Young Sophia: the Dundurn Castle Diary is inspired by the diary of Sophia MacNab, written in 1846 when she was 13 years old and living in Hamilton's most famous landmark, the Dundurn mansion often referred to as a “castle”, with her younger sister Mary (Minnie).
Also in the home were her older step-sister Anne Jane, her father
Sir Allan Napier MacNab, her bed-ridden mother Mary and many relatives and servants. All events are based in fact with some fictional extrapolations.
Life in Dundurn comes alive as Sophia and Minnie grow up like two normal girls, in a very special home. Puppets include the two sisters, their father, Sir Allan, who was Member for Hamilton in the Upper Canada House of Assembly and Mr. Reid the gardener, as well as the poodle puppies Finn and Finette. The set is styled like the bedroom and kitchen garden at Dundurn Castle in 1846, and also features shadow plays and lively Scottish music.
This engaging one-act play is the perfect solution for teachers looking for accompaniment to a thematic unit on diaries, Canadian government, Canadian history, pioneers, first settlers, life in Dundurn castle, garden and healthy nutrition, character studies, friendship, family, community, puppetry especially rod marionettes and tabletop puppetry, shadow puppetry, drama, arts and fine arts.
