<i>THE SHOW</i> <i> <h2 style=BOUNDLESS The Musical ">
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  • © 2021 | Boundless The Musical 0

THE SHOW

BOUNDLESS The Musical

SYNOPSIS OF THE SHOW
Ten years after her sister died in a school shooting, Willa King is still struggling with the religious mandate to forgive, as the Amish so famously did after a man shot 13 girls in a one-room Amish school house, killing five. Now 18 years old, Willa is in her Rumspringa, the time when the Amish turn a blind eye to those who are able to go out into the English world before choosing to join the Amish faith for life. As the lives of Willa and her sisters intersect with the English world and its customs, she forms a relationship with Sofia Robinson, the daughter of the man who shot her sister before taking his own life. Although Willa is searching for a sign from God to guide her baptismal decision and to grant her the forgiveness that she has been seeking since her sister's death, it is her friendship with Sofia that ultimately teaches her the most about grace. This friendship paves a path forward to both Sofia and Willa in ways they've always dreamed of but never believed.
CASTING
ROLES

********Needs 18-25 female-identifying and 3-10 male-identifying actors. All roles have solos and lines.

Willa King - female-identifying; 18; any race; Sarah’s twin; curious and unsatisfied; A3-F5; belter/strong mix

Sarah King - female-identifying; 18; any race; Willa’s twin; content but not perky; enjoys reading and has an affinity for a plain life and a warm/loving god. B3-D5; mixed belter/soprano

Lizzie King - female-identifying; 21; any race; oldest and most responsible sister; married to Tanner and has twins who we never see; industrious; soprano

Mary King - female-identifying; 16; any race; fearful, rule-abiding, and terrified of sin and its consequences; mixed belter

Sofia Robinson - female-identifying; 17; white; English; daughter of Craig Robins; yearning to understand peace and forgiveness; outcast; belter/mixed belt B3- D#5

Jessica - female-identifying; 17; any race; English; knew the King sisters from childhood; obsessed with social media/being a social influencer; leader; belter G3-C#5

Anna King - female-identifying; age range 10-18; any race; Ghost/victim of 2006 school shooting; strong mover; soprano/mixed belter

Ruth - female-identifying; age range 10-18; any race; Ghost/victim of 2006 school shooting; decent singer; strong mover

Emma - female-identifying; age range 10-18; any race; Ghost/victim of 2006 school shooting; she should be the smallest/youngest ghost; decent singer; strong mover

Meriam - female-identifying; age range 10-18; any race; Ghost/victim of 2006 school shooting; decent singer; strong mover

Annie - female-identifying; age range 10-18; any race; Ghost/victim of 2006 school shooting; strong mover; decent singer

Tanner - male-identifying; age 17-22; male; Amish; husband of Lizzie; grounded, kind; Bari-tenor C3-F4

Albert - male-identifying; age 12-16; male; Amish; has a major crush on Mary; awkward, naïve, and jovial; his songs have a range for a young male’s alto voice (F3-C5) or a voice that has matured (D3-A4)

Jacob - male-identifying; 18; male; Amish; charming, athletic, and playful; Willa’s best friend and love interest; content; tenor

Grief Counselor - female-identifying; age 20; female; Amish; authoritative and collected; soprano

Madison - female-identifying; age range 14-18; female; English; fun-loving and carefree

Rachel - female-identifying; age range 12-16; female; Amish; literal, plain, dry

Celia, Lucy, Rebecca - female-identifying; age 14-18; Amish; female; naïve; descent singers

Levi - female-identifying; male-identifying; age 14-18; male; Amish; dry and matter-of-fact; doesn’t sing

Peyton, Morgan - female-identifying; age 14-18; English; female; exuberant and modern; decent singers and movers

English ensemble - female- and male-identifying; 4-10 actors ages 12-20; all races and ethnicities; many lines and solos available

Amish Ensemble - female- and male-identifying; 3-8 actors ages 10-20; all races and ethnicities
Notes on casting
  • The actors in this play who portray an Amish character should speak with plain, unanimated delivery of lines. Accent is the choice of the director, but the melody of the speech should be devoid of perkiness.
  • The Ghosts remain engaged and will often participate in and support the scenes.
  • All roles should be cast without observation of race or ethnicity. However, Sofia should be white.
ORCHESTRATION
Keyboard 1, Keyboard 2, Guitar, Violin, Bass, Drums, harmonica

Ghosts and actors are encouraged to play instruments: guitars, violin, mandolin, harmonica, and other acoustic instruments.

Electric guitars and drums can be added for English songs.
DIRECTOR'S NOTES
Every single student that I’ve ever taught has inspired this show in some way. I don’t have many playwrighting talents or musical fanciness, but I paid attention to the voices, pedagogical trends, and the hearts of the young actors who taught me what kind of show they’d like to pursue. I tried to write that show for them in this piece with reverence and respect, honoring the child in me and the adult in them.

This musical’s events are very loosely inspired by Nickel Mines school shooting 2006. It is neither a “school shooting” musical, nor is it an “Amish” musical. It is a musical about forgiveness and truth. I dove into researching Old Order Amish with an open mind and an open heart; however, no matter how many times I visit Lancaster to eat a Shoofly Pie or bring flowers to the Nickel Mines grounds where the school was, I will never come close to understanding what it means to be Amish. There are countless incongruities between what is reality for an Amish family and what happens in this musical, but it is my sincerest hope that the research and interviews have brought me closer to capturing what is good, what is simple, and what is true. Those three things are alone eternal.

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© 2021 | Boundless The Musical