The charming tale of Pinocchio, the wooden puppet who longed to become a real, live boy, comes to life this Saturday, Jan. 30 at 7 p.m. when the Missoula Children's Theatre (MCT) and more than 50 local students perform an original, musical adaptation of this classic tale.

The local cast features Joshua McDonald as Pinocchio, Mercedes Blair as the Blue Fairy, Trae Horton as Jiminy Cricket, Taylor Jessen as the villainous Fox, Jacob  Madden as Stromboli, and Ashlyn Poplin as the mischievous Cat.

Also featured are Kyra Blair, Kirsten Henry, and Brea Horton as Puppets; Emily McCallie as Pinocchio's tough friend, Candlewick; and Paetyn Grubb, Megan Dyer, Kaitlyn Sims and Ivy MacDaniel as Candlewick's Crew.

To complete the ensemble, Mindy Loveday, Shannon Granger, Arianna Corman, Jonah Nelson, Micah Nelson, Bryant Horton, Roger Payne, Jack Bonham, Drew Warren, and Raquel Bennett will appear as Urchins.
Austin Johnson, Tenslee Mathews, Caleb Moses, Callie McCoury, Noah McCoury, Samantha Holloway, Mary Stacy, Riley Smith, Abby Williams, Sam Nelson, Ally Staff, Matthew Marshall, Hailey Dyer, Miriam Offutt, Kirsten Robbins, Hannah McDonald, Michael Murphy, and Jorden Anderson as the Pleasure Isle Kids.
Brylee Russell, Jarod Anderson, Casey Jones, Shyla Sharp, Jonathon Jones, Emma Stacy, Abigail Johnson, Jaden McCallie, C.J. Hall, Emily Offutt, Gulianne Burrell, Caroline Finch, Emily Gatchel, Sara Kinder and Kayla Patterson as the masterfully crafted Toys.
Allie Loveday, Perry Lance, Audrey Henderson, and Kat Johnson have served as assistant directors throughout the week.

Pinocchio will be presented at Butcher Auditorium, Hiwassee College in Madisonville.  Tickets are $10/adults and $5/students. Children ages four and under are free. Tickets may be purchased at the box office on the night of the performance.

The Missoula Children's Theatre residency in Monroe County is presented locally by Monroe Area Council for the Arts (MACA) with funding provided by United Way of Monroe County.
For more information, call MACA at 442-3210 or online at www.monroearts. com.