Dashing swordplay! Heart-stopping romance! Intricate political intrigue! And all written by a 10 year-old girl? This new play, based on Alexandre Dumas' classic 1844 novel, tells the "real" story of how the tale came to be written, complete with crazy deleted scenes that wound up on the "cutting room floor", so to speak. Although all of the famous moments that readers have enjoyed for over 150 years are here-the rousing duel with the Cardinal's Guards, Milady's evil schemes with Cardinal Richelieu to control the throne of France, the joyous picnic on the battlefield at La Rochelle-this new version also gives readers and actors scenes never shown before. As Dumas and his precocious niece Charlotte write the novel, episodes are tried and discarded. These include a Rockettes-style dance number featuring high-kicking Musketeers and the usually-timid Constance clashing-sword-in-hand-with four of the Cardinal's Guards. Suitable for production at all levels, from schools to professional theatres, this new take on
The Three Musketeers
is sure to please readers and audiences alike.