A Grimm fairy tale

When audiences young and old come to see the Kirk Players next children's show, they will be enchanted by the beauty and innocence of Snow White.

They will see seven dwarfs, although they will not be called by familiar names.

And there will be evil in the forms of the menacing queen and Witch Hex.

"Anyone who comes here will get a real good idea of the evil being right in front of them," said director Jon Matousek.

The Kirk Players' version of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" will be presented Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Mundelein High School.

Matousek said most people think about the 1937 Walt Disney film when referring to Snow White.

And yet, it is a Brothers Grimm story, embedded among 290 other stories they collected in their travels in the early 1880s.

"Each one has terrific deep, rich cultural legacy and presents how good deals with evil and overcomes it," he said.

The script was written by Winthrop Ames in 1912 and rewritten and revised in 1925 by Jessie Braham White. In the script, there are dwarfs but there are none named "Happy" or "Bashful." Instead, names include "Flick," "Snick" and "Wick." But the dwarfs will have familiar characteristics such as one will be grumpy because they were written that way.

Matousek said he was tempted to rename characters to make them recognizable. But he wanted to respect the author and script.

"We do not want to put the Disney film on stage. We want to put on the story of 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs' on stage," he said.

The evil Queen Brangomar, played by Amy Heinzinger, still wants to be the fairest in the land and tries to be with the help of Kat Basso's Witch Hex and her spells, magic and three cats, played by Max Basso, Carrie Pepping and Natalie Santoro.

However, once Prince Florimond and Snow White, played by Alex Fenton and Megan Henricks, meet, the princess' beauty can no longer be hidden.

Henricks said Snow White is sweet and loving to anything, whether it was a dwarf or a woodland creature.

"That is what I'm really looking to bring to the character, that innocence, that sweetness," she said.

Fueled by a jealous rage, the queen sends her huntsman Berthold, played by Dave Kennebeck, to kill her. When Berthold doesn't have the heart to hurt her, Snow White runs away and finds herself at the house of the dwarfs played by Aspen Griffin, Julia Koukol, Olivia Koukol, Natalie Lawrence, Liam Mellon, Zoey Rosuck and Matthew Turner.

"You bring them all together, and it is just hilarious," Henricks said.

When the queen finds out where Snow White is hiding, she transforms into the peddler woman, played by Jenny Tomlin, and seeks to take care of Snow White herself.

"They are not truly evil," Tomlin said speaking of the queen and the witch. "They are just a little misguided."

In the end, the prince and Snow White come together after the dwarfs save her. And Witch Hex, who wanted to leave life as a witch behind, returns to the bright side.

Fenton hopes the audience leaves feeling fear of Snow White being killed and happiness when Snow White comes alive. Henricks added it also will be a treat to enjoy a happy ending.

"You don't always get your happily ever after every day. It is nice to see something that ends well," she said.

If you go

What: Kirk Players present "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"

Where: Mundelein High School auditorium, 1350 Hawley St.

When: 7 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday

Tickets: $12 for adults, $10 for students and seniors age 65 and older, and $5 for children