T-R PHOTO BY LANA BRADSTREAM Nathan Bloomquist as “Goliath” wrestles Stacy Heil, playing “Bo Blaster” during a scene rehearsal of Marshalltown Community Theater’s “Space Princess Wars” before Saturday’s debut. The play combines “Star Wars” with “The Princess Bride.”

What do you get when you combine the classic science fiction in “Star Wars” with the beloved fantasy of “The Princess Bride?” You get “Space Princess Wars.”

The Marshalltown Community Theater brought the play for the first time to the Miller Middle School stage. Even though the winter storm blew into town, the thought of canceling the debut was “inconceivable.” Rather, it was moved to Saturday with a crew and a cast of 21 actors covering a wide range of ages.

In her first directorial debut, Regina Gill discovered the play as she was searching for possible productions for the middle school in her role as the drama club sponsor.

“I wanted something fun and stumbled upon ‘Space Princess Wars’ which brought ‘Star Wars’ and ‘The Princess Wars’ together,” she said. “I decided it was an amazing play, which fulfills nostalgia for older generations and is also funny and hilarious.”

Even though Gill found the play for the middle schoolers, there are not enough students involved in the drama club. Thus, she took it to MCT. The board asked her if she would be willing to direct it, so Gill took on the challenge.

As the play combines some popular movies, a lot of people auditioned. So many that Gill said it was easy to fill all of the roles. With it being her first directing experience, she has learned the importance of listening to everybody working to bring it to life.

“There is a lot of wisdom in the older actors,” Gill said. “The younger are really enthusiastic. And through listening to them, we changed some things based off of what people were seeing. You got to listen to your actors.”

With 21 people at various ages, the biggest challenge “Space Princess Wars” has met has been scheduling. Gill could not think of one rehearsal in which everyone was able to attend.

“And with it also being cold and flu season, that played a part in people missing rehearsals,” she said.

“Space Princess Wars” begins with a father telling a tale to his sick daughter, a tale of a kidnapped princess and a couple heroes on the way to rescue her. However, the princess proves to be a hero in her own right as the characters encounter obstacles such as the fire swamp in the quest to rule the galaxy.

While the previously mentioned movies have elaborate sets and costumes, Gill said they are taking a minimalist approach. The look of the play is not “forced.”

“We want the audience to imagine the places,” she said.

The theater had some costumes available for the prince, princess and evil empress. The costume for the wizard looks like a combination of Gandolph from “The Lord of the Rings” and Dumbledore from “Harry Potter.” Gill added they have some actors playing “felines of unusual size.”

“I am hoping since this is fantasy meets science fiction that we get a lot of people who want to see this play,” she said. “I know a lot want to see how it turns out, and they will not be disappointed. There’s a lot of laughs, a lot of jokes, funny and quirky lines. This will make people laugh and just feel good.”

PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

What: Space Princess Wars

Date: Feb. 27 and Feb. 28

Time: 7 p.m.

Where: Miller Middle School

Address: 125 S. 11th St.

Tickets: $15

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Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or bradstream@timesrepublican.com.