Description

Sumer Assembly the Ancient Culture

Sumer Assembly the Ancient Culture. Sumo wrestlers, pyramids, summer holidays … Weren’t we supposed to be looking at the major achievements of the world’s first ancient civilisation? It would seem, just getting us to the right place (Asia) at the right time (c. 3500 BC) is going to be achievement enough for our, as usual, much ‘challenged’ narrator! And what about those names? As if Mesopotamia wasn’t bad enough to kick off with, what about edubba, ummia, cuneiform, Humbaba, Utnapishtim … shall I go on?!

See how our narrator copes with a cast that includes stroppy goddesses, belligerent heroes, water snake, hairy giant, ‘beastly’ bull and couple of scorpion men – as the final sting in our tale!

As usual, lots of information delivered in a fun irreverent style!

Cast of 30 – easily adjustable up or down, Duration: around 20 minutes not including music suggestions

Set of 5 Ancient Sumer Guided Reading Scripts (6 speakers each) now available – in Guided Reading section of website.

Sumer Assembly Sample Text:

Music 1 Summer Holiday – Cliff Richards

(Children file in, singing song)

Narrator:             (To audience) Good morning! (Pauses) One minute, please.

(To cast) What on earth is going on? Summer Holidays? Can someone just explain to me what that song has to do with our assembly this morning?

(Enter Sumo Wrestler, performing various ‘sumo’ moves)

Narrator:             (Gasping) And what do you think you are doing?

Sumo Wrestler:  Me? Well, I thought I’d fit in nicely – as a sumo wrestler!

Narrator:             (Angrily) Summer? Sumo? Who said anything about time of the year or over-sized Japanese wrestler? I’m doing an assembly on the ancient Sumer civilisation this morning. Is everyone OK with that?

(Whole cast nods)

Narrator:             (Huffily) Right then! Perhaps now we can start!

(Sumo Wrestler starts to walk off stage but is stopped by the Narrator)

Narrator:             Hey! You can help me hold up this globe of the world so that everyone can see where the Sumer civilisation was.

(Sumo Wrestler holds up globe and Narrator points to Sumerian region)

Narrator:             So. This is where those Sumerians were based. In this land mass, not so very far from Egypt. And like the Ancient Egyptians, who came along a little later, the Ancient Sumerians built their cities up along the banks of a river. Actually, two.

(Enter Farmer)

Farmer:                That’s right. (Pointing at globe). The River Tigris and Euphrates. They flowed from the highlands of Turkey in the north down to the Gulf here, giving Ancient Mesoptamia its other name – the Fertile Crescent. Great place for us farmers, of course.

(Enter King. Farmer bows to him)

King:                     Its other name was Cradle of Civilisation. That’s where I come in!

Narrator:             (Testily) Well, I can see that! What’s with the bowing?

King:                     I’m a king!

(Narrator reluctantly bows)

Narrator:             So would your majesty mind telling us a bit about this …. Did someone say ‘Mesopotamia’?

Farmer:                That was me! Bit of a tongue twister that one! Mesopotamia is actually Greek for ‘land between rivers’. The rivers make the land fertile – when they flood. You see, what with that arid climate, we needed something beside the rain to give us rich soil for our crops.

(Enter Enki, water god. King bows)

(Whole cast gasps and covers their heads)

Narrator:             Whoa! Where did all that water come from? Remind me to bring an umbrella next time!

Please note: The script is available in word document format on purchase of Performing Rights Certificate. The scripts remain free of performance rights for staging in the class room but as an assembly in front of a non-paying audience you need to buy a single Performance Rights Certificate to cover you for the play you are purchasing.