The full script for Jillian Jiggs' play "The Chicken Princess" can be found in the back of my book "Jillian Jiggs and the Secret Surprise."

The unusual thing about "The Chicken Princess" is that any number of people can be in it. If you're short of actors, one person can play both the Queen and the Princess. (After all, a queen and her daughter would look like each other.) And one person could play all the villains: the Giant named Dave, the Dragon and the Wizard.

If you have lots of actors, well, this is the play for you, too. The Chorus of Pigs can have as many people as you want. There's also the scene in Act III, when the Hero finds the Wizard's magic wand. Anything can appear with the swoosh of a magic wand so, if you happen to have an old Santa Claus costume, or a cowboy suit or a ballerina tutu, or anything at all, they can appear too!

Don't worry if you can't make the same exact costumes that Jillian makes for her play. Be inventive. Here are some ideas:

THE CHICKEN
Yellow rubber gloves, worn like socks, look remarkably like chicken feet. You can make chicken wings out of yellow construction paper or, if you happen to have a yellow feather boa, drape it along your arms, A chicken beak can be made out of construction paper too. Just tie it on like a mask.

THE WIZARD
A wizard's turban could be a large fancy scarf wrapped around your head or a cone-shaped hat painted with stars and planets on it. Old bathrobes come in handy for both wizard clothing and royal robes.

THE QUEEN AND PRINCESS
Painted macaroni makes good fake jewelry.

THE HERO
A hockey or football helmet works well for the Hero's helmet. Add a paper visor if you like.

THE GIANT
One way to do the Giant is as a very big puppet. His head can be made from a large paper bag stuffed full of newspapers. Put this on a tall stick, add a cross bar for the shoulders and dress him up in an old coat, large enough to conceal the person underneath who holds the stick. Stuff the coat sleeves with newspaper and add stuffed glove hands tied on with strings. Two other actors can work the giant's hands using poles attached to the hand strings.

THE CHORUS OF PIGS
To make a Pig Mask you'll need a paper plate, a cup from a paper egg carton (or a small paper cup), glue, string, markers, pink construction paper, scissors, paint and other bits and pieces of stuff.
Instructions:
Cut one eggcup out of the egg carton.
Glue it to the centre of the paper plate.
Cut two holes in the paper plate for your eyes.
Cut pig-ear-size triangles out of the pink paper and glue them on for ears.
Punch a hole in each side of the plate and thread string through it so that you can tie your mask on.
Colour and decorate the pig mask anyway that you like. Perhaps you'd like a green Dracula Pig. Glue on paper triangles for fangs. A blue Martian pig could have antennae made from pipe cleaners. Wool or cotton works well for hair, mustaches and beards. If yours is a royal pig, glue on a paper crown. If your pig is a pirate, colour a black eye patch around the hole for the eye. Buttons make good earrings, but if your pig is a punk pig he might prefer paper clip earrings. Draw on an extra eye or two if you're making a monster pig.

The background scenery can be painted on large cardboard cartons, opened and flattened out.

The Hero's horse can be made from an old mop.
The Queen will need a mop, a purse and a fancy throne chair.
For the Wizard's cave, collect old bottles and fill them with water tinted different colours with food colouring. Throw in a few gummy worms or plastic snakes and spiders. Hanging paper bats add a nice touch. Find a large book, perhaps a dictionary (it's full of 'spells'), for the Wizard's magic book.
Make a magic wand by gluing a star on the end of a stick.
The Princess' ball and chain can be made by painting a large rubber ball black and taping black paper links to it.
The large lock and key can be made out of cardboard. Check out the Activity Book on the Kids page for instructions on how to make a dragon mask. The Dragon's body is a large blanket.
A plastic atomizer, like the kind used for plants, can de-sizzle the flames of the Dragon.
The Giant's cauldron can be a large cardboard box with a black pot painted on it.
Giant footprints can be cut out of construction paper.
Roll up a large piece of brown construction paper to make the Giant's club.
A drum and cymbals can be used to simulate thunder and lightning sound effects.
The Wizard scene needs a ring - the biggest, gaudiest one you can find or make!