The Lion and the Mouse is a short Aesop’s fable play script for children, with storytellers and plenty of animal roles for a class or drama group. The simple dialogue and repeated action make it suitable for primary-school performance, readers’ theatre or classroom drama.
Characters: Three Storytellers, Lion, Mouse, Elephants, Giraffes, Snakes and Owls.
The Lion and the Mouse Play Script
Characters: Three Storytellers, Lion, Mouse, Elephants, Giraffes, Snakes, Owls
Stage directions: all the animals are in a semi-circle on the stage; they are grouped according to their animal type. Storytellers can be placed on the right or the left of the stage.
Storyteller 1: One hot day a lion was asleep in a cave. (Lion is sleeping in the centre of the stage.)
Storyteller 2: Suddenly a little mouse ran over his paw. (Mouse comes scampering out quickly and touches the Lion’s paw.)
Storyteller 3: The lion woke up with a loud roar. He grabbed the mouse with his paw and said (Lion wakes up and grabs the mouse.)
Lion: I’m going to kill you and eat you up. (Lion roars loudly.)
Mouse: Squeak, Squeak! Please, Mr. Lion, Please don’t eat me. Someday I will help you.
Lion: Ha, Ha, Ha! You, help me! Don’t make me laugh, but I’m not that hungry so I will let you go. (Lion pushes the mouse away.)
Storyteller 1: The lion laughed and laughed and the mouse ran home.
Storyteller 2: A few days later the lion was out in the jungle.
Lion: I think I will scare my friends. I am very scary because I’m King of the Jungle. (He goes to each group of animals and roars at them. All the animals are scared and move away from him.)
Storyteller 3: Suddenly the lion got caught in a trap and said (He is in the centre of stage when he falls to his knees.)
Lion: Oh dear, how will I get out of here? (Lion looks around the stage desperately.)
Storyteller 1: After a while he heard some elephants. (Elephants move from the semi-circle and they circle the lion. They must make sure the audience can see their faces.)
Lion: Elephants, elephants, please help me.
Elephants: Oh No! We will not help you. (Elephants trundle off back to the other animals.)
Storyteller 2: Then a few giraffes passed by. He cried (Giraffes leave the semi-circle and move behind the lion.)
Lion: Giraffes, Giraffes, please help me. (Lion looks up at the giraffes.)
Giraffes: Oh no, we will not help you. (Giraffes go back to their place in the semi-circle.)
Storyteller 3: The lion grew cold and hungry (the lion shivers and rubs his stomach) and began to think he would never get home to his nice, warm cave. Then he heard the hissing of snakes. (Snakes move towards the centre of the stage near the lion.)
Lion: Snakes, snakes, please help me. (The lion looks up at the snakes.)
Snakes: Ssssssssss, oh no we will not help you, sssssssssssssssss. (Snakes go back to the semi-circle.)
Storyteller 1: As night came the lion began to cry.
Lion: Boo hoo, I am stuck in this trap and none of my friends will help me.
Storyteller 2: Then he heard some owls hooting in the trees. (Owls move centre stage, towards the lion.)
Lion: Owls, Owls, please help me. (Lion looks up at the owls.)
Owls: Tu Whit, Tu Whoo, owls, owls, we will not help youuuuuuuuuuu. (Owls go back to the semi-circle.)
Storyteller 3: The lion was very sad. (Lion starts crying.) He didn’t know what to do. Then he heard the squeaking of a mouse.
Mouse: Squeak, squeak! Why are you crying Mr. Lion? (Mouse comes from behind the other animals.)
Lion: I’m stuck in this trap and nobody will help me.
Mouse: I will help you.
Storyteller 1: The mouse began to bite through the rope and at last the lion was free.
Lion: I’m free, I’m free! I never thought you could help me because you are too small.
Storyteller 2: From then on the lion and the mouse were very good friends.
Storyteller 3: The lesson of the story is…
Storyteller 1: …bigger is not always better!
The Moral of The Lion and the Mouse
The fable reminds us not to judge someone by their size or apparent strength. The tiny mouse is ultimately able to help the powerful lion when the other animals cannot.
Featured Books
Aesop’s Fables on Stage
More short fables adapted into plays for children, including The Lion and the Mouse.
Fairytales on Stage
Bring familiar fairy tales to life with children’s play scripts for classroom performances.
If You Enjoyed This Play, Try These Next
Keep the children performing with The Ants and the Grasshopper, The Enormous Turnip and Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
Or browse the Free Children’s Play Scripts hub for more short plays. If you would like a larger ready-to-use collection, explore Drama Start books on Amazon →
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