A Two-Act Holiday Play with Music Cast of 22, can be doubled to 10 (4W, 6M) + 1 Child Before Thanksgiving was a national holiday, one determined woman made it her mission to ensure it would be. Based on the life of Sarah Josepha Hale-trailblazing editor of Godey's Lady's Book, author of Mary Had a Little Lamb, and advocate for a unified national holiday-Sarah Who Saved Thanksgiving follows her journey from young widowhood through the U.S. Civil War. Narrated by her grandson, the play explores Sarah's lifelong balance between motherhood and career, spotlighting her influential role in American cultural life. Along the way, audiences meet literary icons like Poe, Emerson, and Hawthorne-many of whom Hale supported through her magazine. With 25 lively period songs and a nostalgic lyrical but not uncritical tone, this family-friendly play has been praised as "A Christmas Carol for Thanksgiving." See more at www.emilyballcicchini.com