Musical Play: “Earthworms Make America Great”

The Show

We want you to know what you're getting, so the cast list and first third of the script are available here! Bad Wolf shows are written for flexibility and can be edited however you like to meet the needs of your actors, school, curriculum, parents, astrological chart, latest whim, etc. If you have questions about the portions of the script not shown, please contact us.

Casting

Flexible casting from 11-40 students.

SINGERS:
Each song in this show is sung by the entire cast. (In one song, a couple individual singers sing back and forth with the rest of the class.) However, the songs can easily be divided up among the students if that is desired.

STORY-TELLERS:
Each scene in the show is introduced with a very brief bit of dialogue involving three student actors. We have numbered these parts 1-27, but students may of course take more than one part. And since each "part" has two lines in a scene, more student actors could be used as well by using up to six storytellers in each scene.

Script

This is the first one-third of the script.

(ENTIRE CLASS enters as music starts to play. They face the audience. Across the back of classroom/stage is a giant poster that spells out EARTHWORM. During the performance, the Student who announces the next letter can first go up to the poster and point out the letter. Or the Student can wear a cardboard sign around his or her neck with the letter written in big print. Or Students can wear T-shirts with the appropriate letter inscribed across the front. You can fade out the music when the students are set up.)

STUDENT 1 (to audience): E is for "Earthworms."

STUDENT 2: There are over four thousand species of earthworm.

STUDENT 3: There are probably more earthworms by weight under the ground than livestock above it.

STUDENT 1: That's a lot of earthworms.

STUDENT 2: I had no idea.

STUDENT 3: Yep. Earthworms make America great.

Song 1

CLASS:

So much is great about this land
The mountains, plains, and desert sand
America is flying high
With Uncle Sam and apple pie.
But the things that really make her
Are the worms in every acre...

Earthworms make America great
Earthworms!
Earthworms make America great.

They make the soil for me and you
I think they bleed red, white, and blue
No, they're not fuzzy, warm and cute
But when they crawl by, I salute.
No bald eagle, bear or turtle
Makes our fruited plains so fertile...

Earthworms make America great
Earthworms!
Earthworms make America great.

Look up at the flag
Proud as you can be
Its lovely stripes:
They're earthworms,
Earthworms flying free!

Earthworms make America great
Earthworms!
Earthworms make America great.

STUDENT 4: A is for "Australia."

STUDENT 5 (to #4): What's have to do with earthworms?

STUDENT 6: They have eight-foot earthworms in Australia.

STUDENT 4: And a Giant Earthworm Museum.

STUDENT 5: Giant earthworms?

STUDENT 6: Yep. And you should see the fish they catch with them.
(Spreads arms wide apart to show how big the fish is.)

Song 2

CLASS:

Down, down, down in Australia
With the kangaroos
They've got a creature who's been making news.

There, there, there with the wombat
And koala bear
They've got an earthworm that will make you stare.

One foot
Two foot
Three foot
Four
I hope that's all but I think there's more.
Five foot
Six foot
Seven foot
Eight
And foot worm and it¹s learning to skate.
An eight foot worm learning to skate.

Down, down, down in Australia
With the platypus
They've got an earthworm who's as big as us.

There, there, there all the robins
Have a heart attack
Pulling an earthworm that can pull right back.

One foot
Two foot
Three foot
Four
I hope that's all but I think there's more.
Five foot
Six foot
Seven foot
Eight
And foot worm and it's learning to skate.
An eight foot worm learning to skate.
Here it comes!

One foot
Two foot
Three foot
Four
I hope that's all but I think there's more.
Five foot
Six foot
Seven foot
Eight
And foot worm and it¹s learning to skate.
An eight foot worm learning to skate.

STUDENT 7: R is for "R you crazy?"

STUDENT 8 (to #7): That's not a real R.

STUDENT 9: Tell that to Betty.

STUDENT 7: Earthworms move very slowly, contracting their muscles to shorten and lengthen their bodies.

STUDENT 8: What's that got to do with Betty?

STUDENT 9: Gather 'round, children, and hear the tale.

(This concludes the first one-third of the script.)