Students in the Fairview High School theatre program will be performing their latest production, “Little Red Riding Hood: Grandmother’s Tale,” Sunday and Monday in the Fairview High School Auditorium.

Fairview theatre teacher Mark Dobbs said the play is based on the Germanic “Little Red Riding Hood” folk tale, a story that should be familiar to most people while making some changes — such as expanding the grandmother character’s role and making her more of a mentor to Red.

“She helps her prepare to take on challenges like the wolf,” he said.

There are two performances scheduled for the play, with the first showing on Sunday at 2 p.m. and the second on Monday at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for the play are $5.

Much of the program’s funding comes from ticket sales, and revenues from this spring’s performance meant that the program was able to buy or rent several new props and costumes for this play, Dobbs said.

“This has been probably the most expensive play that we’ve had,” he said. “But it does look good.”

Dobbs said Fairview Theatre Works’ last play, “I and You,” was a bit of a tearjerker, but “Little Red Riding Hood: the Grandmother’s Tale” has a lighter tone that includes some comedy and action, including a fight scene between the wolf and woodsman that has meant months of preparation for the actors involved.

“We’ve been working on it since school started,” he said.

The high schools students performed the play for Fairview Elementary students Wednesday, and there were plenty of laughs and cheers from that audience, Dobbs said.

The production of a play and between the cast and crew, there are around 17 students who are involved in putting on this fall’s play, and along with those students who are directly working on the play, the school’s ag classes have helped build the sets and the family and consumer sciences students have helped with the costumes, so it is a school-wide effort to make the production possible, he said.

“The faculty and the kids here at Fairview are very good at pitching in,” he said. 

Tyler Hanes can be reached at 256-734-2131 ext. 138.