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Playguide
This Playguide is prepared for teachers, students, parents and subscribers attending
San Diego Junior Theatre’s productions. It is our desire to make the artisitic experience
of attending live theatre as enriching as possible, for all of San Diego’s families.
June 27 - July 13, 2008,
Casa del Prado Theatre, Balboa Park
Recommended for ALL ages!
About the Author
Really Rosie is based on several books by renowned children’s author Maurice Sendak. Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1928,
Maurice Sendak is the youngest of three children born to Polish immigrants who came to the United States before World War I.
Maurice was a very sickly child, who spent a great deal of time bedridden. His mother worried constantly about his health
and safety. These experiences greatly influenced Maurice’s work, and in most of his books you can find a moon somewhere in
an illustration. This moon represents his mother peeking out the window at him when he was a child to be sure that he was
alright. His illness also influenced the stories he wrote. Sendak says that the character of Rosie is based on a little girl
that he would watch out his window when he was ill.
As a child, he loved to be read to and counts among his favorite books Mark Twain’s The Prince and the Pauper
and Robert Louis Stevenson’s A Child’s Garden of Verses. He began his work as an illustrator as a high school
student. After graduation, he went to study at the Art Student’s League. His very first book was published in 1947, when
he was just 19 years old.
Maurice Sendak is a man of many talents, and he has delved into the theatrical world by creating an animated musical
for television — Really Rosie, Starring the Nutshell Kids — which later became a Broadway production,
and by designing sets and costumes for opera productions of Where the Wild Things Are and Higgelty-Piggelty Pop.
Well-known pop singer Carole King set Maurice Sendak’s Nutshell Library books to music for the production of
Really Rosie, and she was the voice of Rosie in the television special (1975). She also wrote several original songs
for the live production, including " Avenue P" and " Simple, Humble Neighborhood."
About the Play
The action in Really Rosie takes place on a hot, July Saturday on Avenue P. The kids in the neighborhood are
entertaining themselves by pretending to make a movie.
| Meet the Characters
Really Rosie is based on characters from Maurice Sendak’s books. Pierre, Alligator, Johnny and
Chicken Soup are from the Nutshell Library books, and Rosie and Kathy are from the book
The Sign on Rosie’s Door.
Rosie
With an active imagination, and a certain amount of pushiness, Rosie leads her neighborhood friends
in and out of adventures. From the jungles of Africa, to the pyramids of Egypt, to producing their
own motion pictures, Rosie takes the lead in every imagination journey. She’s independent and
confident and loves to turn herself into fascinating characters using costume pieces and her own imagination. |
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 Kathy
As Rosie’s best friend, Kathy is sometimes overshadowed by Rosie’s big personality. Kathy wants to be just like Rosie,
but is usually given the job as Rosie’s assistant. Kathy loves to sing and dance, and she loves following Rosie on her
crazy adventures.
Pierre
Pierre could be described as a boy with an attitude problem. He is reticent to participate in the kids activities, but in the
end he always takes a role.
Johnny
Johnny loves to read, and never goes anywhere without a book. He is one of the youngest of the kids, and he loves to go on
Rosie’s adventures with the kids of Avenue P.
 Alligator
Alligator will happily recite the alphabet for you if you just ask! The Alligator is smart and loves the kids
of Avenue P.
 Where is Chicken Soup?
Chicken Soup is a boy who loves nothing more than eating a big bowl of chicken soup (with chicken soup with rice being
his particular favorite!). He can usually be found on Avenue P, playing with the other Nutshell Kids, but on the July day
that the play takes place, he is nowhere to be found. When you go see the play, see if you can find Chicken Soup in the
opening scene. You will recognize him by his chef’s "toque" (hat).
A Movie of Your Life Story!
In the play, Rosie is trying to get the kids of Avenue P to act out the story of her life. She wants to use Kathy,
Pierre, Johnny and Alligator as her actors. If you were going to make a movie of your life story, what characters would
you include? Who would play the parts? Would you have songs in your movie? What would the title of the movie be?
What to Do on a Rainy Day?
Today on Avenue P, it begins to rain. The kids are not allowed to play outside in the rain, so they sadly go home.
No one is more sad than Rosie, who has to postpone production of her movie. Can you remember a time when the rain meant
that you couldn’t do something that you wanted to do? Maybe a sports activity got rained out, or you couldn’t
play outside. Below make a list of the things that you can do inside on a rainy day. We have started the list for you,
now you add your own ideas.
- Bake cookies with your Mom or Dad.
- Paint a portrait of your dog, cat of other pet
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Now try and think of some sunny day activities. What kinds of things do you like to do outside when the weather
is beautiful? Write your ideas down on the lines below.
- Ride a bike.
- Play on a swingset in the backyard or at a park.
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Copyright © 2000-2010 San Diego
Junior Theatre. Illustrations from The Sign on Rosie’s Door and Alligators All Around are copyright ©
1960 and 1962, respectively, by Maurice Sendak. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
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