Arthur's Halloween
Synopsis

ACT ONE

Arthur Reed is very excited. It's the day before Halloween and he's sure that this will be THE BEST HALLOWEEN EVER. His spirits are soon crushed when he learns that he has to take his little sister, DW, trick-or-treating with him. Never quite sure what kind of trouble DW will cause, he commiserates about the pitfalls of having a little sister (WHY ME?).

Halloween day arrives and the students of Lakewood Elementary school are happily celebrating at THE LAKEWOOD ELEMENTARY HALLOWEEN PARTY AND ANNUAL COSTUME PARADE. When Arthur's teacher, Mr. Ratburn, selects Arthur to be blindfolded and to participate in a "guess the goolish glop" game, Arthur's fear of some of the scarier aspects of Halloween causes him to panic and he opts out of participating. Francine accuses him of being a wuss and a coward, much to the amusement of the other students, and Arthur runs off, too embarrassed to face everyone. His best friend, Buster, tries to cheer him up by telling him IT'S OK TO BE SCARED SOMETIMES.

Later that evening, before Arthur and DW leave for trick-or-treating, their mom reminds them of the things that will assure them a safe and happy experience (THE RULES OF THE ROAD).

Arthur & DW and Puppy Pal join Buster, Francine, Binky Barnes, The Brain and Muffy and soon their bags are full of Halloween goodies (HALLOWEEN IS LIKE CANDY HEAVEN). Though they mutually decide to avoid trick-or-treating at the scary "witch's" house on the corner, DW's curiosity gets the better of her and, before Arthur and the others can stop her, she disappears inside the witch's house. Act One ends with the others frozen in fear, wondering what to do now.

ACT TWO

Arthur and his friends are still panicked about what to do about DW. His friends try to convince him that he shouldn't chance rescuing her since THERE'S NO TELLING what horrible things await him in the witch's house, but Arthur decides he has no other choice but to go in after her. He bravely makes his way in and immediately hears DW calling out for help.

Following the sound of her voice, Arthur discovers DW in the witch's kitchen. He also discovers that, instead of a scary old witch, the owner of the house is a sweet, old woman, Mrs. Tibble, who has fallen and is in need of help getting up. DW & Arthur come to her aid and are invited to stay for milk and cookies. They learn that Mrs. Tibble hasn't been able to keep up with all the repairs needed on the house which has, in turn, given it the frightening appearance that has scared so many children away over the past few years. Arthur and DW promise to come back to help her with some of the work and the three of them sing about the blessings of having FRIENDS.

Meanwhile, Arthur's friends are wondering what terrible fate has befallen him and DW inside the witch's house. To their amazement, Arthur and DW reappear, happy and unharmed. When they ask for all the gruesome details of the ordeal, Arthur is about to tell them what really happened when DW speaks up and relates a heroic saga about her brother fighting off monsters in order to save her life. All are amazed at Arthur's new-found courage and proclaim him the bravest kid in the neighborhood (ARTHUR, THE BRAVE!). Left alone after everyone disperses to spread the word about his fearless rescue, Arthur thanks DW for helping him gain respect in the eyes of his friends. As they go off arm in arm, he realizes that having a little sister maybe isn't so bad after all. (WHY ME? Reprise)