SOAP LAKE — A play within a play about a play that’s careening disastrously out of control opens this weekend at the Masquers Theater. The curtain goes up for “Noises Off” at 7:30 p.m. Friday; the theater is located at 322 East Main Ave., Soap Lake.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 24 and 25 and March 3 and 4. Matinées are scheduled for 2 p.m. this Sunday, Feb. 26 and March 5.

Tickets are $14 for adults, $10 for seniors and are available at the company’s website, www.masquers.com. Advance purchase is recommended.

“Noises Off” is a classic British farce about a British farce, full of slamming doors and double entendres and a fed-up actress named Belinda (Jamie Cordell in the Masquers production) wielding an ax. “Very, very, very, very high-energy farce,” said assistant director Joanne Bracht.

The play traces the fortunes of a troupe of actors stuck together working on a play – and liking the play and each other less and less. Lloyd the director (Justin Rowland) can’t keep anybody on task – plus he’s carrying on simultaneous affairs with Poppy (Penny Sanford), the stage manager, and actress Brooke (Emma Russell).

Freddy (Jesse Huntwork) can learn his lines but can’t keep anything else straight. Garry (Jeffrey Ames) can’t finish a sentence, and he’s hanging out with the (way older) Dotty (Cheri Barbre). As for Selsdon (Bevan Oldstad), the whole cast is just trying to keep him away from the hard stuff.

The first act follows the characters while they’re struggling to get the play to work, and the second act takes place while the actors are off-stage. That required building a two-story set that could be turned around.

First-time director Nick Mahaney said it’s a play he’s been wanting to do for at least a decade. He saw it as a teen, he said, and it helped trigger a lifelong interest in performing. “I fell in love with theater.”

Mahaney said he was a little nervous about directing. “A daunting thing to do.” And along with the challenges of first-time directing and a big unwieldy set, some rehearsals have been canceled due to the snow and cold.

He relied on the cast, which includes many Masquers veterans, for support. “I could not have pulled this off if it wasn’t for them,” he said. Ames and Rowland have directed plays for Masquers, and they shared what they learned.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at education@columbiabasinherald.com.