Rapunzel is an abused child. She isn't starved or beaten; in fact she has everything a young girl could want...except freedom and friends. A witch takes baby Rapunzel from her parents and—to protect her from the evils of the world—locks her in a beautiful tower and gives her every luxury as she grows up. But the tower has no door. When the witch wants to visit, she calls: "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your golden hair," and the long braid tumbles down so the witch can climb up. A handsome prince overhears the ritual, calls out the words, climbs up, and rescues Rapunzel in spite of a hilarious dragon who is supposed to guard her.

Sidney Berger's dramatization of the fairy tale about Rapunzel follows closely the original told by the Brothers Grimm. Given an elaborate, expensive production by the Houston Children's Theatre Festival, it can also be mounted simply and inexpensively as demonstrated in the stage directions in the script and in the Production Notes. Among the charms of this dramatization is the close relationship between the cast and the children in the audience. The children love it—and so do the actors when they hear the excited voices and see the happy faces of their young admirers.

It's interesting to note the timeliness of the Rapunzel story. Here is an abused child—abused not by beatings and starvation, but by overprotectiveness. Rapunzel has all the luxuries that money—or witchcraft—can provide, yet she is completely unhappy because she is deprived of the friendship and love of her peers. Does her story help us understand why so many children of the privileged upper classes in today's society have tragic lives? The children of extravagantly paid movie stars and entertainers, of mega-wealthy industrialists and super-successful politicians—people who are too busy to nurture and care for their own children and try to substitute expensive gifts and luxuries for personal attention and love. The Witch who takes Rapunzel from her natural parents symbolizes the servants and nannies who become substitute moms and dads for today's kids. It didn't work in the days of the Brothers Grimm, and it doesn't work today.

The music and sound effects tape used in the Houston Children's Theatre Festival is available from the publisher. One act; Alternating between the apron and the stage makes action of the 2-set production move smoothly.

"Multiple levels of interpretation in this outstanding adaptation keep the story fresh."—Plays for Children and Young Adults.

Other Berger plays: Bird Boy, The Little Match Girl - Musical

See also: Fairytales, Folktales, and Fables