BREAKFAST FOR HIS MAJESTY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 230, 28 September 1935, Page 7 (Supplement)

BREAKFAST FOR HIS MAJESTY.

A One-Act' Play.

By Margaret Luxford.

| or WE MISSING 'BUTTER. || i 1 [Adapted from A. A. Milne's play, "The King's Breakfast."] 11 | —K || I CHARACTERS His Ma J esty ' Her Ma i est y' Dairymaid, Butler, Page Boy. || | Boy Who Took the Butter, || I REPRESENTED: ' .His Mother. ||

Dresses: His Majesty is dressed all through the play in pyjamas, dressing gown and slippers. Her Majesty in a nightdress to start with, and then her dress is fairly low at the neck, tight at the waist and wide, long sleeves, and bustle, frilly. King has a long wig. Queen lias curly hair, which is fairly long. Both wear two small crowns. The Queen's a little bit smaller than the King's. Queen also wears a white kerchief underneath her crown. Both wear crowns tilted on to one side of the head. The Queen wears a light coat not quite as long as the frock, but of a contrasting colour. Dairymaid's dress: Tight-fitting bodice, low at the neck, elbow-length sleeves, length of dress to the ankles, plain, with wide skirt and bustle, apron to match, hat after the style of a Dutch bonnet, low-heeled shoes. Butler: Striped trousers and waistcoat, light cut-away coat, swallowtailed, collar (stijff and white), with black bow tie. Page'Bov: Black jersey with white collar, red .trousers to the knees, long red. stockings and cloth shoes of the same colour. Boy Who Took the Butter: Jersey and troupers indoors; for visiting, frock coat and cloth hat, coat belted. His Mother: A navy blue dress with contrasting colour. The, rooms of the palace and of the Boy Who Took the Butter place: Bedroom of the palace: Has large four-posted bed in which the King and Queen slept. Dressing table, a large window seat. Upstairs. Dining room of the palace: A small breakfast table all ready set. Chairs,pictures on the wall. Morning papers on a salver placed near the King's right hand at the edge of the table. Serviettes on the bread and butter plates. Nursery of Boy Who Took the Butter: A bed with toys scattered over it. A fire screen in front of the fire. Nursery rhyme characters on the wallpaper. Description of characters:—• His Majesty: Elderly, and wrinkled, with a lons nose-

Hor Majesty: Elderly, but not so miicli as the King, 110 wrinkles to look for on her face, a sharp nose. Dairymaid: Dainty and pArtly shy. Butler: Medium height, stout, baldheaded. Page Boy: Young, with black hair. Boy Who Took the Butter:, Age about eight, small and very scaredlooking. His Mother: A motherly-looking person, very dainty and fairly slim. SCENE I. A palace bedroom. Time, somewhere between seven and half-past. King yawns and stretches himself (saying very sleepily): Oh, dear, another day begins! Her Majesty: What! Still sleepy? Hia Majesty: Oh, well, I had a busy day yesterday opening Parliament and then a special hunt meeting. Her Majesty: Time to get up. Let's dress. (She dresses herself.) • » • • SCENE 11. I Butler, as he places the last cup on the table: There, now everything ics ready for His Majesty. Page Boy (very excited as he enters the dining room door): Please, sir, the butter's gone! Butler: Utter nonsense. Why, I put it in the dairy yesterday evening. Page: It has gone! Butler: Stuff and nonsense. Dairymaid (entering with frightened look on her face). Butler (irritably): Rubbish! I put it there myself, in the dairy. What rot. (Fiercely.) Don't say any more about it. Dairymaid (tearfully): Sir, it has Butler: You know what I said, no more about that butter. I'll tell His Majesty.

SCENE 111. (The Royal bedroom once again. His Majesty is sitting up in bed as the butler enters the room. Krfeels at the side of the bed and says): Your Majesty, the Royal butter lias gone! His Majesty (sternly): What! Butler: The Royal butter has gone! Ilis Majesty: I refuse to leave this room until it lias been found. If not, look out for yourself. Butler (in a shaky voice): W-wliat shall I do? His Majesty: Do as I say. (Butler leaves the room.) Her Majesty: This is terrible! no butter. (She is seated on the window seat.) I know, send for the dairymaid. (King rings the bell. The butler enters.) His Majesty: Send the dairymaid to me at once. Butler: Yes, Your Majesty. (Leaves the room and enter dairymaid.) His Majesty: Have you found the butter? Dairymaid (feeling very frightened): N-no, Your Majesty. (Leaves the room and comes back with a pot of marmalade.) Dairymaid (bowing): I could not find the butter, but marmalade is much nicer, if spread on very thickly. King, (angrily): I want my butter. (Dairymaid leaves the room, but is called back by the Queen.) Her Majesty: We will try some marmalade for once. His Majesty: Bother marmalade; I want my butter. • • • • SCENE IV. Where the Butter Went. Boy Who Took the Butter: Look what I have found. His Mother: Where did you get that butter from?

— —JSV Boy Who Took the Butter: Froni a dairy down the road through » gap in tlie hedge. v ° His Mother: Take it back at once" What's that I hear? (Boy Who Took the Butter runs downstairs as he hears the gate click He picks a notice off the floor. He takes the notice to his mother! whrv reads it aloud): "Does anyone know the person of persons who took a pat of butter' from the Royal dairy. Please return' it.—His Majesty." This is all it reads. Boy Who Took the Butter: Perhaps this belongs to the King. Look at the funny stamp on it. (Excitedly.) Can I take it to the palace and see if it belongs to the King? His You may. (Boy Who Took the Butter gets ready to go.) «•• » » « SCENE V. (Still in the Royal bedroom. His Majesty and Her Majesty.) His Majesty: I do wish I could find that butter. Marmalade is all. right— Iler Majesty: You harp on that butter as if it was the only pat in the world, when hundreds of others might be just as good. His Majesty (sobbing): Oh, dear, what will happen next? I'm tired of marmalade. Her Majesty (brightly): I'll ask the dairymaid to make a fresh lot. (Rings for the dairymaid.) Dairymaid (comfortingly): There, Your Majesty, I'll make you a fresh lot. (Bows-and leaves the room.) (Enter butler, followed by a very scared small boy.) Butler: I've found an answer to that proclamation I sent out, Your Majesty. (Boy Who Took the Butter kneels before the King and says in a scared voice): Y-your Majesty, I slipped through a gap in the hedge and took the butter from the dairy there. His Majesty (very excited and jumping out of bed): Yet?, yes! Boy Who Took the Butter: I took the butter and did not know it belonged to you, Your Majesty. I— I'm very sorry. His Majesty (angrily): What! You took the butter? Boy Who Took the Butter: I—l'm very sorry. I didn't know it belonged to you, Your Majesty. Her Majesty (very gently to Boy Who Took the Butter): He's not very angry, really. His Majesty (calming down): Butter at last. Hooray! Now for my breakfast! (He kisses the Queen very gently on her cheek.) Butler: What shall I do with thi& boy; send him home? His Majesty (getting ready for breakfast): Invite him to breakfast! CURTAIN.