The cast and crew of the Musical Theatre Guild are busy whipping up a fairy tale of sorts for their next production, “Once Upon a Mattress,” which will open Oct. 11 at the Succop Theater at Butler County Community College.

This show begs to be much more than a sleeper, somewhat loosely based on the story of “The Princess and the Pea.”

The kingdom's cursed King Sextimus, played by Bill Geibel of Penn Township, is unable to speak.

Geibel was in the Butler Summer Dramatics production of this show in 1970.

“I always liked the part of the king and when I learned that MTG was doing it this fall, I decided to audition,” Geibel said.

“This part is like none other that I played in the past. It's challenging because the king never speaks. That's not to say he doesn't have a lot to say. Everything I 'say' must be conveyed through body language and pantomime. To quote a verse from one of the musical numbers, the audience must 'Listen with both of their eyes.' I hope they hear what they see.”

Meanwhile, King Sextimus' horrid wife, Queen Aggravian (Wendy Raviotta), has taken over control of the kingdom.

To keep her son, Prince Dauntless, played by Jim Kasparek, from marrying, and thus retain control of the kingdom for herself, the queen has decreed that only a princess who can pass her test may marry the prince.

Kasparek of Butler Township said, “Dauntless is the ultimate 'mama's boy.' It is only when he meets Princess Winnifred that he starts to think for himself.”

Kasparek said he is — thankfully — a bit out of his comfort zone with this character.

“I am not generally a wallflower or mousy individual. It's been difficult to pull myself back and act like a grown man who still clings to his mother,” he said.

Kasparek played the role of the minstrel in this musical years ago at Stage 62 in Carnegie. He enjoyed the show and decided to have another go at it. He appeared last fall with MTG in its production “Children of Eden.”

The queen has further decreed that no one else in the kingdom may marry until Prince Dauntless does.

This poses a conundrum for Lady Larken, played by Audrey Scott of Penn Township, who is desperate to marry her love, Sir Harry (Matt Buzanosky).

“Larken is a young woman of the court who is desperately in love with Sir Harry, a gallant but bit of a stick-in-the-mud knight,” Scott said of her character.

Scott is a recent graduate of Dickinson College with a bachelor's in English. “She has high expectations of herself and of others, but as the play progresses, she learns to forgive, appreciate others' uniqueness, and lighten up a little,” said Scott, who is enjoying putting her own spin the role.

Because the role is a demanding recipe of sweet and sappy, Scott said she finds it somewhat difficult to maintain her composure when delivering the gooey lines. She has devised a remedy for that. “Lately, I've been attempting to incorporate a slightly sarcastic edge to the lines, to get across to the audience that I know certain lines are dripping with drama,” she said.

Finally an amazing princess shows up, Winnifred the Woebegone, who instantly catches the attention of Prince Dauntless. But will this unusual princess be able to pass the queen's test?

Rikki Stupka of Butler plays the role of Princess Winnifred. She said it's been a few years since she did MTG's “Damn Yankees” in 2010 and she was “jonesing for a musical,” though she's not gone but a couple months without acting, directing or working behind theater scenes.

“There are difficult things in this show; it's difficult vocally, especially when I have to sing after I've been dancing, very aerobic,” Stupka said. “But the cast is great. The set is amazing. The bed is really high though; I'm kind of afraid of it. It's 8½ feet tall. It's beautiful; it looks really cool.”

Also starring are Dean Weiland, Thom Hilliard and Paul Wright.

The show is under the direction of Tricia McConnell Eichler with music direction by Tommy Walters. Assistant director is Gordon Cavalero.

“This show is a great show to see with your entire family, kids included. The music and dialogue are whimsical and above all, just full of joy,” Kasparek said.

<B>WHO: </B>Musical Theatre Guild<B>WHAT: </B>“Once Upon a Mattress”<B>WHEN:</B> 8 p.m. Oct. 11 and 12 and 3 p.m. Oct. 13<B>WHERE: </B>Succop Theater at Butler County Community College<B>TICKETS: </B>$17, available at May’s Music Shoppe, 247 E. Jefferson St., from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays or by calling 724-287-8243<B>INFO</B>: mtgbutler.org