COEUR d'ALENE — Students will share the fruits of their theatrical labors when Sorensen Magnet School of the Arts and Humanities and the Sorensen Theater Team present "James and the Giant Peach" at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday in the school's gym.

"James" tells the story of an orphan who escapes a cruel world by crawling inside a giant, magical peach filled with friendly creatures. Together, they go on adventures as the peach makes its way through the world.

"This show is so fun," Brooke Wood said Tuesday.

Wood is directing the show with Katie Palmer and Laura Foster, with support from Sorensen Art Director Anne Mitchell. It will be the final Sorensen play for Palmer and Wood, who have mentored students and contributed their talents to the Sorensen Theater Team since about 2006 and 2012, respectively.

"Every year gives me the opportunity to remember where acting starts, which is in the imagination of children," Wood said.

The cast consists of nearly 60 third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders who have practiced after school throughout the year. A student stage tech team under the direction of Tami Vandegrift is helping to bring the quirky story to life, Palmer said.

She said beyond the incredible talent and hard work of the team, what makes this production special is the team's spirit.

"This crew has demonstrated remarkable teamwork, kindness and leadership throughout the rehearsal process," Palmer said. 

These productions also provide opportunities for parents to help with tasks like photographing actors to create actor bios, creating costumes, props, and set pieces, including a giant wooden peach on wheels, Palmer said.

"'James and the Giant Peach Jr.' will be an entertaining musical production with lots of wackiness and outrageous characters," she said. "I mean, it's Roald Dahl, so we would expect nothing less."

The production is free and open to the public. Sorensen is especially inviting past students to attend the closing night for a special celebration.

Elisabeth Edmonds, 22, is a theater major in her senior year at Seattle Pacific University. She attended Sorensen third through sixth grade from 2012-2016. She was involved in theater, choir and juggling and spent a year on the fine arts team.

"That was really exciting and allowed me to try out different avenues of the arts," she said.

This experience helped her grow as a person and understand the value she brings to a room or group of people.

"I came to Sorensen a year after I’d had a big injury, so I got into theater right out of that," she said.

Participation in the theater program helped her process complex emotions and not feel so alone in her recovery.

"I had this experience of building something with a group of people and being trusted with a role and bringing it to life," Edmonds said. "Practical skills-wise, things like memorizing lines and projection and rehearsal etiquette, how you hold yourself as an actor in a rehearsal role is all stuff I use today."

She also loved working with Wood and Palmer.

"I'm so thankful for the legacy they’ve created and the impact they’ve had on so many people as well as myself," she said.

Emma Sharon, 19, went to Sorensen from 2012-2018 and played Glinda in the school production of "The Wizard of Oz." Now a resident of New York City, she has never forgotten the theater experiences of her youth.

"It’s been amazing living out here because I get to see all the big Broadway plays that I was obsessed with in elementary school," Sharon said. "When I get to see those big Broadway shows here, it’s very full circle every time."

Sorensen Principal Brett DePew praised Palmer and Wood for impacting hundreds of students through the years and encouraging many to participate in other local and school theater organizations.

"It's not just about acting or being in a play," DePew said. "They helped our kids to find integrity, take risks, learn the disappointment of failure, perseverance and the joy of success."

Sorensen Magnet School is at 310 N. Ninth St.

    Easton Jachetta as the eponymous James in "James and the Giant Peach," on stage Wednesday and Thursday at Sorensen Magnet School of the Arts and Humanities.
  

    Brooke Wood, a co-director of the Sorensen Theater Team, works on Elisabeth Edmonds' makeup for "A Christmas Carol" in 2015. Edmonds, now 22, is studying theater at Seattle Pacific University.
  

    Sorensen Theater Team co-Directors Katie Palmer, left, and Brooke Wood, right, snap a photo with student Elisabeth Edmonds in 2016. The final Sorensen show with Wood and Palmer at the helm is "James and the Giant Peach," on stage Wednesday and Thursday in the school's gym.