Use the monologues to facilitate a historic re-enactment of Gideon v. Wainwright and In re Gault in a readers theater format.
What is readers theater? It is a dramatic reading of a prepared script as if it were a stage play, however, there are no costumes, props, or actions. Instead, volunteers use expressive voices and gestures to add interest and meaning to the story line. Participants hold their own copy of the script and read their respective parts so that everyone in the audience can hear. They do not memorize their lines. The emphasis is on comprehension and student-centered learning.
Speaking Parts
The speaking parts are listed in order of appearance and males or females can read either part.
- Clarence Earl Gideon
- Female Newspaper Reader
- Narrator for the Abe Fortas Monologue
- Same or Different Narrator for the Abe Fortas Monologue
- U.S. Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black
- Attorney W. Fred Turner
- Juvenile Gerald “Jerry” Gault
- Clarence Earl Gideon (different participant)
Monologues
All scripts are in PDF format.
Court Shorts: Right to Counsel
Federal judges and public defense attorneys discuss the significance of the Sixth Amendment right to counsel and the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in Gideon v. Wainwright (1963).