In the rest of the book, only the 11 children who lived to adulthood are mentioned by name. It was not until the sequel, Belles on Their Toes, was published in 1950 that Mary's death is mentioned in a footnote. The only chapter that mentions Mary by name is the one that tells the stories of the children's births otherwise, she is not mentioned and her absence is not explained. In fact, when Mary died of diphtheria at age five, seven of her siblings were not yet born, so there never were 12 children alive at the same time. In real life, although the Gilbreths had 12 children who survived infanthood, only up to 11 were living at the time of the stories. The title comes from one of Frank Sr.'s favorite jokes: it often happened that when he and his family were out driving and stopped at a red light, a pedestrian would ask, "Hey, Mister! How come you got so many kids?" Gilbreth would pretend to ponder the question carefully, and then, just as the light turned green, would say, "Well, they come cheaper by the dozen, you know", and drive off.Īt several points in the book, a total number of children is spoken of as being 12.
CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN SCRIPT SERIES
The book is more of a series of stories, many of which are humorous, with little overarching narrative. Gilbreth's home doubled as a sort of real-world laboratory that tested her and her husband Frank's ideas about education and efficiency. The best-selling biographical novel was composed by two of the children, who wrote about their childhoods. Lillian Gilbreth was described in the 1940s as "a genius in the art of living". Mrs Fitzgerald – Overworked housekeeper of the family.The book tells the story of time and motion study and efficiency experts Frank Bunker Gilbreth and Lillian Moller Gilbreth, and their children as they reside in Montclair, New Jersey, for many years. Larry – Another boy who Anne’s school, the real love interest.
![cheaper by the dozen script cheaper by the dozen script](https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/ZZYAAOSw6sRgsvBX/s-l400.jpg)
Joe Scales – A boy from Anne’s school and a cocky cheerleader. Not impressed by the Gilbreth family, would love to see the kids fail the test. Miss Brill – Woman from the school district sent to test the kids. Child.įred –Smart but rambunctious, cons his dad into buying a dog. Teenager.īill –Loves embarrassing Anne in front of her dates. Martha –Looks to Anne to break Dad’s grip on the family. Gilbreth, she is kind and supportive of both her husband and Anne’s desire for freedom. Gilbreth’s antics but tries to get him to calm down and enjoy the time left he has with his family.
![cheaper by the dozen script cheaper by the dozen script](https://imagesmtv-a.akamaihd.net/uri/mgid:file:http:shared:mtv.com/news/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Screen-Shot-2017-04-05-at-1.38.05-PM-1492705210.png)
Also a highly accomplished industrial engineer, but not obsessed with pushing their family to the extreme. Teenager.įrank – Oldest son, also acts as a narrator by looking back on the events of the past with Ernestine. Also acts as the future narrator, looking back on the events of the past with Frank. Older teenager.Įrnestine –Looks to Anne to break Dad’s grip on the family. Rebels against Dad by wearing silk stockings and going on dates. Wants to have a normal social life and date boys like the rest of the girls in her school. Often arrogant, but pushes his family to be as efficient as possible because he’s running out of time himself – he is hiding a heart condition from his family that ultimately will take his life.Īnne – Oldest daughter, smartest kid in her class but sick of how her Dad is running the family. Pushes his children to be the smartest kids in their class, and they are. Gilbreth – Father of the family, a highly accomplished and incredibly intelligent industrial engineer who tests his theories on efficiency out on his family and runs the house like a company.
![cheaper by the dozen script cheaper by the dozen script](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51iNqI1aj0L._AC_.jpg)
Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script. Older Youth Wingers will be considered for the adult and older teen roles, while younger Youth Wingers will be considered for the younger child roles, but there could be some flexibility with the age ranges for the younger kids. Based on the real-life family of Frank and Lillian Gilbreth, Cheaper by the Dozen is a classic dramatic comedy about a family of 14, and we will be casting Youth Wingers from 4th grade through 12th grade for the various roles. Auditions for the ACT Youth Wing production of Cheaper by the Dozen directed by JC Crider will be held on Sunday, December 2nd at 3pm and Monday, December 3rd at 7pm.