Frontier Life

A narrator tells a story of the harsh frontier life out on the prairie. Scouts perform various actions cued by the narrator, including a large group to act as a thundering herd of buffalo, and three act as “volunteers.”

The narrator begins by asking for three volunteers from the audience (pre-selected and cued). They are asked to come forward and lay down on their stomachs next to each other. The narrator then says, “Now to begin. Frontier life out on the prairie was very harsh. First, the wind swept across the prairie” (a scout comes out with a broom and sweeps the backs of the three volunteers while making wind noises).

The narrator continues with “The sun beat down” (another scout shines a flashlight on the heads and backs of the volunteers). “And the rain came down” (another scout sprinkles water on them). The narrator continues with the story, explaining how difficult it was to plant crops and build homes, etc, with each of the element actions being repeated in turn.

Finally, the narrator explains, “Worse than the wind, sun and rain was the constant fear of a buffalo stampede.” (On that cue, a large group of scouts charges across the stage toward the volunteers, who get up and run off stage in fear.)
 

References / Source:
SCCC Pow wow 2003
 

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