Velveteen rabbit study guide

Based on the story by Margery Williams Screenplay by Catherine Gray

STUDY GUIDE

The story of The Velveteen Rabbit is about a toy rabbit’s quest to become real through the love of his owner. A boy receives a toy rabbit for Christmas. Other toys snub the little rabbit, believing they are fancier than he. The rabbit befriends the oldest, wisest toy in the nursery, Skin Horse, and learns that there may be a way to become “real.” The rabbit eventually becomes the boy’s favorite toy. At one point in the story, the boy becomes very sick and the rabbit comforts him throughout his illness. After he is well, the boy goes to the seaside to recuperate.

The doctor decides to disinfect the nursery by burning all the toys and books! Find out what happens to the rabbit and the boy in this live production.

CHARACTERS:

Velveteen Rabbit – a child’s toy Boy – owner of the rabbit Nana – the boy’s governess Skin Horse – guardian of the toys Father Mother Doctor Three Rabbits Other Nursery Toys

THE AUTHOR AND THE PLAYWRIGHT Born in London on July 22, 1881, Margery Williams was the youngest daughter of a lawyer and famous classical scholar. As a child, she had a vivid imagination and would create different personalities for each of her toys. Margery also grew up with a love for reading and soon developed a passion for writing. When she was nine years old, her family moved to the United States.

After school Margery decided to become a writer. In 1902, she published her first novel. In 1904, Margery married Francisco Bianco. Margery gave up writing so that she could raise their two children. She found inspiration in watching her children play with toys and animals. This inspiration would lead her to write her most popular book, The Velveteen Rabbit, or How Toys Become Real, in 1922. She went on to write more than twenty books. Margery Williams Bianco died on September 4, 1944.

A person who writes a play is called a playwright. This is someone that uses books, comics or their own stories to create a script to be acted out on stage.

Catherine Gray is an actress and playwright living in California. She has written several plays for the Barter Theater Players including The Littlest Angel, Abe, A Duck called Ugly, The Frog Prince, The Pied Piper and Pinocchio. She and her husband were resident company members at the Barter for more than five years. She currently lives in Los Angeles where she continues to act, write and produce while developing new ideas for television and film.

Barter Theatre opened in 1933

BARTER THEATRE The Barter Theatre was created during the Great Depression by Robert Porterfield. A native of southwest Virginia, he saw an abundance of produce, but not theatre. In contrast, his fellow actors in New York were out of work and hungry. Admission to the theatre when it opened on June 10, 1933 was 40 cents or the same amount in produce. The theatre was popular. By the end of the first season they had $4.35 in cash, two barrels of jelly and an over-all weight gain of 300 pounds. The theatre currently has more than 163,000 annual patrons, three performance venues and a touring company.

Produce traded at the Barter Theatre

COMPARE AND CONTRAST Read the book in class. Talk about some of the important events in the book. After seeing the show, write down the differences in the separate areas of the circles and write the similarities in the overlapped area.

Book

Performance

GN A TOY I S DE What toy could you love enough to make real?

Would it be a stuffed toy?

A car? You would need to play with it so much that you wear it out. Show the design of your toy and tell how you would play with it. Why would you love it? What special things would you do with it?

HOW RA Their eyes allow them to see almost all the way around their bodies and they have excellent vision.

Wild rabbits are colored to blend in with their habitat.

Some rabbits even change color with the season!

MY TOY

ABB ITS

very sensitive to hear small sounds from great distances.

RS

WAY FROM PR A T ED GE AT O The ears swivel and are

Powerful hind legs allow them to make large hops and the agility to change direction quickly and confuse their predators.

BEFORE THE PERFORMANCE – Read The Velveteen Rabbit with your class and go through the Study Guide.

– Review how to behave in a theater and role play what to do when you get to the Clay Center.

– Discuss some of the ways theater is different from watching a movie or television. (Like when it is appropriate to clap.)

DURING THE PERFORMANCE – Be sure not to distract others with talking, noises or electronics. Feel free to laugh and clap to show the performers that you like the performance.

– Watch for performers playing the roles of toys and people, how do their costumes look different? These are important clues to the action in the story.

AFTER THE PERFORMANCE – Discuss what you saw with others in your class. Decide which part was your favorite, or which part a friend who didn’t see the show would find interesting.

– Back at school write or draw a journal entry about your trip and the performance.

To book a trip call 304-561-3562 More info? 304-561-3570 | www.theclaycenter.org One Clay Square, Charleston, WV 25301