Everybody's Watching - The Making of the Constitution

EVERYBODY’S WATCHING takes place in Independence Hall, Philadelphia, during the hot summer of 1787 when delegates gathered to write a new Constitution. As five students struggle to complete a "boring" history assignment on the Constitution, Mr. History magically appears and convinces them to time travel bvack to Philadelphia, 1789, and participate in the framing of the Constitution.

James Madison anxiously awaits the arrival of the delegates. In “EVERYBODY’S WATCHING”, he sings of his fears that, with the eyes of the whole world on Philadelphia, the delegates might not agree and their grand experiment in democracy will fail. Madison wants to throw out the Articles of Confederation and create a new government, and he has had Edmund Randolph prepare the Virginia Resolutions to put his ideas into action. William Paterson of New Jersey and Roger Sherman of Connecticut will fight to protect the interests of the smaller states, and John Rutledge of South Carolina will argue for the protection of the slave trade, so Madison knows consensus will be hard to achieve. Ben Franklin, however, wants to make sure the delegates enjoy themselves. He praises his all there is to do and see in his fair city in “THE SONG OF PHILADELPHIA.” The delegates cannot agree, so FRANKLIN proposes a recess. Inviting the warring parties to his home, he teaches them the art of compromise (“SCRATCH MY BACK”).

Sherman’s Connecticut Compromise allows progress to be made, and the delegates vote themselves a vacation. George Washington and Randolph go fishing, where they meet two children: the daughter of an immigrant and the child of a slave. In "E PLURIBUS UNUM," an anthem to inclusiveness, the children inspire the grown-ups to make sure that the constitution includes everyone, no matter creed or color.

When the Constitution is nearing a final vote, Rutledge threatens to destroy all their work by declaring that the South will never agree to the abolishment of slavery. It is up to Madison to compromise now, if he wants his Constitution. He strikes a deal with Rutledge and the Constitution passes.

Spinning back to the present, the kids have learned important values about compromise and inclusiveness. Mainly, of course, they have learned that history is fun!