Themes
There are several themes running throughout this play. The major themes are detailed for you below.
Friendship, Loyalty and Trust
Metamorphosis
Discovery
Friendship, Loyalty and Trust
The play revolves around Sophia, whose main motivation is to save her friend Simon from the troll princess. She is willing to risk her life against insurmountable odds in order to do this and displays her courage and strength to put her friend's safety before hers. This is a true measure of friendship, and a value that children and adults are encouraged to support not only through this play, but in life as well. To put others before oneself is a trait admired in people, and as the play demonstrates, selfishness will only bring disappointment, guilt and despair.
The other strong themes throughout the play are Trust and Loyalty as Sophia encounters strangers who guide her through her journey. Sophia herself has no idea of how to find what she's looking for and has to rely on others who do – unequivocal trust. This can be a lesson to everyone, and is a theme that resonates strongly alongside that of Loyalty and Friendship. There are many times throughout the play when Sophia could have turned from her path and left Simon to fend for himself against the troll princess, but she was guided by people who had been where she was going, and by staying true to her heart and her friends she made it safely to her destination. Both of these themes remind people of all ages that everyone needs a hand and guidance sometime in their life, and that it's alright to ask for help. For children it is particularly important for them to understand that someone else has been where they're going in their journey of life, that they're never alone. Children will also learn the importance of loyalty, of not letting down the people that mean the most to them, and that sticking by their friends when times get tough is what friendship is all about.
Metamorphosis
The concept of Metamorphosis,refers to a complete or marked change in appearance, character, or condition of an object or character. In the play this theme is seen most clearly through Sophia (of a girl growing from a child to a young woman) and Simon (turning from a frog into a Prince). Sophia's journey represents that of an emotional expedition of a girl who learns what it really means to ‘grow up'. In this way, children can begin to understand that the act of becoming an adult has less to do with the physical aspects of a person and more to do with the emotional development. Sophia learns to take responsibility for her own problems, she learns the value of friendship, trust, and loyalty, and the pointlessness of selfish behaviour, and begins to understand that the world is bigger than her little farm, and her little problems. Through Simon, the children are able to observe that unselfish and kind behaviour brings out the best in everyone, in his case it brought out the Prince in him. This lesson is a valuable reminder to everyone, and an important one for children to learn.
Discovery
The discovery of oneself is an ongoing challenge, and a lesson to children and adults. The play explores this theme through Sophia, who continuously discovers more aspects of herself including that of the troll princess, who represents Sophia's dark side. It is important for children to understand that there are many sides to every one person. In the play the audience is able to see Sophia's troll side – her bossy and selfish feature; her strong and courageous side – as she braves the odds to rescue her friend; and her fragile side – when she fears she doesn't have what it takes to rescue Simon and it seems everything is working against her. Most children have an awareness to some degree of this. They understand that being on Daddy's ‘bad side' means that they will have to get onto Mummy's ‘good side' in order to get something they may want. In this same respect, children should be made aware of their own ‘sides', and they are able to do this through Sophia, and even to a degree Simon, who turns from a frog into a prince. Children are also able to observe that, realistically – like Sophia and Simon – everyone's ugly side comes out sometimes, but that we should all make a point of trying to look beyond it to see the Prince or Princess inside us all.