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Monty Python's Spamalot

Lovingly ripped off from the classic film comedy MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL, SPAMALOT retells the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, and features a bevy of beautiful show girls, not to mention cows, killer rabbits, and French people. Did we mention the bevy of beautiful show girls?

  • Full Length Musical
  • Comedy
  • 140 minutes

  • Time Period: Medieval England
  • Target Audience: All Types

  • Performance Group:
  • All Types
Act I: The play begins with a historian giving a brief overview of medieval England. The pastoral forest is immediately replaced by a dreary, dark village with penitent monks in hooded robes chanting Latin prayers and hitting themselves in the face with wooden boards. King Arthur travels the land with his servant Patsy, trying to recruit Knights to join him in Camelot and his quest for the Holy Grail. Sir Robin and Sir Lancelot meet as they attempt to dispose of the sickly Not Dead Fred. They agree to become Knights of the Round Table together.

Meanwhile, Arthur attempts to convince a peasant named Dennis Galahad that he (Arthur) is king of England because the Lady of the Lake gave him Excalibur. However, Dennis and his mother, Mrs. Galahad, are political radicals and deny that any king who has not been elected by the people has any legitimate right to rule over them. To settle the issue, Arthur has the Lady of the Lake appear to turn Dennis into a knight. The Lady of the Lake turns Dennis into Sir Galahad. Together, with Sir Bedevere and Sir Not-Appearing-In-This-Show, they make up the Knights of the Round Table.

The five knights gather and in the midst of their revelry, they are contacted by God, who tells them to locate the Holy Grail. Urged on by the Lady of the Lake, the Knights set off. They are viciously taunted by lewd French soldiers at a castle and retaliate by sending them a large wooden rabbit in the style of the Trojan Horse; however, they realize after the fact that it was not as simple as leaving the rabbit and walking away - they were supposed to be inside of it.

Act II: Sir Robin and his minstrels follow King Arthur and Patsy into a "dark and very expensive forest" where they are separated. King Arthur meets the Knights who say Ni, who demand a shrubbery. King Arthur despairs of finding one, but Patsy cheers him up and they find a shrubbery shortly after. The Knights accept it, but next demand that King Arthur put on a musical and bring it to Broadway. The Black Knight appears but King Arthur more or less defeats him by cutting off both his arms and legs. Sir Robin, after wandering the forest for some time, finds King Arthur and insists that it would be impossible for them to accomplish this next task. King Arthur and Patsy promptly set off in search of Jews.

While the Lady of the Lake laments her lack of stage time, Sir Lancelot receives a letter from what he assumes is a young damsel in distress. He is a little surprised to find that the damsel is actually an effeminate young man named Herbert whose overbearing, music-hating father, the king, is forcing him into an arranged marriage. Lancelot advocates for Herbert after the king returns, and Lancelot is outed as a homosexual in the process. King Arthur begins to give up hope of ever putting on the Broadway musical and laments that he is alone, even though Patsy has been with him the entire time. The Lady of the Lake appears and tells Arthur that he and the Knights have been in a Broadway musical all along. All that's left is for King Arthur to find the Grail and marry someone.

After picking up on some not-too-subtle hints, Arthur decides to marry the Lady of the Lake after he finds the Grail. Reunited with his Knights, Arthur meets Tim the Enchanter who warns them of the danger of an evil rabbit. When the rabbit bites a knight's head off, Arthur uses the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch against it, knocking down a nearby hill and revealing that the "evil rabbit" was actually a puppet controlled by a surprised puppeteer. A large stone block showing a combination of letters and numbers is also revealed.

After pondering the final clue, Arthur admits that they're "a bit stumped with the clue thing" and asks God to "give them a hand". The grail is "found"; Arthur marries the Lady of the Lake; Lancelot marries Herbert; and Sir Robin decides to pursue a career in musical theatre.

  • Casting: 6M, 1F
  • Casting Notes: Flex-size ensemble

  • Following is the Broadway doubling scenario. Scroll down to see great casting tips to create more female roles and more ensemble roles.


  • KING ARTHUR (Late 30s-60s.): The King of England who sets out on a quest to form the Knights of the Roundtable and find the Holy Grail. Great Humor. Good singer.
  • SIR ROBIN (30s-40s): A Knight of the Roundtable. Ironically called 'Sir Robin the Brave,' though he couldn't be more cowardly. Joins the Knights for the singing and dancing. Also plays GUARD 1 and BROTHER MAYNARD, a long-winded monk.
  • SIR LANCELOT (30s-40): A Knight of the Roundtable. He is fearless to a bloody fault but through a twist of fate, does discover his 'softer side.' This actor MUST be great with character voices and accents, as he also plays THE FRENCH TAUNTER, an arrogant, condescending, over-the-top Frenchman, the KNIGHT OF NI, an absurd, cartoonish leader of a peculiar group of Knights, and TIM THE ENCHANTER, a ghostly being with a Scottish accent.
  • PATSY (30s-40s): King Arthur's horse and servant. Underappreciated but always longing for King Arthur's approval. Good, funny, physical mover with some tap dancing. Also plays MAYOR, a jolly red-faced man who advertises the merits of his home town and the drunken, useless GUARD 2.
  • SIR GALAHAD (30s): A Knight of the Roundtable. Begins as Dennis, a lower class 'mud gatherer' who becomes Knighted and transforms into the dashing Sir Galahad. Also plays PRINCE HERBERT'S FATHER, a wealthy, brutish Yorkshireman man at odds with his sensitive son, THE BLACK KNIGHT who is always ready to duel despite multiple injuries. Strong bari-tenor singing required.
  • SIR BEDEVERE (20s-40s): A Knight of the Roundtable. An inept scholar. Also plays DENNIS GALAHAD'S MOTHER, a shrill peasant woman, and CONCORDE, Sir Lancelot's horse. No solo singing.
  • THE LADY OF THE LAKE (20s-30s):A Diva. Strong, beautiful, possesses mystical powers. The leading lady of the show. Great singing voice is essential, as she must be able to sing effortlessly in many styles and vocal registers. Especially seeking actresses of all races for this role.


  • THE FOLLOWING ROLES ARE PLAYED BY THE SAME ACTOR (20s-30s): Tenor singing required. Very good mover.
    HISTORIAN: A tweedy academic.
    NOT DEAD FRED: A sickly little fellow who, despite others' beliefs, claims he is "not yet dead."
    FRENCH GUARD: The condemnatory French sidekick to the French Taunter.
    MINSTREL: In Sir Robin's band.
    PRINCE HERBERT: The hopeful and frilly prince who loves to sing and pines for his love atop a tower.


  • SIR NOT APPEARING may double as THE DANCING MONK
    A MALE DANCER appears as THE DANCING NUN
    THE VOICE OF GOD may be pre-recorded.
    TWO FRENCH GUARDS are two of the MALE ENSEMBLE
    ROBIN'S MINSTRELS are also ENSEMBLE: 2 MEN, 1 WOMAN.
    SIR BORS is MALE ENSEMBLE.
    ENSEMBLE: Six men and six women


  • CASTING TIPS:
  • Above you can see THE LADY OF THE LAKE, her LAKER GIRLS, and the five chorus/ensemble numbers that already involve female cast members. Here are some suggestions for characters that female cast members can play with great success or use these characters to create more featured roles for your ensemble:
  • DEAD FOLKS in "Not Yet Dead"
    1. THE HISTORIAN
    2. THE BLACK KNIGHT
    3. THE FRENCH TAUNTERS
    4. SIR ROBIN’S MINSTRELS
    5. THE KNIGHTS OF NI
    6. SIR BORS
    7. TIM THE ENCHANTER
  • Name Price
    Perusal Material Shipped immediately. This is optional. Order Now

    1 x Script / Vocal Book / Score Sampler

    $24.00
    Pre-Production Pack Shipped upon receipt of a signed License Agreement and full payment of all invoices. This is optional.

    1 x Director's Script
    1 x Cast Script
    1 x Vocal Book
    1 x Piano Vocal Score

    $75.00
    Rehearsal Material Shipped a minimum of 3 months before the last performance. This must be hired as a condition of the License to produce this show.

    20 x Vocal Books
    20 x Cast Scripts
    3 x Director's Scrips
    2 x Piano-Conductor's Scores
    1 x CD (Spamalot Logos and Voice of God recorded by Eric Idle)

    $575.00 +$135.00/pm
    Orchestral Material Shipped a minimum of 1 month before the last performance. This is optional.

    Bass
    Drums
    Guitar
    Horn
    Keyboard 1
    Keyboard 2
    Keyboard 3
    Percussion
    Reed 1
    Reed 2
    Trombone
    Trumpet 1
    Trumpet 2
    Violin

    $350.00 +$135.00/pm
    Show|Ready Shipped upon receipt of a signed License Agreement and full payment of all invoices. This is optional.

    With Show|Ready, you can virtually send your Musical Director home with each and every member of your cast! Show|Ready allows you to play a customizable rehearsal track of your show, complete with individual vocal parts and all dance breaks on a Mac, PC, and soon on your iOS device. Your Musical Director simply uploads any edits made at that day's rehearsal and your cast can access and download the newest version with all of the new changes! This enables your entire cast to rehearse correctly from the beginning, saving you valuable time and effort.

    With an intuitive interface, Show|Ready gives you complete control over which parts you hear, and lets you modify the key or tempo and cut, vamp, or repeat measures as you please. All shows include the piano, bass, drum, and all vocal parts, as well as a sheet music viewer that automatically displays the piano/conductor score and changes the page as you listen and navigate throughout the show.

    $300.00
    Stage|Tracks Shipped upon receipt of a signed License Agreement and full payment of all invoices. This is optional.

    Stage|Tracks provides quality performance tracks, edited to integrate your individual changes from Show|Ready. With the best sounding tracks at an affordable price, Stage|Tracks will greatly enhance your production if you do not have live musicians to accompany the show. However, you should be advised that while Stage|Tracks provides quality performance tracks of the full orchestration, it is not recommended to be used alongside live musicians.

    Because Stage|Tracks is built on the information created in Show|Ready, you must first purchase Show|Ready in order to get Stage|Tracks.

    PLEASE CONTACT US FOR A QUOTE.

    $0.00
    Broadway String Packet Shipped upon receipt of a signed License Agreement and full payment of all invoices. This is optional.

    3 x Violins (I, II, III)
    2 x Violas
    2 x Cellos

    * * The orchestration for the licensed version of Monty Python's SPAMALOT contains a reduction of the Broadway string parts which are played by Keyboard 2 and Keyboard 3. If you choose to order the Broadway String Packet for your performance, you can either use the live strings as a replacement for the KEYBOARD 3 part or alongside it to enhance the string sound in your orchestra. However, should you choose to use the strings as a replacement for Keyboard 3, be aware that Keyboard 2 remains essential.

    In addition, please be advised that the Broadway String Packet is an additional item and therefore, the Piano/Conductor book contains cues for the Keyboard 2 and Keyboard 3 parts, but not for the individual string parts.

    $150.00
    Digital Perusal Material Shipped immediately. This is optional. Order Now

    1 x Script / Vocal Book / Score Sampler
    Once purchased a link will be emailed to you allowing the download to take place.

    $10.00