Fast action, a variety of characters, and tuneful music add up to the high quality children's play we have come to expect from Joseph Robinette, author of A*B*C*, Beanstalk!, and other notable scripts.

Penny and the Magic Medallion is set in the mythical kingdom of Reginald the Righteous, who can never admit he is wrong. "Forthright, upright, and all right," the King is plagued by inefficency. His cook can't cook, his sentinel can't stay awake, and his herald can't herald. At least that's the way the King sees things. Into the castle comes Bonibini, a whimsical failed magician who offers the King a solution to his problems. A mysterious medallion he gives to the King has the power to turn people into highly efficient robots. Mechanical and unemotional, the staff is soon bustling around the castle, following orders to the letter. The servants' perfection soon begins to irritate the King, but before he realizes it, his wife and favorite page are also transformed into spiritless automatons. To stop the medallion, the King must unscramble a puzzle. With the help of the audience, he discovers the secret words that break the spell: "I am wrong." Ordinarily, the King gets violently ill at the sound of the word "wrong," but this time he learns it's not so bad after all. The spell is broken, and, as they say in fairy tales, they all live happily ever after.

With a flexible cast, Penny and the Magic Medallion is suitable for all types of theatre companies and performing spaces. Thoroughly tested and polished before publication. One act; Set, a Throne Room in a castle; Time, today or yesterday.

Like all of Joseph Robinette's plays for children's theatre, Penny is universally lauded by the media, producers, and audiences:
"An entertaining presentation of a valuable lesson: it's all right to admit you're wrong."—Plays for Children and Young Adults.
"Penny was a smash. Another Robinette hit for Flint and seen by 5,000 children and adults."—Ann Elgood, Director, Youth Theatre, Flint, Mich.
"It's hard to imagine a more perfect example of children's theatre...Penny is pure theatre: a literate story, spectacular costumes, brilliant songs and a valuable message for the children in the audience: it doesn't hurt to admit you're wrong." —Paul Merkoski, Atlantic City, N.J., Sunday Press
"The show is strongly recommended for all ages."—Mary O. Davis, Glassboro Cam Glo
"Old-fashioned fairy tale fantasy is combined with elements of pop culture in the musical play, Penny and the Magic Medallion, that opened the Children's Theatre season here yesterday. It was a mixture that worked well for the TV-conditioned youngsters."—Alison Griffin, Richmond, Va., Times-Dispatch
" Penny and the Magic Medallion tells the story of King Reginald the Righteous, a blusering tyrant who can never admit he's wrong. He breeds slovenliness in his servants through his insensitivity to their needs...There's a message in all this that even a pre-schooler can grasp." —Roy Proctor, Richmond, Va., News Leader.