VPA starting season 49 with ‘The Island of Dr. Libris’

Valley Performing Arts is kicking off its 49th season with a local adaptation of “The Island of Dr. Libris,” a comedic adventure play based on Chris Grabenstein's 2015 best selling novel of the same.

VPA Executive Director Jenna Worley said this production will be entertaining for the whole family.

“There's lots of imagination and characters involved,” Worley said. “It's a great season opener that everyone needs to come and see.”

Below is a description of the play provided by VPA: “The Island of Dr. Libris celebrates the power of imagination with an action-packed adventure that shows that sometimes the real story starts after you close the book! What if your favorite characters came to life? Billy’s spending the summer in a lakeside cabin that belongs to the mysterious Dr. Libris. But something strange is going on. Besides the security cameras everywhere, there’s Dr. Libris’ private bookcase. Whenever Billy opens the classic books inside, he can hear sounds coming from the island in the middle of the lake. The clash of swords. The twang of arrows. The dialogue of characters. Sometimes he can even feel the ground shaking. It’s almost as if the stories he’s reading are coming to life! But that’s impossible … isn’t it?”

Rehearsals for “The Island of Dr. Libris,” are going well, according to Worley. She said there’s a strong sense of cast and crew chemistry.

“You can tell they're having a lot of fun and that's going to show onstage,” Worley said.

According to Worley, “The Island of Dr. Libris” is a highly popular book among young readers and she found that out first hand after hearing about the hype over the upcoming play among local youth.

“It has a really large following. Lots of kids really like this book apparently,” Worley said with a laugh.

Over half of the cast of “The Island of Dr. Libris” is composed of children and teens, according to Worley. She said it's always exciting to have youth involvement at VPA

“I like the fact that there's so many kids in it,’ Worley said.

Worley has been involved with VPA for many years and teaches youth through the summer theater program. She noted that some of her students are even appearing in the upcoming play. She said that theater experience helps youth in numerous ways even if they don't persue it as adults.

“I think that's a really wonderful thing… Being onstage and being able to present yourself, I think there's some confidence in that you can carry with you for your whole life," Worley said.

Worley said that one of her favorite aspects of VPA is how open and inviting it is for locals of all ages and demographics. She said there's plenty of opportunities on and off the stage for

a wide variety of skill sets and interests.

“We really are a community theater," Worley said.

Worley said there’s plenty of exciting productions coming up that the community can look forward to. She said they've already received a lot of positive feedback about the lineup.

“I think it's going to be a really good season," Worley said.

“The Island of Dr. Libris,” opens Friday, Sept. 13 and runs through Sunday, Sept. 29. All shows will take place at the VPA stage in downtown Wasilla. There will also be an ASL Interpreted performance Sept. 21.

For tickets and more information, visit vpaalaska.org.