The Princess and the Frog



Afraid to Tell

LAURA: Hi. I’m Laura. I’m a third-grader. I play soccer and my favorite game is “Hungry-hungry Hippos”, and my favorite movie is “Frozen”…and something happened to me, and I’m not really sure what that something was. It was a kind of touch, but I’m not sure what kind of touch it was. Something happened to me – and I’m afraid to tell.

TEAM: (as Scott waits for the “pitch” in the kickball game, ad lib all at once) C’mon Scott! You can do it! You got this! We need just one more run to win! Woohoo!, etc. (then they all watch and track with the ball’s flight path, and erupt into cheering as the ball travels over the fence. Scott “runs the bases” by running around the room giving high fives to the kids in the audience, then completes the circuit by giving high fives, chest bumps, etc. to his teammates, ending with a hard, loud, high five to Laura)

LAURA: (rubbing her hand) Ow! That really hurt my hand! But the team was so excited that Scott kicked a home run, when he gave me that high five, it kind of made me feel like I was part of the team and we were all just celebrating because we won, so even though that high five stung my hand and hurt on the outside, it really made me feel good on the inside, so I guess that was a good touch. But that high five was not like the touch that happened to me. I wonder what kind of touch that was?

IAN: (skipping across the stage, trips, falls and skins his knee), (holding his knee) Mom! (looking around to see if his mom heard him, then wailing louder) Mom!

LYNELLE: Oh, Drew, what happened?

IAN: (tearfully) I fell down and skinned my knee!

LYNELLE: Oh, that sounds like it really hurt.

IAN: Yeah.

LYNELLE: How about I put a Band-Aid on it.

IAN: Yeah.

LYNELLE: (putting on a Band-Aid and then kissing the boo-boo) There. Is that better?

IAN: Yeah. (she hugs him, then they freeze)

LAURA: Oh, Ian fell down and skinned his knee. That looked like it really hurt. One time I was riding on my bicycle and I was trying to pop a wheelie and I fell off my bike and skinned my elbow, and my Dad came and put a Band-Aid on it and gave it a kiss, and I don’t think it really made my elbow feel better, but I felt better on the inside because I knew my Dad cared about me and everything was going to be okay. So that kiss that Ian’s mom gave him was a good touch, I guess, because it made Ian feel good on the inside, even if he was still hurt on the outside. But there are some hurts that don’t feel better with a Band-Aid and a kiss – like the kind of hurt that happened to me. Something happened to me, and I’m afraid to tell.

BECCA: (standing, talking on phone) So how did you do on that Math test today? (Pause, listening) Oh, yeah, right, you always do really well in Math. Uh-huh. You’re so smart.

SARAH: (sitting on the floor, playing the voices of Ken and Barbie), (in Ken’s deeper voice) What do you want to do tonight? (in Barbie’s higher voice) I don’t know, what do you want to do tonight? (to Becca) Hey, Becca, will you play Barbies with me? I need somebody to be Ken.

BECCA: (covering the phone) Sarah, be quiet. I’m on the phone!

SARAH: (moving in, on her knees) Hey, who are you talking to? Is that your BOYFRIEND? Can I talk to him?

BECCA: (forgetting to cover the phone) Would you shut up! (to her boyfriend) No! I didn’t mean you! I was talking to my little sister. She’s being a pest.

SARAH: (in Barbie’s higher voice) So how did you do on that Math test today, Ken? You always do good in Math, Ken! You’re like the smartest guy in the whole wide world, and I love you! (making kissing noises and actions with Ken and Barbie)

BECCA: (pushes her over) Sarah, shut up!

LAURA: Oh. Did you see that? Sarah’s big sister pushed her down. I bet that hurt. It looks like that kind of touch hurt Sarah on the outside, and I wonder if that kind of touch maybe hurt Sarah on the inside, too. Maybe it hurt her feelings. But that kind of touch is not very much like the kind of touch that happened to me. I wonder what kind of touch that was…

BOB: Alright, gang, bring it in! (players gather around COACH in a huddle). Okay, we’re one point down and there’s 15 seconds left on the clock. Scott, you inbounds the ball to Emily. Emily, you bring the ball down and pass the ball to Mandy, and Mandy, you’re going to take the shot. Got it? Alright, Muskrats, on three! One, two, three, ‘Rats! (huddle breaks and players scatter to positions, then, catching Mandy by the arm) Alright, Mandy, you’re taking the last shot because you’re the only one on the team who can hit the rim. You got this! (COACH sends Mandy into the game with a slap on the butt, Mandy turns back with a confused look)

LAURA: Did you see that? Coach slapped Mandy on the butt! I’m not sure how Mandy felt about that. One time I was playing soccer, and my coach was getting ready to send me into the game, and he slapped me on the butt. It made me feel kind of uncomfortable, so I talked to my dad about it, and he talked to my coach, and my coach said he wouldn’t slap my butt anymore. But even though that slap on the butt made me feel kind of uncomfortable, I don’t think that was the kind of touch that happened to me. I’ve got a secret, and I’m afraid to tell.

RYAN: Hi, Mandy. Great job in the basketball game! It was so cool how you made that last-second shot!

MANDY: It was so exciting. We won by 1 point. Thanks for coming to watch.

RYAN: I love watching you. In fact, I was so inspired watching you play that I wrote you a little poem…

MANDY: Really! Will you read it to me?

RYAN: Oh, okay. “Roses are red, violets are blue, you’re a great basketball player, and I really like you”.

MANDY: That is so sweet! I really like you, too. (she kisses him on the cheek)

LAURA: Ewww! She kissed him! That’s so gross! Ewww! I’m never going to kiss a boy! Well, maybe when I’m married. Still, though, it looked like it felt good on the outside, even though it was totally gross, and I think he may have felt good on the inside, too. So, I guess that kiss must be a good touch after all. That kind of touch doesn’t seem very much like the kind of touch that happened to me. That touch didn’t make me feel good on the inside. I wonder what kind of touch that was…

DREW: (as DREW and the BABYSITTER sit crosslegged on the floor, facing the TV, playing video games) Yess! I win again!

MARA: You are so good at this game!

DREW: Yeah. Hey, when are my parents going to be home?

MARA: Oh, not for a long time.

DREW: Okay. Do you want to play another game?

MARA: Sure, but since you got to pick the first game, I get to pick the next game.

DREW: Okay, that seems fair.

MARA: In this game, you take off all your clothes.

DREW: Um…I don’t know...

MARA: You said I got to pick the next game. Come on. It will be fun.

DREW: Maybe we could play Hedbanz or Operation or…

MARA: (rising up on her knees, grabbing his arm) Drew, do you want me to tell your parents you’ve been bad?

LAURA: Stop! Can’t you see that touch is making Drew feel bad on the inside? Can’t you see that is not a good touch? I know, because that’s the kind of touch that happened to me. (EMILY, playing LAURA, enters and sits on chair downstage opposite) See, I have this uncle, Uncle Joe, and sometimes when my parents go out, he comes over to babysit me. Well, this one time, my parents were going out, so Uncle Joe came over. (UNCLE JOE knocks on door state right, EMILY, playing LAURA, crosses right to open door, greets UNCLE JOE excitedly, giving him a hug) He made my favorite food, mac & cheese, and after supper we sat on the couch to watch my favorite movie, “Frozen”, but while we were watching the movie Uncle Joe started touching me. He touched me under my shirt and even down there, in my pants, in my private area, and after, I remember Uncle Joe saying:

UNCLE JOE: Remember – this is our little secret.

LAURA: I didn’t know what to do. I just remember thinking:

EMILY/playing LAURA: Did I do something wrong? Was I bad? I’ve got a secret, and I’m afraid to tell.

LAURA: But I know now that I have to tell. I’m going to tell my mom and my dad and my teacher and maybe my school counselor. I’ve got a secret, and I have to tell.

COUNSELOR: (enters to sit crosslegged on the floor, holding the bunny, LAURA enters to sit down crosslegged next to him, but not too close) Hi, Laura.

LAURA: My mom is right outside.

COUNSELOR: Okay. (after long, awkward silence) Laura, did you have something you wanted to talk to me about?

LAURA: Yeah.

COUNSELOR: (after another long, awkward silence) Is it a secret?

LAURA: Yeah.

COUNSELOR: Well, Laura, there are some secrets that shouldn’t be kept.

LAURA: Yeah, like bad secrets.

COUNSELOR: Yeah. Is that the kind of secret this is? A bad secret?

LAURA: Yeah.

COUNSELOR: You know, Laura, sometimes when you talk about something, it helps you to feel better. (COUNSELOR freezes)

LAURA: (standing) …And you know what? He was right. Talking about my secret did help me to feel better. I know now that what happened to me wasn’t my fault. I know that I didn’t do anything wrong. And I’ve got this friend, Drew, and I think he has a secret, too. (LAURA crosses to take DREW by the hand, and she as she leads, DREW follows hesitantly, LAURA sits down crosslegged on the floor next to the COUNSELOR, DREW sits down next to her) Hi, Mr. Caldwell

COUNSELOR: (unfreezing) Hi. Laura. (after a beat) Hi, Drew. (COUNSELOR hands the bunny to LAURA, stands, and exits)

PROCESSING:

SCOTT: Hey kids, remember me? I kicked a home-run and we won the game! When I gave Laura a high-five, it kind of stung my hand, I slapped her hand so hard, but even though it might have hurt on the outside, that touch made me feel good on the inside, because we were so excited and that high-five was just a way of celebrating! Who wants a high-five? (Scott works his way around the room again, high-fiving the third-graders)

LYNELLE: Hi, I’m Ian’s mom. When Ian fell down and skinned his knee, I gave his knee a kiss so that he would feel better. That was a good touch. I don’t think the kiss really made the hurt go away or made Ian feel better on the outside, but I think it made him feel better on the inside, because he knew that I cared about him.

SARAH: (sitting) Hi, I’m Sarah. I really like it when my big sister Becca plays with me. We always have so much fun together. When she pushed my down, it hurt a little on the outside, when I hit my elbow on the floor, but it hurt more on the inside, because she didn’t want to play with me.

BECCA: (crossing to kneel) Sarah, I’m sorry I pushed you down earlier. I know that must have hurt, and even though I have a boyfriend, you’ll always be my little sister. (hugging her)

SARAH: Thanks. Do you want to play Barbies? You can be Barbie.

BECCA: No way. I get to be Ken.

BOB: Hey, everybody. I’m Coach. When I slapped Mandy on the butt, I just wanted her to go into the game and do her best. I didn’t mean to make her feel her uncomfortable, so when I found out that I did make her feel uncomfortable, I apologized and told her I wouldn’t do that anymore.

RYAN: (holding hands) Hi, I’m Ryan, and this is Mandy.

MANDY: Ryan, I can introduce myself.

RYAN: I know. I just like saying your name.

MANDY: That’s so sweet! When Ryan read me the poem he wrote, it made me feel so good on the inside, I wanted to do something that made him feel good on the inside, too, so I gave him a kiss.

RYAN: When Mandy gave me a kiss on the cheek, that touch felt good on the outside, but it made me feel really good on the inside. That was a good touch.

MARA: Hi, my name is Mara, and I played the part of the babysitter.

JOE: And I played the part of Uncle Joe…

MARA: …And what our characters did was wrong. If anyone ever touches here, (indicating with both hands over her breasts), or here (indicating with both hands together over her genitals), you need to tell someone you trust.

JOE: Yes, and who are some people you could tell that you trust? (Joe takes answers from the audience until answers are exhausted)

MARA: The important thing is that you tell somebody – somebody you trust.

END PROCESSING

LAURA: Drew, do you have a secret?

DREW: Yeah.

LAURA: Is it a bad secret?

DREW: Yeah.

LAURA: Sometimes when you talk about something, it helps you to feel better.

DREW: Really?

LAURA: Yeah. Bad things shouldn’t happen to good kids like us. (they high-five)

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