The story is adapted from the traditional tale, Nix Nought Nothing, as illustrated by Arthur Rackham in a collection of English Fairy Tales compiled in 1890.
The King is away fighting when his son is born, so - as a temporary measure - the Queen calls the baby Nothing-At-All. But on his journey back the King is tricked into promising a Giant 'nothing at all' in return for safe passage across a river.
The Giant - who turns out to be a Magician - eventually claims his prize and takes the boy off as a playmate for his daughter. The Magician's Daughter and Nothing-At-All grow very fond of each other and ask the Magician for his permission to get married. The Magician sets three tasks for Nothing-At-All that the Magician's daughter helps him with. But they fail the final task and have to make their escape. They eventually defeat the Magician with the help of a magic flask. But it's not over yet!
The Magician's Daughter is a 50 minute piece of story-telling theatre suitable for age five and upward.
The multi story version is told by a couple of washerwoman in the palace washroom. They are about to be replaced by washing-machines, but before they go they remember the stories associated with the garments they're washing for the final time. And they use what's around them - mops, cloths, brushes, dryers and soap-suds - to illustrate the adventure.