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'Angel Squadron' is a very modern Nativity
and tells the Christmas story from the point
of view of the angels, who feature prominently
throughout the story. Angels are found in
Christian, Jewish and Muslim beliefs, and
are described as supernatural beings, intermediate
between God and humans.
The author wanted to produce something
that boys in particular could enjoy, and
the style is something of a homage to the
'Battle of Britain' type films prevalent
in the 1960s. It's a lot of fun but also
very thought-provoking, covering as it does
parts of the Christmas story that are often
neglected in traditional ‘tea-towel’
Nativity plays.
The premise of this marvellous musical
is that the 'angel squadrons' are carrying
out 'secret missions' briefed by the 'Supreme
Commander'. It takes place at the angels
‘airfield’ and on earth, in
and around Bethlehem at the time of Jesus’
birth.
The musical clearly represents the Christian
understanding of Christmas and also has
an evangelical element. It was first performed
at Christmas in 2005 at Billericay Baptist
Church in Essex. The show is about 1 hour
15 minutes in length, features 14 songs
and can be performed if required with a
cast as large as 80 members between the
ages of five and sixteen. Musically it is
quite diverse including an R&B rap,
a reggae song, a spoof 60’s spy theme,
a ‘rat pack’-style song and
a closing rock-style number.
A two act version
is now available also.
Gender
Roles : Angels are spiritual beings
and therefore have no gender, however the
lead roles of Astra and Celeste have been
written as male and female respectively,
and other roles have, for convenience, been
assigned a gender. Creative Directors should
though not be restricted by this convention.
All the angel parts are completely interchangeable
with only the ‘human’ roles
(which figure less prominently) presenting
more of a challenge. With a little alteration,
the script could easily be adapted for an
all male or all female cast. |
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| Principals
(6m, 3f, 3m/f) |
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| Cadet
Astra : a young Cadet Angel, a superb
flyer with a ‘gung-ho’ attitude
to match, (think ‘Top Gun’). |
| Cadet
Celeste : a young Cadet Angel with
a voice like an angel, has her heart set on
a solo career. |
| Cadet
Stratus : Celeste’s ‘best
mate’ (m/f). |
| Wing
Commander Gabriel : has a commanding
presence. |
| Chief
Of Staff : Gabriel’s personal
assistant (m/f). |
| Squadron
Leader Nimbus : an experienced campaigner,
the ‘Old Man’ who the squadron
look up to. |
| Flt Lieutenant
Aurora : the dream specialist (m/f). |
| Elizabeth
: non-speaking role, but needs to be good
singer, preferably with dancing abilities. |
| Mary
: non-speaking role, but needs to be
good singer. |
| Wise Men 1, 2 &
3 : all need a good sense of comic
timing. |
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| Support (5m,
11m/f) |
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| Flight Controller
: an offstage voice, a typical 1940’s
BBC announcer (m). |
| Narrators 1, 2 &
3 : need good reading voices and a
good sense of rhythm (m/f). |
| Shepherds 1, 2 &
3 : all need a good sense of comic
timing (m/f). |
| Air Vice Marshall
Michael : delivers lines with the spoken
authority of Sir Lawrence Olivier (m). |
| Flt Lieutenant Solar
: a flying ace with a good sense of
humour and an awfully posh accent. Astra’s
immediate superior (m/f). |
| Choir Master :
a one scene cameo, but should command the
stage (m/f). |
| Navigation Officer
: cameo role (m/f). |
| Intelligence Officer
: cameo role (m/f). |
| Cockney Angel :
cameo role, chirpy, short, from East London,
insufferably optimistic (m). |
| Met Officer
: cameo role, but crucial to the plot (m/f) |
| Zacharia :
non-speaking role (m) |
| Joseph : non-speaking
role, but needs to be to display pathos (m) |
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| Extra’s : Angels, Shepherds, Traders
etc. The song ‘Born In A Stable’
offers opportunities for a number of non-speaking,
non-singing cameo roles. |
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| Duration |
: 75 mins |
| Acts |
: 1 |
| Principals |
:11m, 3f, 14m/f |
| Sets |
: 1 |
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