Synopsis

'Robyn Hood: outlaw princess' is a full length, lively, fun, 'pop' musical, based loosely on the traditional tales of 12th century English folk hero, Robin Hood.

In what is essentially a fantasy tale, Robin is a schoolgirl who has a confrontation with her school headmaster. As punishment, he orders her to write an essay on the lives of famous men in history. Angrily Robin complains that school history lessons always concentrate on the lives of men. Why weren't there were more famous women in history she asks? She had often dreamed of being a famous heroine and her dream subsequently becomes a reality, in which she re-emerges as Robyn Hood, an outlaw princess, leading a female band of outlaws.

The story unfolds in a series of dramatic and amusing adventures centred round an on-going confrontation with the evil Sheriff of Nottingham (the school headmaster) and his dim-witted soldiers, the Heavies. The final scene is a dramatic treason trial held in the marketplace at Nottingham.

The setting is timeless. The show can be staged using a traditional medieval setting, or it could be presented in any time period. The characters can be played by actors from any ethnic or cultural group and is written for unlimited cast numbers, predominantly female, aged approx 10-14 years. There are two main groups: Robyn and her Outlaw Band, and the Sheriff, his Heavies and the Townspeople. The two groups never appear on stage at the same time, thus simplifying rehearsals.

There are fifteen songs, some solo or duet, all written in low singable keys, with a strong emphasis on melody and rhythm, and there is ample scope for lively choreography. Instrumentation is for a rhythm section (piano, guitar, bass and drums) with an optional woodwind and brass or synthesiser. It is possible to perform this work with any combination of these instruments, or just with a piano.

Characters

Songs