Show Synopsis:
In this retelling of the "Princess and the Pea" fairytale, Queen Aggravain keeps rejecting bride after bride for her son Prince Dauntless. Her husband King Sextimus has been cursed as a mute, so she rules the kingdom until her son marries, and she is in no hurry to give up her power. Sir Harry offers to go on a quest for a princess because his girlfriend Lady Larken is pregnant and they are unmarried, but they are not allowed to marry until Dauntless has married his princess. Harry finds Princess Winnifred of the Swamplands, who is not exactly typical princess material, but starts to capture Dauntless's heart. Sensing trouble, Queen Aggravain decides to test Winnifred's "sensitivity" and see if she can feel a pea underneath twenty mattresses, and hosts a huge ball with a lot of wine to tire her out. Lady Larken contemplates running away to Normandy to hide her pregnancy, but the Queen forces her to stay, and Larken realizes she loves Harry. The Minstrel, the Jester, and the Wizard, who are all fond of Winnifred and do not care for Queen Aggravain, stuff jousting equipment into Winnifred's mattresses so that she cannot sleep, and she wins Dauntless' hand. When Aggravain tries to fight the outcome, Dauntless tells her to shut up, and he ends the curse that has kept his father mute by passing it onto his mother. Larken and Harry plan to be married and Winnifred finally gets a good night's sleep.
Character:
The Minstrel, a trusted narrator of the story and court minstrel; has a bit of a crush on Lady Larken; extremely loyal to Prince Dauntless.
Song Context:
The Minstrel, in true minstrel form, begins to tell the audience the real story of "The Princess and the Pea," not the boring version that has been handed down in fairytale books.
Fun Facts:
1. This musical was based on Hans Christian Andersen's famous fairytale "The Princess and the Pea."
2. Harry Snow originated the role of the Minstrel on the Broadway stage.
3. This musical was originally developed by Mary Rodgers, Marshall Barer, and Jay Thompson at a resort in the Poconos for a weeklong run before New York producers decided to expand it for an Off-Broadway run.
"Many moons ago in a far-off place
Lived a handsome prince with a gloomy face
For he did not have a bride.
Oh, he sighed ""Alas"" and he pined, Alas,
But, alas, the prince couldn't find a lass
Who would suit his mother's pride.
For a princess is a delicate thing,
delicate and dainty as a dragonfly's wing.
You can recognize a lady by her elegant air
but a genuine princess is exceedingly rare.
On stormy night to the castle door
came the lass the prince had been waiting for:
""I'm a princess lost,"" quoth she.
But the queen was cool and remained aloof and she said,
""Perhaps, but we'll need proof;
I'll prepare a test and see.""
""I will test her thus,""
the old queen said,
""I'll put twenty downy mattresses upon her bed,
And beneath those twenty mattresses I'll place one tiny pea.
If that pea disturbs her slumber
Then a true princess is she!""
Now, the bed was soft, and extremely tall
But the dainty lass didn't sleep at all,
and she told them so next day.
Said the queen, ""My dear, if you felt that pea
then we've proof enough of your royalty.
Let the wedding music play!""
and the people shouted quietly
""Hooray!""
For a princess is a delicate thing, delicate and dainty as a dragonfly's wing.
You can recognize a lady by her elegant air, but a genuine princess is exceedingly rare! "