Okay, so this is how the story goes: (Skip this part if you like)

There was once an old shoemaker, that made good shoes, but they took him a long time to make, and he sold them for very little money. So he and his wife were pretty poor. One night, the shoemaker left the next day’s leather on the bench, and went to bed. The next morning, he woke up and discovered a ready made pair of shoes, beautifully crafted down to the last stitch, where the scraps of leather had been. A customer walked in, and paid well over the usual price for the leather shoes. With the money, the shoemaker bought twice as much leather, and put the leather on the bench for the following night. The next morning, two pairs of top quality leather shoes sat where the leather had been. The shoemaker was delighted! He and his wife sold the shoes for top dollar, and bought twice as much leather to lay out on the bench. This pattern continued, until one day, the shoemaker’s wife decided to find out who was making these shoes, that were bringing customers in from around the country. So that night, she set out the leather, as usual, and hid behind a curtain in the corner with her husband. They stayed there until the clock struck midnight. Then, a window above the working bench creaked open, and in climbed two of the tiniest people the shoemaker and his wife had ever seen, crept in. The sat down in front of the leather, and set to work. They crafted every pair of shoes with great care, as if by magic. When the elves had finished and left, the shoemaker and his wife crept back to bed, but only to lay awake pondering about their little friends. The following morning, the shoemaker’s wife set about sewing together some little clothes for the elves, to replace their ting rags. She left these clothes on the workbench, instead of leather, and waited for nightfall. That night, instead of finding leather, the elves spotted the clothes. They looked at them in amazement, and cautiously put them on. The smiled at each other, and hopped out the window. That was the last time the shoemaker and his wife ever saw the elves. But good luck remained with them. They became very rich, sold every single pair of shoes everyday, and lived happily ever after. 

This fairytale, you might already know this, is being made into a musical. (Showing in August) The auditions were last Saturday, and I was one of the nervous people that tried out. But I made it through! I got a part as one of the elves. I thought I was just going to be acting but it turns out, singing and tap dancing are a part of the deal as well! It was very nerve-racking, (auditioning) but I’m glad I did it. I used to do tap when I was 6, up until I was 9. So I know the basics. Apparently there are 9 other elves, unlike the story. I hope it will be fun!

I got this version of the fairytale from ‘A Lothian Book’ titled ’The Elves and the Shoemaker’

Publishers: Oyster Books Ltd