MIDLAND — The Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center is excitedly looking forward to kicking off its 2024-2025 Clearview Federal Credit Union Subscription Series Raise your Voice on Oct. 4 with the opening of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Musical.”

“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” is the first of eight shows in the season and will be followed by Lionel Bart’s “Oliver Jr,” an adaptation of O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi,” Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker,” a long-running tradition for Lincoln Park; an adaption of Mark Twain’s “Tom Sawyer: A Ballet,” an adaptation of C.S. Lewis’s “The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe,” “Anastasia” and “Sister Act.”

“Charlie and The Chocolate Factory” is the most technically advanced performance the center has done during the nine years Producing Artistic Director Justin Fortunato has been at Lincoln Park.

“To create the world of Willie Wonka takes all the stage magic in the world; so, trap doors, the glass elevators that lift to the heavens, all of your senses will tingle,” Fortunato said. “Not to give too much away, but with sights, sound, smell, you are really going to be transported into this world made of candy.”

Fortunato enjoys that the cast of the show is intergenerational with students from the charter school at Lincoln Park who auditioned working side by side with professional of-age actors.

For Fortunato, to see a young boy who is a student at the charter school at Lincoln Park play Charlie alongside a 75-year-old professional actor as Grandpa Joe are the dynamics that makes the heart of the show palpable.

The musical “Charlie and The Charlie Factory” made its premiere on Broadway in 2017 and was based off the book authored by Roald Dahl, which came out in the United States and the United Kingdom in 1964 and has since then been adapted multiple times for TV, film and radio, Fortunato said. He also noted that when the musical rights became available for the show, Lincoln Park was excited. He believes the show is timeless for a very good reason.

“It’s a story that has persisted for more than 80 years and it continues to be ranked as one of the top children’s stories in the world,” Fortunato said. “There’s the actual story of the show and all the magical elements, but at its heart, it’s about a family who doesn’t have much and a young man and his dream to become a chocolatier. Through this crazy zany wonkafied world, there’s the part of the show that deals with the familial unit: four grandparents, a mother, a son and a father who is lost. That is the heartbeat of the show and what drew us to this show at this time.”

What has Fortunato most excited about the show is that in addition to the show, two hours before curtain call every evening, Lincoln Park is holding The Imagining Room in their Blackbox Theater. In the Imagining Room, guests can enjoy a pop-up candy store compliments of Grandpa Joe’s Candy Shop, a pop-up book fair courtesy of Paperpie Learning, a fizzy lifting drink stand, a photo wall, cotton candy, arts and crafts, games and more.

Fortunato notes the Imaging Room, which is included in the cost of the show’s ticket, is an opportunity for families and friends to come in and immerse themselves in the world they are about to witness on the stage. Additionally, there will be food trucks available two hours before the show starts, which all together creates an ideal night out for families or friends.

“I think the world right now can be pretty loud and what I’m excited about for kids and adults alike is for them to be able to come to the theater for two and a half hours, channel out the noise of the world and really get lost in this fantastical story that for both young kids and adults really makes your imagination fire on all cylinders,” Fortunato said. “That is a gift that Roald Dahl’s talents as an author really shine through this story.

“It’s a lovely mixing of what’s real and not real and blends those lines. ‘Charlie and The Chocolate Factory’ is your golden ticket to an outrageous and thoroughly entertaining musical experience,” Fortunato said.”

Performances of “Charlie and The Chocolate Factory will be on the main stage at Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center, 1 Lincoln Center, Midland, Pennsylvania for two weekends on Oct. 4-6 and Oct. 11-13. Tickets start at $18 and are available for purchase by visiting www.lincolnparkarts.org or calling the JR Advertising Specialties Box Office at 724-576-4644.

About Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center

Located in Midland, Pennsylvania, Lincoln Park Performing Arts Center has been enriching the region with exceptional, affordable, and accessible arts programming since 2006. It is home to Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School, Midland Innovation and Technology Charter School, The Henry Mancini Awards, and high-quality productions of all genres for all ages. For more information visit www.LincolnParkArts.org.

kgarabrandt@mojonews.com