CAST: 12 actors: 2 men, 10 women
Marian: a ninety-two year old woman whose family no longer wants her.
Carmella: Marian’s best friend, nearly as old but financially independent.
Galahad: Marian’s son.
Muriel: Marian’s daughter-in-law.
Robert: Marian’s twenty-five year old grandson.
Dr. Gambit: Director of Lightsome Hall for aged women.
Mrs. Gambit: His wife.
The Bard Taliessin/the Mailman.
Majong: a Chinese chauffeur.
Marlborough: an old friend of Marian’s who resembles Santa Claus.
Anubeth: Marlborough’s sister who has the head of a wolf.
Pontefact, King of the Wolves
The Voice of Abbess Dona Rosalinda
The Voice of Bishop Fernand
Old Ladies of the Institution:
Anna Wertz: resident of the Cuckoo Clock, A giddy and energetic woman who talks non-stop.
Maude Somers: resident of the Birthday Cake, a gentle self-effacing woman who is hiding the fact that she is a man.
Veronica Adams: resident of the Boot, Maud’s (Arthur’s) sweetheart, about as bent over as an old lady can get.
Cristabel Burns: resident of the Railway Carriage, an elegant black woman who believes herself to be 184 years old. Austere, sincere in her mission.
Georgina Sykes: resident of the Circus Tent, a flamboyant Southern Belle, defiant and sarcastic.
Natacha Gonzalez: resident of the Igloo, scheming and spiritually ambitious, in love with Dr. Gambit.
Vera van Tocht: resident of the Red Mushroom, fleshy and motherly on the outside, inside a maker of poisonous fudge.
Note: Doubling of actors in these roles is highly desirable. The actress (or actor) who plays Maude Somers can play Majong. The actress who plays Muriel plays Mrs. Gambit and Anubeth. The actor who plays Robert plays Talliessen, Pontefact and the Mailman, and the actor who plays Galahad plays Dr. Gambit and Marlborough.
Another Note: Those scenes in which Marian has trouble hearing another character, the actors should develop a comic patois containing both nonsense words and real ones. An actor may make him or herself heard clearly by “shouting” or over-enunciating with an increase in volume.