NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Family Community Theatre is presenting its latest production, The Island of Dr. Libris, beginning April 21.
"Just imagine that if you read a book and you have a great imagination, the characters do come alive for you," said director Craig Williams. "If you have been reading about Hercules and Antaeus, they come alive. You hear them speak, you hear them wrestle in the garden of Hesperides, you get to see that and you experience that. If you've been reading something else, those characters also come alive so they can intertwine."
The show premiered at the Knoxville Children's Theatre in 2012 and opened on Broadway in 2013. The production is based on the novel by Chris Grabenstein.
"We also throw in a scientist who is really intent on making money off of this young man's vivid imagination," Williams said. "He's the one who is controlling all of this, helping to enhance the young man's imagination and bringing all of this together."
Grabenstein's script, with the assistance of Ronny Venable, shows that sometimes the real story starts after you close the book.
"The cast runs from ten to much, much older," Williams said. "The two leads that are on stage a lot, one is a sixth grader and one is a fifth grader."
The performances are Thursday, Friday and Saturday, April 21-23 at 7:30 p.m. each evening and Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are available at Absolutely Home, Bookends Book Store and online at familycommunitytheatre.org.