It would be hard for any professional actor to learn an entire play in just five days, much less a group of local kids. Yet that's exactly what the actors and actresses in Missoula Children's Theatre's upcoming production of "The Princess and the Pea" are doing.

After auditioning for the roles on Monday, the group of kids has rehearsed from 4 to 8:30 p.m. every evening at Missouri Western's Potter Hall.

"And then we still have homework and school and basketball practice and things like that. We're cramming a lot in to one week," says Jordan Alford, a 13-year-old Bode Middle School student who plays the Princess.

With all of the hard work the cast is putting in, one thing's for sure: This won't be your typical kids' play. Missoula Children's Theater productions always offer a few unique perspectives, and this one will venture far from Hans Christian Andersen's 19th-century story.

"The neat thing about Missoula is that they take on the classic fairy tales and they give them a modern twist," says Christina Lund, executive director of the Performing Arts Association of St. Joseph.

Look no further than 12-year-old Mark Twain Elementary student Molly Davies, who will play the Pea. Yep, the Pea is an actual living, walking and talking being with a short fuse.

"I'm like a REALLY BIG pea. I grew next to a nuclear power plant. That's what I'm guessing," Davies laughs.

In this production, the Princess and the Pea are best friends. The Princess took in the Pea after the vegetable lost its little green family. Together they have fun and look out for each other.

"She always calms me down because I have a very short temper," Davies explains. "I get mad at the littlest things, like when everyone calls me a peanut or doesn't recognize me."

If not for the hard work or hysterical plot, audiences will appreciate the dedication and excitement these kids bring to the theater. This is the seventh play Davies has been a part of. This is Alford's second since her debut in Robidoux Resident Theatre's "High School Musical" in October. They both say they'll act in many more to come.

"I'm just addicted to it, and I'm always looking for the next big thing," Alford says.

"The Princess and the Pea" will be presented at 3 and 7 p.m. Nov. 14 at Potter Theater on the Missouri Western campus. For more information, call Beth Sharp at the Performing Arts Association at 279-1225.