This is the shortest of all the plays, and is in many ways the most mournful; certainly it is the only one without an upbeat, uplifting ending.  So perhaps it is just as well that Viloshni and I have decided to move it from where I had placed it originally, at the very end, as it may have been difficult to shift the audience’s mood.  It is now the penultimate play, and also serves a practical function.

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               Originally called Old Woman, It has changed name recently, as that title is neither descriptive nor distinctive enough, as several of the plays have a character called Old Woman.  What is it about old women and folk tales?  Witches, hags, evil stepmothers…  I suppose it’s just a reflection that just about all of the collectors of such stories were men (though I can’t believe it was just men who told them originally.  But look out for The Tree.

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               We have decided to cast it mainly from the Grade Eight learners, our youngest cohort,  as the great majority of the characters are children. This would allow the rest of the cast some time to get changed, ready for the final play…