The Pleasant Valley High School Musical Drama Club will present “Once Upon a Mattress” this weekend. The curtains will open at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m. on Sunday in the high school auditorium.

Based on the 1835 Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale “The Princess and the Pea,” the musical is a humorous adaptation first performed on Broadway in 1959 with a young Carol Burnett in the lead role as Princess Winnifred. The show features music by Mary Rodgers, lyrics by Marshall Barer, and book by Jay Thompson, Dean Fuller, and Marshall Barer.

The PVHS performance is directed by Dan and Marcie Mulligan with production assistance by Donna Morris.

The play is set in 15th century Europe where Queen Aggravain and the mute King Sextimus are searching for a suitor for their son, Prince Dauntless. Princess Winnifred, a rather unusual and confident prospect, is brought back to the castle by the noble Sir Harry. He is in a bit of hurry to fill the role of princess before it is discovered that his own suitor, Lady Larken, is pregnant.

Disapproving of Princess Winnifred, the queen comes up with a plan to make the approval test almost impossible to pass. Remember the one tiny pea under 20 mattresses? This adaptation includes some plot twists that make it funnier than the original fairy tale.

Sophomore Sarah Larregui, who plays the part of Princess Winnifred, said her character is quirky.

“That’s why the queen doesn’t like her,” Larregui said. “I like how she doesn’t care what people think about her. She’s just herself.”

A veteran of the Pleasant Valley stage, James Mauro, a junior at the high school, has been involved with theater since eighth grade. This is his seventh production. When he was a new kid in the district in middle school, Mauro said theater helped him make friends and fit in.

“I just love doing PV theater. It’s one of the best decisions I ever made,” Mauro said.

As for the musical, Mauro said it’s a good show for all ages.

“It’s a really good story. Everybody can get into the story,” he said.

The meddling Queen Aggravain is played by Ashley Alexis, and her mute husband King Sextimus is played by Owen Gordon. Sir Harry is performed by Aidan Sawyer, and his love interest Lady Larken is Jillian Balbuena.

The royal court includes some unique characters including the Minstrel played by Madeline Zipp; the Jester, Dan O’Brien, and the Wizard, Tyler Jacquez, and is rounded out by several ladies and knights including Gretchen Finkbeiner, Khloe Gutai, Nathaniel Makowski, Jeneria Williams, Megan O’Brien, Olivia Joseph, Isaac Mitchell, Dylan Caroll, Lydia Peters, Elliot Ackerly, Arlo Calhoun, Autumn Cline, Rachel Costello and Max Sullivan.

Tickets can be purchased at the door. They are $8 for adults, and $5 for students. All seating is general admission and can be purchased in advance by emailing Donna Morris at morris.donna@pvbears.org.