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Included in The Horla Readers’ Theatre Unit:
47 page script
6 characters
7 Comprehension Questions with answers
27 Metacognitive Questions
25 Book Report questions with Rubric
Drawing Conclusions about Characters activity
Student Success Criteria
Student Friendly Goals
Teacher’s Reader’s Theatre Checklist

Guy de Maupassant’s The Horla synopsis:
The Horla is written in the form of a diary detailing the narrator’s descent into what may be paranoia or a terrifying supernatural attack. The story follows an unnamed narrator in Normandy who experiences increasingly disturbing events, including a sense of an invisible presence, physical and psychological disturbances, and the feeling of an entity draining his life force. He grapples with whether these experiences are a manifestation of his own deteriorating mental state or the existence of an unseen, malevolent being he names “the Horla”. The narrator attempts his own forms of therapy, such as traveling abroad and talking to monks and other notable people but he continues to feel a sense of dread for most of the day. Is the Horla a figment of the narrator’s fragile mind, or is it truly a malevolent presence that is slowly draining his life force and hypnotizing everyone around him? Is it possible to be rid of such a supernatural being? Find out in The Horla Readers’ Theatre Unit!

Mr. Marvel’s Musings:
The Horla is written in the format of a diary so I have made each page a diary entry (see the preview for an example). I had each student read a diary entry. Some entries are just a paragraph while others are a few pages, so I assigned entries for specific students. In some entries there is dialogue of the narrator’s interactions with various people.

I hope you, and your students enjoy reading The Horla and continue to do so for many years.
Excelsior!
Mr. Marvel: The King of Reader’s Theatre