CALL IT COURAGE

Mafatu's name means "Stout Heart," but ever since his mother drowned when he was three years old, he has been terrified of the sea (The Boy Who Was Afraid). His father, the Great Chief of the island, is ashamed of him; the other kids, especially the bold Viri, scorn him (Brave). Only a girl named Kana, Mafatu’s friend since childhood, is kind to him. But when he overhears even Kana calling him a coward, Mafatu can bear it no longer. With his dog, Uri, he climbs into a canoe and sets sail to face once and for all his fear of the sea—and Moana, the Sea God (Stout Heart).

When a storm washes them up on another island, Mafatu is too afraid to venture back out onto the ocean...but he is also terrified of his new, uninhabited surroundings (Nobody Here But Me). When he comes upon an abandoned stone idol—once the sacrificial altar of the legendary "Eaters-of-Men"—he is even more frightened; but he musters all his courage to snatch a spearhead from the pile of bones. Flushed with pride at this victory over his fear, Mafatu begins in earnest to build a home and tools, creating a new life for himself and Uri on this island (Day By Day).

Back at home, hopes for Mafatu's return begin to fade. Tavana Nui and Kana cling to their belief that Mafatu is still alive, but they both know that time is passing, and a new successor to the Chief must be chosen. The most likely choice is Viri—who is also Mafatu's rival for Kana's affections.

Mafatu thrives on his new island, despite Uri’s constant nagging at him to take them home—and his reminders of the dangers that the island offers. (Let's Get Out of Here). Although Mafatu thinks wistfully of home, his memory of being so ill-treated there makes him decide to stay on the island permanently (Home). As he faces more and more difficult and frightening trials, his confidence grows (The Shark).  But back at home, Tavana Nui must come to a final decision about who will succeed him as Chief (Tavana Nui's Prayer)...and when the angry tide rises onto Mafatu's island and sweeps away his home and all his possessions, the boy's terror of the sea returns with a vengeance (High Tide). Alone and destitute, driving away even Uri in his anger, he is forced at last to face the true source of the fear that has gripped him all his life: the pain of losing his mother to the ocean (Safe With Me). Only now does Mafatu realize that he must face the sea one last time…and, after making up with Uri, he resolves to return home (Home Reprise).

Mafatu and Uri build a canoe and prepare for their journey—but to his surprise, the Eaters-of-Men return in the middle of the night, and chase them from the island before his canoe is ready. Alone with Uri on the stormy sea, Mafatu is almost drowned—but he refuses to be vanquished, and cries out his defiance against the Sea God. He has conquered his lifelong fear at last (The Last Crossing). Mafatu and Uri manage to make it home, where he is greeted by his father, Kana, and the other islanders—all of whom are filled with love, awe, and a new respect for this brave "Stout Heart," their future Chief (Finale).

*Copyright 1940 by Macmillan Publishing Co., a Division of Macmillan, Inc. Copyright renewed 1968 by Armstrong Sperry. Adapted for the stage by arrangement with Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division. All rights reserved.

3 selections from a youth production of CALL IT COURAGE
at the Zach Theatre in Austin, TX

View photos from the Zach Theatre production:

THE FIREBIRD

Prince Ivan is the King’s youngest son, third in line to the throne, with no hope of ever wearing the crown.  But when he discovers that the fate of the kingdom is being threatened by an evil Sorceress and her fearsome Firebird, he decides anyway to show the world that he has what it takes to be a king (I Will).  Bravely he sets off into the forest to find the great bird, and soon succeeds in capturing her (Come And Get Me).  But when the Sorceress casts a blight over the kingdom, and Ivan’s conniving older brothers plot to steal the Firebird away from him, Ivan is lost, helpless, and worse off than the poorest beggar.  Finally, he must summon all the strength, courage and cunning he has to win back the Firebird, defeat the Sorceress, and prove once and for all that he can be a king.

I DON'T SPEAK ITALIAN

15-year-old Max lives in the Bronx with his Italian family. He's the only one born in America—and the only one who doesn't speak Italian. As they chatter in their native language, he feels left out, as he has his whole life. When he meets Cynthia, a girl in his class who speaks Italian beautifully, and brings her home for dinner, what will he learn about his family, about Cynthia, and about himself? This 15-minute musical was included in SNAPSHOTS, a collection of musical vignettes by various authors that tells the life story of Cynthia. SNAPSHOTS premiered at the West End Theatre in New York City, directed by Dev Bondarin, on February 15, 2010. More info at BroadwayWorld.com

VOTE DUCK

It's time for change, and a duck is the one to do it. Follow Duck's meteoric rise to the height of political power in this 10-minute musical.

MAKING THE CALL

Two men sit in the same room they've worked in for two decades. For the first time—ever—the little red light goes on (The Light Is On). What are they going to do? The decision gets even messier when the guy who works one room over enters and sees the light (Absolutely Nothing).

THE SWALLOW'S NEST

A young Jewish public defender named Jesse is assigned to defend an old man charged with being a former Nazi. Confronted with a mountain of incriminating evidence and a client who won't talk, Jesse has what looks like an impossible case on his hands. But as he investigates, he discovers a secret buried deep in his client's past—a secret so dangerous that the old man would rather be convicted as a Nazi than reveal the truth. Soon Jesse finds himself caught in a decades-old conspiracy of terror and lies—and no one is at greater risk than himself.