Grade 6-2 Drama

Wake Up Script
Notes: this is the narrative script built around self-generated pieces created by the
grade 6 students. As these were not scripted, the pieces themselves are noted in
bold.
Thesis: The normalization of harmful images and messages in our daily life has
impaired us of our ability to see the world as it is. This is akin to the generally
accepted blindness of the people in Lois Lowrys The Giver. By thinking critically
about what we see, what we listen to, and what we wear, we can free ourselves
from our blindness and start to make the lives of our community better.

Wake Up
Preshow music: Wake Up by Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes
Mr. Vooys does pre-show speech. Exits into center aisle of audience

Kendal enters
Kendal: While we cannot directly affect the images [in media], we can drain them of
their power. We can turn away from them and look directly at one another- Naomi
Wolf, The Beauty Myth
Kendal exits, stage-right
Opening tableau- students stand straight.
Stand Up
Sophie and Kai enter
Sophie: Oppression. It takes many forms. Some are more subtle than others. A lot of
times we might not even notice its happening. In the book The Giver, a boy named
Jonas is born into a society where love, emotions, and freedom are forbidden.
Everyone is oppressed without even knowing it. No one questions this; its the
status quo.
Kai: When he turns 12, Jonas is given a glimpse of all of the things that have been
hidden by his society. He decides to break away from the oppressive status quo.
Sophie: We have a status quo in our society, too. Its more oppressive than we
might think. Objectification in advertising, awful song lyrics, and sweatshop labour
are all types of oppression that impact our lives. We dont always recognize it, and
we dont always ask the important questions. Why do these social forces act this
way? How do they impact us? And how can we change it?
Kai: Jonas woke up. But what about us? What does oppression look like in our world
today? How do we wake up?
Sophie and Kai exit stage-right
Scene- Intro movement piece (All students onstage. Music: I Cant Go on this
Way instrumental)
Objectification
Sophie and Kai re-enter
Sophie: Sex is used as a tool to sell products. Both men and women, but mostly
women are objectified, which means reduced to sexual objects to sell everything
from cars to chocolate bars.
Not cool.
Kai: This is what were being told is normal every time we turn on the tv, or go to
the mall, or go out to eat. They mess with our minds and hurt our hearts. Isnt it
time we changed this!?

Sophie and Kai exit stage-right

SCENE- Snickers Commercial Shoot (Ella, Annie, Zoe, Hannah H)

Body Image
Enter Hannah C and Sylvia
Hannah C: The American Psychological Association determined in 2007 that the
objectification of young women in ads contributed to girls and women being hurt.
Sylvia: It hurts our confidence in our bodies, leading to emotional problems like
shame and anxiety. It is linked to eating disorders, low self-esteem, and depression.

Hannah C: These images also make an impact on teenaged boys. A recent study
found that young men who frequently watch sexy music videos were more likely to
think that violence in a relationship was ok, and that women are objects. It makes it
harder for young men and women to be friends.

Izzy enters, carrying fashion magazine

Izzy: Youre not good enough, you need this product. Youre not skinny enough.
Youre not worthwhile. Youre not good enough. Youre not good enough. Youre not
good enough. Arrggghh (Rips up magazine).
Sylvia: We get these messages a lot.
Hannah C: When you hear something enough times, it starts to sound like the truth.
Sylvia, Hannah and Izzy exit stage-right
SCENE- Mirror, TV, Mom (Sophie, Kendal, Alexa, Abby)
Enter Ainsley and Caitlin
Ainsley: We need to support each other. Youre beautiful just the way you are. Or
even better, youre great at drawing pictures, Youre a wonderful singer. Our
identities dont have to be shaped by how we look. That is just a lie that weve
learned from the media.
Caitlin: When you see an ad, ask yourself what are they telling me to make me feel
like I need their product?
Ainsley: If you see an ad thats gross, talk to your parents. You could send an email,
telling the company that you arent going to buy their products if they keep showing
ads like that. Unlike the people in The Giver, we can disagree when were shown
images that are harmful and wrong. We have that freedom.
Ainsley and Caitlin exit Stage Right.
Music
Alex and Ella enter from Stage Right.
Alex: A lot of times, youll know something is wrong when youre a kid. Like, a dirty
song is bad news. But, when youre a little older, a friend will show you a song, and
you know its wrong, but you dont want to look uncool. So you listen to it, and it
sounds cool.
Ella: You still know the message is wrong, but it sounds good. So you dont think
about it. After a while, you forget that its hurting you. Its the same way with sexy
ads.
Alex: It just becomes part of your status quo. And your world is a little more ugly
and grey.
Ella: Like The Giver!
Alex: Like The Giver.
Ella: A lot of people in our society say lyrics dont matter. But how much are our
thoughts being shaped by messages we have learned from songs?
Alex: When we put on that catchy song, what messages are we listening to? Lyrics
make a major impact on the human mind. One researcher calls pop songs
suggestions set to music.
Ella: For example, Keshas song Die Young repeats the phrase Were going to die
young 15 times, with fun and catchy music. Cue the music!
Ella and Alex move to the side of the stage, watch group
Scene- DIE YOUNG (All onstage)
Everyone comes onstage. Reacts. Leaves.
Alex and Ella move back to narrator position
Alex: This is the chorus, so its the part that listeners are going to remember best. If
this was their favourite song and they heard it 200 times, they would be hearing the
message were going to die young 3000 times.
Ella: Thats pretty oppressive. I wonder how that would influence the way someone
sees the world.
Alex: Yeah. How do we wake up?
Ella: We need to recognize that the images and music we consume will either make
us stronger or weaker. Its like food. If we eat junk food all day long we get sick. If
we eat poison we get hurt. Same thing with pop music, videos, and ads.
Alex: When you listen to a song, look at the lyrics. If you get the feeling that
somethings wrong with one of your songs, press stop and ask what is the
message the singer is telling me? Is it harmful? Why?
Alex and Ella exit to stage-right
Scene- Music (Izzy, Fotis, Caden, Brooke)
Sweatshops
Enter Annie and Hannah H
Annie: Hmmm. You know what else is a part of our status quo that we dont usually
think about?
Hannah H: What?
Annie: Sweatshops.
Hannah H: What are those?!
Annie: Where they make your shoes.
Hannah H: Oh
Annie: Just so you know
Annie and Hannah exit stage-right
Scene- Shoes (Gavin, Chase, Keon, Kai, Ainsley)
Annie and Hannah H re-enter
Hannah H: So, lots of brands make their clothes overseas where their workers barely
make enough money to eat?
Annie: Yeah.
Hannah H: But my parents paid, like, 120 dollars for my shoes.
Annie: Well, advertising isnt free. Were paying lots of money to see ads we dont
want to see. All so we can try to look cool and fit in.
Annie and Hannah exit stage-right
SCENE- NIKEs (Sylvia, Hannah C, Nakayla, Natalya, Caitlin)
Annie and Hannah H re-enter
Hannah H: Man, peer pressure sucks! But I still want to wear my Nikes.
Annie: And you dont have to stop. But its important for us to make good decisions
about what we buy. Companies pay lots of money to trick us into thinking that a pair
of shoes is more than just a pair of shoes.
Hannah H: Advertisers use our hopes and fears against us, to make us believe that
were not good enough without their product. And peer pressure finishes the job. We
feel like we need to have a certain brand of clothes to be cool.
Annie: Were oppressed by ads and conformity.
Hannah H: But not as oppressed as the people who make the clothes.
(pause. Think about what Annie just said.)
Hannah H: Someone should stand up for them.
Hannah and Annie exit to stage-right
SCENE- Takeover. (Nathan, Josh, Elisha, Sarah).
Stand Up
Nathan and Elisha remove costume pieces, move to narrator position. Josh and
Sarah remove costume pieces, move to Craig and friends places. Kendal joins
them.
Nathan: People in situations like that often cant defend themselves. Theyre poor,
and they dont have choices like us.
Elisha: What does that mean for us?
Nathan: It means that people who have power, like us, need to look out for people
who are powerless.
Elisha: How do we do that?
Nathan: Heres a story about a special guy named Craig Kielburger.
When Craig was 12 years old, he heard about kids in other countries being forced to
work in factories.
Josh: (reading newspaper) This sucks!
Nathan: He was so upset that he started researching about child labour, and taught
his class about it. They started a club at their school called Kids Can Free the
Children.
Josh: We need to find a way to help them!
Sarah: We could send a petition!
Nathan: His school club grew into a charity called Free the Children that helps tons
of people get clean water, education, and other things they need. Craig and his
friends have done so much! And he started when he was 12!
Josh, Sarah, and Kendal high-five, freeze in position
Kendal unfreezes and moves to join narrators
Kendal: Waithe woke up to the problems around him when he was 12like Jonas
in The Giver!
(Pause)
Kendal: (excited) Im 12, too!
A: Then you can do something. (pause. Smile)
Kendal: Sweet! (walks off quickly, to go do something)
Sarah and Josh unfreeze, take off costume pieces.
Sarah: Maybe we can ask our parents and teachers. They can probably help us get
started if we figure out what we want to learn about and who we want to help.
Josh: You can learn more about people suffering in other countries, like people who
have been trafficked and are enslaved. Their life is harder than we can imagine.
How can we help them?
Cast comes out silently behind A and B. Makes tableau of friendship and
community. Sarah, Josh, Nathan, and Elisha join them.
Enter Sophia and Kai
Kai: People are suffering here, too. We need to treat each other with love, and
support each other.
Sophia: To overcome oppression we need to work together, and we need to think
critically! What do I watch? What do I listen to? What do I wear? And how does this
impact my life, and the lives of other people?
Kai: Learn more, and talk to your parents, teachers, and friends. By asking
questions, looking for answers, and working together to help people, we can start to
wake up, stand up, and make the world a better place. Thank you.
Bow. Exeunt Omnes.
Afterword:
Mr. Vooys: Thank you very much! We did a lot of thinking about The Giver and how
to tie it to our lives in a meaningful way.
I think two of the most valuable takeaways from this project are:
1) That your kids recognize the importance of thinking critically about forces like the
media, that shape the way they think, and realize that they dont have to listen,
they can talk back to these forces, and together we can stand up and try to make
changes, and:
2) That what theyve learned will help build the dialogue between you and your
kids. You are still the number one influence in their lives, and it is my sincere hope
that will help them become the loving, moral citizens of the world that theyre going
to be. Theyve been a wonderful group, and I want to thank you for the good job
youve done with them so far.
If you have any questions about the resources we used to build the script, or want
to know of ways to help, please come chat with us after the show. Thanks again!