Gossip at the Forum, Classroom Play Script

Lesson Plan for Ancient Rome, Julius Caesar
Gossip at the Forum  - Classroom Play
1-2 class periods
Return to Gossip at the Forum Lesson Plan

CLASSROOM PLAY: GOSSIP AT THE FORUM

ACT ONE
The Forum, Rome, March 15, 44 AD 

CITIZEN 1:  Did you hear what Julius Caesar has done now? I can’t believe it! He has declared himself dictator of Rome for life!  

CITIZEN 4:  A dictator? That’s sort of like a king, isn’t it? Nobody is going to allow a king to ever rule Rome again.  

CITIZEN 5: (short laugh) I imagine the Senate will have something to say about that!  

CITIZEN 3:  They’re not going to do anything. 

CITIZEN 6:  Pompey will stop him. He always does. 

CITIZEN 9:  Where have you been? Down at your country estates again? Pompey was killed last month in Egypt.  

CITIZEN 6:  (looking shocked) Oh no! 

CITIZEN 1:  There’s no one left to fight him. 

CITIZEN 5:  The Senate … 

CASSIUS:  Forget the Senate. He doesn’t listen to the Senate.

CITIZEN 7:  Don’t get mad, but ….  (short pause)  JULIUS CAESAR really seems to care about the people. Would it be such a bad thing if he did take over for a while? You’ve got to admit, Rome has some problems. 

CITIZEN 5:  That’s the truth. You can’t walk the street anymore. Crime is out of control. 

CITIZEN 9:  And the money is no good. People are broke and out of work.  

CITIZEN 7:  Rome’s problems are getting worse, not better. Maybe it’s not such a bad idea to give CAESAR a shot at fixing things.  

CITIZEN 4:  I’m sure Caesar would agree with you. That’s probably why he’s making so many changes.

CITIZEN 6:  What kind of changes?  

BRUTUS:    Look! Here he comes! He’s going to speak. Listen …. 

JULIUS CAESAR:  Citizens of Rome! I, Julius Caesar, declare myself dictator of Rome for life! The Republic is dead. It was merely a name. It wasn’t working.  I am the only one who can save Rome from more civil wars. Trust in me, citizens. I alone will save my beloved Rome! Hear me!  

I decree the following:

1. The calendar will now have 365 and one-quarter days.
2. Coins will have my face on them. Those are the only coins safe to use.
3. I decree that all slaves will be freed in the years ahead. 
4. I ….  (voice fades as Caesar moves out of range, off stage)

CITIZEN 4:  Did you see? He was wearing a purple robe! The robe from the god’s temple. Only priests can wear purple.” 

CITIZEN 8:  Who does he think he is? A god?

CITIZEN 7:  I’d heard he was freeing the slaves. 

CITIZEN 2:  (angrily) He can’t free the slaves. The provinces need them to grow food. And we need food from the provinces.  

CITIZEN 3:  He’s mad. 

CITIZEN 1:  You think it’s mad to run around Rome screaming decrees? You won’t get an argument from me!   

CITIZEN 8:  And those statues of himself. They’re everywhere! I am so sick of seeing his ugly face. 

CITIZEN 7: What’s this new project of his?

CITIZEN 8: More statues, probably.  

CITIZEN 9: And that new calendar. The old one was fine. Why a new one? Oh, I know why. Because he wants to name a month after himself.  

CITIZEN 2: Don’t forget about his son. He wants to name a month after him, too. 

CITIZEN 6:  He really does think he’s a god, doesn’t he? 

CITIZEN 3:  What makes me mad is that he’s putting all his friends in positions of power. That’s not fair. He’s ruining everything. 

BRUTUS:     He’s destroying the Republic. He has to be stopped. Julius Caesar is my best friend. And I say stop him. Let’s fix our problems, not destroy Rome.  

CITIZEN 2:  Caesar is mad! 

CITIZEN 3:  He’s crazy! 

CITIZEN 9:  He only thinks about himself. His face on our coins. His statues everywhere. His purple robes. His silly son. His stupid calendar. 

CITIZEN 4:  We have to stop him! 

CITIZEN 8:  The only way to stop him is to kill him.  

CASSIUS:   If we kill him, everything would go back to the way it was. 

CITIZEN 1:  (firmly) Then we kill him. 

CITIZEN 2:  Count me in. But when?  

BRUTUS:     Caesar has agreed to meet with the Senate finally on March 15^th.  The meeting is at the Temple of Jupiter. That may be our only chance to stop the madness. 

CASSIUS:    (raise sword) I’ll be there.  

ALL CITIZENS:  (raise swords) And me!

ACT TWO 
The next day.
An alleyway near the Forum, Rome, March 16, 44 AD 
 

SOOTHSAYER: I tried to warn him. I told him: BEWARE THE IDES OF MARCH.  But he didn’t listen. Poor Julius.  

LISTENER: (sounding confused) Sir, you had an idea in March? 

SOOTHSAYER:  No, no. The IDES of March, March 15^th.  Beware the Ides of March, I told him. I knew, I knew.  

LISTENER: His enemies got to him, I suppose. 

SOOTHSAYER: Et Tu Brute? 

LISTENER: (jerk nervously): What?  

SOOTHSAYER: Et Tu Brute? It means: You too Brutus? Julius Caesar thought Brutus was his friend. He was wrong.  But you were right. His enemies killed him.  

LISTENER: Enough about Caesar. I’m so tired of hearing about that guy. What about me? What do you see in the future for me?

SOOTHSAYER: Choose your friends carefully, Cassius.

NARRATOR: Julius Caesar was dead. But things in Rome did not change as people had hoped they would. There was more trouble, more debt, and more problems. The only thing people wanted to know was  ..  who would take his place. 

 FINIS (The End)