A Playful Mystery Play for Four Voices
There was a Mystery. She was a great Mystery. And nobody understood or appreciated her mainly because there was no one else around to appreciate or understand much of anything.
The Emperor's New Clothes
Once there was an emperor who needed a new set of clothes to wear in the grand parade. He called two of his finest cloth weavers to order one. They looked at each other and decided this would be a chance to make a little extra money from the deal. “Oh Emperor,” one said, “We have invented the...
A Thanksgrieving Reflection
I want to tell you about my bicycle. The frame is a sparkly kind of blue and it has pink handlebar tape. And guess what color the wheels are? Lime green! I love my bicycle. Now suppose this was your bicycle. And suppose one day you biked to school and totally forgot to lock your bike when you got...
The Smuggler
There are different versions of this Middle Eastern folktale; this version is just one way to tell it. You can find storytelling tips on WorshipWeb, but this story is also followed by suggestions about integrating this story into worship....
Lemonade Adventure
Once there was and once there was not a town on the edge of the swamp in the sultry summer weather of far south Florida, between the alligators and the ocean. In this town there were two amazing friends, Sam and Joseph. They were a lot alike. They liked the same foods. They liked the same books.
A play about King John Sigismund, the only Unitarian king
By Jan Gartner, adapted from the story, A Unitarian King, in A Lamp in Every Corner: A Unitarian Universalist Storybook, by Janeen K Grohsmeyer. Written as a no-rehearsal skit for middle-elementary worship or classroom use. NARRATOR Our story takes place in the mid-1500's, in the country of Hungary.
Two Frogs
Once, two frogs were hopping through the forest when they accidently hopped into a big churn of cream. The sides of the churn were so slick and slippery that there was no place to hold on to, so the frogs had to swim in circles to stay afloat. After a long time one frog said, “There is no hope.
Remembering Jesus: an Easter Story
At sundown on Saturday, the Sabbath finally over, Mary Magdalene and the other women who loved Jesus began to prepare spices to pour over his body to honor him and say a final farewell. They were up all night, cooking and talking, and remembering his life....
Thankful Dogs: A Story for All Ages
Once there was and once there was not a family of dogs. Like many dog families, there were dogs that had wandered off the street and dogs with fine pedigrees and dogs from the shelter and dogs who had been born into the family. They ran together. They played together....
Super Tiny
Once, there was a little girl named Amanda who loved to help other people. She helped her Papa David and Papi Caesar to clean the house, she raked up the leaves in her neighbor Jim’s yard when he was in pain and couldn’t do it himself, and she tutored her friend Sara in Math. So, when it came...
The Good Samaritan
One day a merchant was traveling on a road when he was attacked by bandits. The bandits were so cruel that they beat the merchant, stole everything he had, and left him for dead lying on the side of the road. The merchant was so badly hurt he couldn’t move or speak at all, and he could barely see...
Whose Reality Is It Anyway?
It was not a city. It was not a large town. But it was not a small town. It was—just average, you might say. Except for one thing. There was a Storyteller in the town. That’s Storyteller with a capital S. The Storyteller had arrived one day without advance notice (or as some people would put it,...
Animal School
This is a fable you can use as is, or adapt for your needs — embellish it and perform it with lots of dramatic emphasis — the underlined words almost always get a laugh — adults really like the story too. The story was loosely adapted from a story that George Reavis wrote when he was the...
The Beauty Contest
Once upon a time in a little village, there appeared a sign that said: Beauty Contest to be held this Saturday at the fair grounds. There will be a surprise guest judge. All the young girls in the village were very excited about being in a beauty contest, and they began to prepare for the big day.
Amelia and Her Super Magical Powers
This is the story of a young girl named Amelia. Amelia was fascinated by tales of people with super powers, like Wonder Woman, or magic like Harry Potter. She yearned to have powers like that so she could help people. Like the boy she often saw sitting all alone at lunch, looking very sad....
Marmalade [A story about reconciliation]
Whitman Jones had just turned nine. That was good. But he was going to a new school in a new town, and that was bad. In his old school he knew everyon—they had been in classes with him for years. In this new school he didn’t know one single person. Not only that, the first day didn’t go well...
Noelle and the Really Big Boat
A tale of salvation, ecology, and sharing. Characters Narrator Noelle Voice in a dream Noelle’s sisters Jane, Rain, and Elaine Friendly farmer(s) Ship builder(s) Numerous animals: dogs, cats, mice, cows, horses, frogs, etc. Act 1 (Noelle at center stage, sitting, covered in blanket and appearing...
Fruits
Once upon a time, a mother and her daughter were carrying bags of food to a neighboring village where people were hungry and had no food of their own. The two had to travel a great distance, which made them very tired, so they stopped to rest. As they sat down they heard a voice call out to them.
The Vessel of Compassion: A Water Communion Story
This story is great to be acted out by four women (of applicable ages for each direction) around a large bowl/vessel....
The Best Christmas Ever
It was December. I was in a new school in a new place and there were new teachers and new classmates. And we were living in a new house too. Also there was no snow in Florida. That was a lot of new things at once. I didn’t like it. At least I had my bicycle—it was my old bicycle so it wasn’t...
Who Loves the Dark?
There once was a child who got lost in the woods. As night began to descend, the child became more and more frightened. I’m sure any of us would be frightened too, in that situation, but what made this child even more frightened, was that he had always been afraid of the dark. He was more afraid...
The Cure
Once upon a time there was a young girl named Maggie, who found out she had a very terrible disease and probably would never be well again. She was very, very sad, and although she had many friends, all of them were afraid to visit her because they feared they might catch the disease....
Icarus
an original retelling Daedalus was a brilliant inventor, and he had made a career, even a legend of himself for being able to create the seemingly impossible. So when he decided to escape from his tower prison by flying over the ocean like a bird, his son, Icarus, had no doubt he would do it. It...
A Winter Speech Choir
George: This is Angel Gabriel of KGOD airwaves, coming to you live from the downtown mall in Bethlehem. The air is positively solar as frenzied shoppers scurry from store to store, their camels and donkeys weighted down with purchases. The beasts bawl. There are only, count ‘em and weep shoppers,...
Wake Up to Injustice
This story was created collaboratively by several religious educators. As you prepare to share it, read the 1966 Ware Lecture "Don't Sleep Through the Revolution," by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered at the Unitarian Universalist Association General Assembly in Hollywood, Florida, May 18, 1966.
The Frog Prince
There once was a little girl who was walking beside a creek when she happened to see a frog that looked very sad. “I wonder why that frog is so sad?” she asked herself. Then she remembered a story once told by her mother about how a girl had kissed a frog and how the frog had magically turned...
Sustaining the Tree of Life
The tree stood in the middle of the village. Its trunk was so large that it took six people holding hands to reach around it. The roots were strong and wide, and its branches spread out over the village square, offering shelter from the rain, or shade from the summer sun....
Give Yourself (a story about Ralph Waldo Emerson)
"What do you want for your birthday?" the father asked his daughter. "Do you want a doll?" She wrinkled her nose and scrunched her eyes and thought. "No." "A tea set?" "A pony?" "No, Father, I have a year to think. I want this year to be a special year, to remember." "All right....
Faith Is Like A Walking Stick
How many of you like to go hiking? I have a number of walks nearby that I like. Hunger Mountain, Snake Mountain and others. Or if we don’t want to drive, my wife and I just go down to our local park where in just a few steps you can forget you’re in the city. Sometimes we bring our dog Smokey...
Daniel in the Lion's Den
There once was a man named Daniel who was as gentle as a lamb. The King loved Daniel so much that he gave him power over the entire kingdom. But this made many men jealous of Daniel. One day, when the men happened to see him praying to God, they thought of a way to hurt Daniel....
Tiny the God
Once upon a time there was a tiny, little, itty bitty, very small, tiny little god named Tiny. She lived her life hearing stories of all the big gods and, well, let’s face it, she was jealous. She knew she needed to think of some kind of special spark of an idea that would make her existence...
Someone for Peace (a story about Emily Greene Balch)
"You want to do what?" her friend said. "But you can’t, you can’t, what difference could you make. It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard!" "But if someone doesn’t do something, how many more people will be killed, maimed or starve to death because of the war?" Emily answered. "But two...
Higgins: A Drop with a Dream
Once upon a time there was a drop of water named Higgins. Higgins was no ordinary drop of water. He was a drop with a dream. Higgins lived in a valley where it had not rained in a very long time, so all the lovely green grass was turning brown, all the beautiful flowers were wilting, and all the...
Rivers
Once upon a time there were two rivers flowing side by side. Both rivers liked to argue about who was the best. “The water in my river is better than the water in your river!” said one. “No, the water in my river is better than the water in your river!” said the other. The two rivers would...
When You Have More Than Enough
Once upon a time there was a family. Maybe this family had not quite enough to eat. Or maybe they had just about enough. Or … perhaps they had MORE than enough. You might not have been able to tell. THEY might not have been able to tell. Sometimes it’s hard to tell if you have enough or not.
Thank God, a Universalist! A story about Rev. Rasnake
Rev. James Madison Rasnake was the best Baptist minister in Georgia. His first career had been as a lawyer, and he was known for his splendid reasoning abilities. After creating a well-known law practice, he found his true calling—ministry—in particular, the Baptist ministry. In 1896 he was...
The Beautiful Tiger
There once was a beautiful and powerful tiger. One day she was captured by a mean and cruel man who put her into a cage. The man kept the cage in the jungle not far from his house. Everyday he would bring out a bowl of water and some food for the lonely tiger....
Sophia's Guest
Once upon a time there was a teacher named Sophia. Sophia had been a teacher in the town where she lived for so long that the kids she first had in her class grew up and had kids of their own and sent them to her class too....
Rainbows in the Windows
Somewhere in the world, there was a child and their grandparent sheltering in place, just like you are now - and they were really fed up, perhaps a bit like you are sometimes. The novelty of being at home all the time and doing whatever they wanted had worn off for the child and they felt...
The Lily in the Window
Once upon a time there was an old man who lived alone with his grandson in a dirty hovel. Everything around them was filthy (you can imagine!) One day a stranger appeared and gave the young child a beautiful lily. The boy took it home and placed it on a windowsill in his house....
Mouse and Crow
There was once a crow who was very hungry. Flying over the tops of the trees, it spotted a large, tasty-looking walnut growing from one of the tallest branches below. Seeing the makings of a fine supper, the crow swooped down and plucked the dangling walnut and held it triumphantly in its beak....
Let My People Go!
Once upon a time there was a little girl named Rosa, who loved to read her Bible. One of her favorite stories was the story of Moses, and how he helped the Hebrew slaves gain freedom. Moses was a young man who lived in Egypt. He knew it wasn’t right for the Hebrew people to be the slaves of the...
The Umbrella Sanctuary
To prepare for this activity, place umbrellas in the pews. Instruct people to open the umbrellas when the man in the story receives the umbrella. Today we have a very special item in our very special Mystery Box. This item is going to teach us more about sanctuaries....
What Is God?
Once there was a wise woman named Athenerva.* Athenerva would travel from town to town in her country, spending a few days, maybe a week in each town. People came to her with difficult problems or arguments they were having with others, and she would help them find their way toward satisfying...
Harpo the Harbor Seal and Our Diverse Waters: A Multigenerational puppet play for a Water Ceremony
Harpo: Hi there, I'm Harpo the harbor seal. I come back each year and more and more of my friends join me to hang out in Staten Island waters. I'm glad to be invited here to this gathering where you are bringing water from different places this morning....
Rabbit Looks For God
One day, a rabbit set out from the woods, carrying a question to all the other creatures that it met. The rabbit came first to a butterfly fluttering in an open field, and asked, "Friend butterfly, what can you tell me about the thing called 'god’?" The butterfly thought for a moment, and said,...
God's Hat
Once upon a time, there was a village with a road that went straight through the center of town. One day, something strange happened. God walked down the road . . . and she was beautiful! She wore a long flowing robe and on top of her head there was a wonderful hat....
Higgins: a Drop With a Dream
Once upon a time there was a drop of water named Higgins. Higgins was no ordinary drop of water. He was a drop with a dream. Higgins lived in a valley where it had not rained in a very long time, so all the lovely green grass was turning brown, all the beautiful flowers were wilting, and all the...
John Haynes Holmes
John Haynes Holmes was born into a Unitarian family soon after the Civil War. He grew up just outside of Boston, and his father would take him to Unitarian churches in Boston every Sunday so that he would hear the best preaching the city had to offer. Holmes idolized his grandfather, John Haynes,...
David and Goliath
Once there was a little girl who worried about a very big problem—world hunger. She read in the newspaper about children all over the world who did not have enough to eat. She wanted to do something about it, but she was only a little girl and this was a giant problem. What could she possibly do...