A Musical Tale of a Children’s Classic Comes to Trenton

The is bringing Honk! The Musical Tale of The Ugly Duckling to the Trenton Village Theatre stage this weekend.

Based on the 2000 Laurence Olivier Award-winning play of the same name, Honk! will be put on by a cast of 53 actors–age 5 to 16–who took part in open auditions for the show February 7 and 8.

Bringing the show to DYPAC is the brainchild of Mary Zaleski, who is directing. Zaleski did lighting for this same show at the River Raisin Playhouse and always wanted to bring it back.

“I’ve always loved this show and wanted to do it, so that’s how we decided to bring it here,” said Zaleski.

Honk! is the story of Ugly, a gawky and awkward duck who is teased by his siblings on the farm, so he runs away from home. On his journey Ugly encounters two cats, a domesticated hen and a bullfrog who teaches Ugly the underlying theme of the show: There will always be somebody out there who loves you.

Each actor plays the role of an animal, but no one dresses up like one.

“They’re not dressed in feathers and ears,” said Zaleski. “The costuming is just to give an idea. For instance, Ugly will be dressed in grays and browns. It’s just to give an idea of what the animal might be.”

A local dance studio, Dance Specialties, is helping with the choreography for the show.

The show dates are April 29 and 30 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, May 1 at 2:30 p.m. The following weekend shows run May 6 and 7 at 7:30 p.m.

Assigned seating tickets are $10 for seniors and students, and $12 for adults. Order online at dypac.com/tickets or call 734-362-8153.