hand.
PRINCE:
I offer her a kingdom
If she shall be my bride,
Our kingdoms joined in power,
Their strength beyond compare.
(The PRINCE presents his scepter to ROSE)
Princess, you could be my queen and wife;
I shall love you all my life.
ROSE:
And I am sure that your queen shall never know strife.
(ROSE smiles and nods to acknowledge his petition.)
SQUIRE:
We royally thank you for your petition, Prince;
Now please go out and wait.
(The PRINCE and the SQUIRE exit)
KING:
I think your choice is clear.
You have heard the petitions
Of all these worthy men,
But this last man seems the greatest
For he is of royal blood.
The joining of our kingdoms
Would bring honor to us all.
ROSE:
None of these men impresses me;
They offer nothing that I want.
KING:
Daughter, make your choice
Or you will know my wrath:
Choose your groom or I shall choose for you.
(The SQUIRE enters hurriedly)
SQUIRE:
Majesty, forgive my interruption,
But a new suitor has arrived.
He has traveled a great way
For his petition to be heard.
KING:
Nay, this suitor is too late.
This matter must be closed.
Send the man away and let no others in.
ROSE (stepping forward):
Squire, I bid you to wait.
Father, we should not be hasty;
Let us hear this man's petition
For the last is not always least.
KING:
Daughter, my patience you do try,
But I shall grant you this wish
If you will then make your choice.
(to SQUIRE) Summon in the final man.
SQUIRE:
Come in, come quickly, Traveler;
Royalty must not be made to wait.
(The TRAVELER enters)
TRAVELER (smiling):
King Regis and Princess Rose,
I am glad to see you both.
KING:
Welcome, good Traveler, to our castle keep.
I bid you now petition for my daughter's hand.
TRAVELER:
I have ridden twenty hours without rest
And dread how I must now appear,
But I sought to be a suitor
And time for me would not wait.
Your daughter did once know me,
Though it was long ago.
Rose, before your father was the king,
Before this castle was your home,
We were friends in glad childhood days
And ran through the woods, just us alone.
ROSE:
As I look upon the man,
Once again I see the boy.
Indeed you were a friend of mine,
And we did rule the fairy woods.
Upon tree boughs I strung pink bows
And served you tea on a bench of stone.
We searched the woods for elves and gnomes
And found what might have been a witch's home.
You made those days so bright for me.
TRAVELER:
I'll seek to brighten all your days
If you will marry me;
I loved you then and love you now.
Our situation is so different
Yet somehow still the same.
ROSE:
You have seen my other suitors
And much have they offered me.
I could choose the Baker
And have sweet treats at any time;
Or I could choose the Builder
And have a palace to the sky;
Or I could choose the Soldier
And have a handsome knight at my side.
And, if the Prince I marry,
Over an empire I shall rule.
TRAVELER:
To you, Rose, this I offer:
If foreign armies crush this land
And smash this castle to the ground,
If famine empties the Baker's shelves,
And there is no food to be found,
If sickness confines you to your bed
And steals the beauty that you have today,
If all goes wrong,
You'll find me true.
ROSE:
I remember you to be a more cheerful lad,
Not so filled with doom and gloom!
God protect us from these dire events!
Can you not sing any happy tunes?
KING:
Traveler, before my daughter I give away,
I want to know what it is you do.
TRAVELER:
King Regis, I hope that Rose will love me
For who I am, not for what I do;
For chance can make a man rich or poor,
But his own choices name him true.
Rose, my dear, my darling,
If you do choose to be my wife,
I'll tell you how I spend my days.
Until then, I shall not say.
ROSE (kisses and hugs him):
I care not thy occupation;
Be what you want to be:
And, if you do choose to be my husband,
I'll love you as you are.
KING (sighs in resignation):
Good man, I am no fool;
My daughter truly does love you;
Her happiness means most to me,
So my blessing I'll give to thee.
TRAVELER:
Thank you, good King Regis.
Rose, now that you have freely chosen,
I'll tell you what I do.
A year after I last saw you,
Misfortune came to pass.
The plague destroyed my family,
And I was sent abroad.
I was apprenticed to a baker
And soon learned that trade quite well
Then with my hard-earned Baker's money,
I bought a building, which I did sell.
As a Builder, I made much money
And shared my wealth with those who had none.
Our community did prosper
Before the shadow came;
A dark army ruined all in its way
And plundered what it wanted.
Then the people formed an army
In which I fought dark legions.
Our leader soon was slain
And, as their new general,
Our army they did me proclaim.
With sharp blades and stout hearts,
We smashed the devil's army
And put them to just end.
The peace we built,
We built to last,
And last week the people made me king,
Though I was humbly born.
So you ask: what do I do?
Well, I guess I've done it all:
Baker, builder, soldier, king.
And now I need a queen.
When word came from your messenger,
My heart was filled with hope.
Telling few of my plans,
In secret I rode forth alone.
(The TRAVELER kneels)
So I ask on bended knee,
"Will you be my bride?"
ROSE:
I will, my love,
Of course, I shall;
There could only have been you.
I see that now;
It's crystal clear.
Our love was meant to be.
It is right that you are king
For noble always was your heart.
My childhood friend shall be my groom.
KING (laughs and claps his hands):
This is indeed a happy day;
My daughter shall be wed!
A perfect groom we now have found!
He must be Heaven-sent!
SQUIRE (to audience):
And so this royal Traveler and Rose were wed,
And the Princess became a Queen.
Their sacred bond made something new,
And two kingdoms joined in peace.
THE END
