M I C H A E L A L L E N H A R R I S O N
The Team Of Harrison/Berg present "It's A Wonderful Life Jr."
A new reimagined original musical by Michael Allen Harrison & Alan Berg.
Carefully sculpted for Children's Theater, Middle Schools,
High Schools & Community Theaters across the country. This new
adaptation of Frank Capra's Iconic movie will warm your heart while
presented by our greatest resource - "Our Children"
Photos From The Eastside Community Children's Theater In Gresham Oregon
Listen To The Original Award Winning Songs
Character Breakdown for It’s A Wonderful Life Jr. Musical:
Many of the roles can be played by a boy or girl...
Bert:
Cop, Friend of George easy going must harmonize with Ernie
Ernie:
Taxi Driver, Friend of George easy going, comic
Gower:
Pharmacist, older, drinking problem (Young George works for him at soda fountain/delivery),
breaks down and cries, befriends George later in life and is a loyal supporter
Mrs. Bailey Georges Mom:
Nice 1930’s type Mom, caring, knows her son and family relationships
Pa Bailey:
( Doubles as Voice from Above) Georges Father Good man, proud of kids, works hard, helps his community, dies too early, admired by townspeople ( Can play Voice from Above as well)
Mary Hatch:
Georges Girl and then Wife, can play sweet but strong,
1940’s type wife, adores George and her children.
George Bailey:
(Suggested Age 16 - 18 )Protagonist, Everyman character, can play good actor/singer Full of aspirations and adventure wants to leave small town and see the world. Loves Mary, sacrifices his desires for family.
*Harry Bailey:
George’s younger brother, handsome, MC at dance,
football player, and military hero can play, Marries Ruth
*Ruth:
Harrys Wife.
From wealthy family, college educated can, nice girl
Uncle Billy:
Getting Forgetful, Likable,. Not a good businessman, partner in Building and Loan
Cousin Tilly:
Character type, works at Building and Loan with George and Uncle Billy,
tends to over react, loves to take pictures
Janie Bailey:
10- 11 (Can also play Young Mary Hatch) plays piano and practices
Hark the Herald Angels Sing, over and over irritating her Dad
Zuzu Bailey:
6-7, shortest kid, youngest girl, sweet and precautious, has every time bell rings line and has important scene with George about her flower, must be small enough to be held up by her Father
Young George:
8-12 good young actor.
Tommy Bailey:
6-7 young and small enough to pull on Dads coat tails, a few lines
Clarence:
10-12 yrs. old Sent down to be George’s Guardian Angel (to save him from taking his life). He is an angel in training, a clock maker, keeper of time, and this is his 2nd chance to make good and earn his wings. Not the brightest bulb, but kind hearted and fun-loving. He loves Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer and brings it to earth with him to read. Great character actor with good comic timing, a twinkle in his eye.
Boy or girl Soprano
Potter:
Antagonist , strong character actor, Scrooge-like, has own self interests in mind, diabolical, eccentric with dark humor. Owns the town, enjoys the power that affords him. Commanding presence, in wheel chair.
*Potter’s Bodyguards “Goons”:
One goon pushes Potter’s wheelchair the rest are his entourage, they dance , sing fun backup vocals etc...
Violet:
The town sassy girl, pretty,
all about style, flirty, good dancer
Sam Wainwright:
College friend, likes Mary, gets rich, a nice nerd
Marty:
Mary’s brother, works in luggage store, nice, dancer /singer
Freddy:
Mary’s Date, full of self,
immature high school type prankster dancer/singer
Mr. Martini:
Italian Immigrant helped by George
Mrs, Martini:
( Italian Immigrant wife with Baby) also plays Mrs. Thompson ,
Voice of Mary’s Mother and Townsperson in Pottersville Dream Sequence
Angel Choir:
Multi Age kids with angelic voices
Teenage kids:
Boy and girl singers/dancers
Towns People:
Multi Age Chorus / Singers & Dancers
THE PLOT
On Christmas Eve 1945, in Bedford Falls, New York, George Bailey contemplates suicide. The prayers of his family and friends reach Heaven, where guardian angelsecond class Clarence Odbody is assigned to save George in order to earn his wings. Clarence is shown flashbacks of George's life. He watches 12-year-old George rescue his younger brother Harry from drowning, leaving George deaf in his left ear. George later prevents the pharmacist, Mr. Gower, from accidentally poisoning a customer's prescription.
In 1928, George plans a world tour before college. He is reintroduced to Mary Hatch, who has been enamored with him since childhood. When his father dies suddenly, George postpones his travel to settle the family business, Bailey Brothers Building and Loan. Avaricious board member Henry Potter, who controls most of the town, seeks to dissolve it, but the board votes to keep the Building and Loan open if George runs it. George acquiesces and works alongside his uncle Billy, giving his tuition to Harry with the understanding that Harry will run the business when he graduates.
Harry returns from college married and with a job offer from his father-in-law, and George resigns himself to running the Building and Loan. George and Mary rekindle their relationship and wed. They witness a run on the bank and use their honeymoon savings to keep the Building and Loan solvent. Under George, the company establishes Bailey Park, a housing development surpassing Potter's overpriced slums. Potter entices George with a $20,000/year job but, realizing that Potter's true intention is to close the Building and Loan, George rebuffs him.
On Christmas Eve 1945, the town prepares a hero's welcome for Harry who, as a U.S. Navy fighter pilot, was awarded the Medal of Honor for preventing a kamikazeattack on a troop transport. Billy goes to Potter's bank to deposit $8,000 of the Building and Loan's money. He taunts Potter with a newspaper headline about Harry, then absentmindedly wraps the cash in Potter's newspaper. Potter finds and keeps the money, while Billy cannot recall how he misplaced it. With a bank examiner reviewing the company's records, George realizes scandal and criminal charges will follow. Fruitlessly retracing Billy's steps, George berates him and takes out his frustration on Mary and their children. George appeals to Potter for a loan, offering his life insurance policy as collateral. Potter scoffs that George is worth more dead than alive, refuses to help, and phones the police.
George flees Potter's office, gets drunk at a bar, and prays for help. Suicidal, he goes to a nearby bridge, but before he can jump, Clarence dives into the river and George rescues him. When George wishes he had never been born, Clarence shows George a timeline in which he never existed. Bedford Falls is now Pottersville, an unsavory town occupied by sleazy entertainment venues, crime, and callous people. Mr. Gower was imprisoned for manslaughter because George was not there to stop him from poisoning the customer. George's mother does not know him. Uncle Billy was institutionalized after the Building and Loan failed. Bailey Park is a cemetery, where George discovers Harry's grave. Without George, Harry drowned as a child, and without Harry to save them, the troops aboard the transport ship were killed. George finds Mary, now a spinster, and when he grabs her and claims to be her husband she screams and runs.
George flees back to the bridge and begs Clarence for his life back. The original reality is restored, and a grateful George rushes home to await his arrest. Meanwhile, Mary and Billy have rallied the townspeople, who come into the Bailey home and donate more than enough to cover the missing money. Harry arrives and toastsGeorge as "the richest man in town". Among the donations George finds a copy of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, a gift from Clarence and inscribed, "Remember, no man is a failure who has friends. Thanks for the wings!" When a bell on the Christmas tree rings, George's youngest daughter, Zuzu, explains that "every time a bell rings, an angel gets his wings." George looks upward smiling and says, "Atta boy, Clarence!"