Our Christmas Play ‘The Riverboat Blue’

Our end of term Christmas festival was marked by another fantastic production of a new play ‘The Riverboat Blue’ – original script and music by Dean Frances-Hawksley, our Education Coordinator/Class Teacher of Seniors A.

This rich and deeply poignant story symbolic of the Nativity , captures the true essence of the Christmas Message.

Narrator: In his dream, which came in the seventieth year of his life, Old Man Ithamar was approached by a child dressed in gold who presented a length of ivy, and heard a voice that sounded as many voices appear from the great dark of the wintering sky:

Chorus: That which is most precious
Most cherished unto you
Gather up as gift to bear
Upon the Riverboat Blue
And fly back down the river
Upon the river’s wing
To give what only you can give
Unto the fledgling king.

Narrator: When he awoke the next day he felt very different. For he knew the dream had been a calling, and that he must follow it.

Ithamar: There is nothing for me here anymore. My house is full of relics. I myself am little more than a relic. Perhaps one last riverboat journey is just what I need. The dream said to gather that which is most precious… Very well. A sort-out! I will take with me only what is precious, and everything else I will leave behind!

Narrator: But how to sort out what was most precious from a lifetime’s worth of belongings? Ithamar couldn’t decide on one thing alone, so he decided to take three things: one from his childhood, one from his middle years, and one from his old age. His violin, a blanket and money.

Ithamar’s Song © D.Frances -Hawksley

When Ithamar was a child, he learned to play the violin,
Learned to make the violin a friend
He practised on it night and day,
Until his fingers knew the way
He sang and danced his days away
As though they’d never end
Ah du ley-a, ah du ley
The greatest gift you’ll ever get’s the one you give away.

When Ithamar was a man he made his living on the land
He worked until his hands were hard and sore
He harvested the corn and rice
Sold it at the fairest price
Put away his money
For when he could work no more
Ah du ley-a, ah du ley
The greatest gift you’ll ever get’s the one you give away.

When Ithamar was old, he shivered in the winter cold
In the shack he’d built upon the hill
He found a loom and made the trade
And tireless worked until he’d made
A blanket for his shoulders
To ward away the chill
Ah du ley-a, ah du ley
The greatest gift you’ll ever get’s the one you give away.

And so the journey began and the actors portrayed this story so beautifully, creating a moving and magical atmosphere

Well done and thank you to all the cast of pupils and staff, and to our wonderful audience.

Special thanks to:

Writer, Producer and Director –  Dean
Set design – Nancy
Costume design – Beth and Sarah
Music – Anita
Prop Director – Alex