WSU STAGE Student Theatre will present “The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon,” a two-and-a-half-hour play that features more than 200 original Brothers Grimm tales with a comedic, almost improv-like twist, this weekend.

Elias Nilsson, a senior computer engineering major, and Kamira Nicolino, a junior creative writing major, direct the Spectaculathon.

“This feels a lot like Nuthouse and improv comedy, even though it’s rehearsed and we do have the funnies put into it,” Nilsson said. “It’s a cleaner, more fun twist on the Brothers Grimm tales, but not quite Disney. There’s still death on stage and other almost gruesome aspects.”

A few of the acts performed throughout the production pay homage to games typically played during improv shows, specifically games the WSU Nuthouse cast members play.

“There’s one actor playing a bunch of characters all at the same time and other actors who take over each other’s characters,” Nilsson said. “There’s a lot of banter and mismatched fun going on all the time.”

Nicolino said when she discovered this play, she knew she wanted to direct it. She could see the huge cast having a great time together before they even started rehearsing, she said.

“Elias [Nilsson] and I wanted to make a production where people could just have fun and be themselves,” Nicolino said.

Nilsson said he has been drawn to the Brothers Grimm tales since he was young. After reading his mother’s book full of the stories, he said, he completely fell in love with the original, grittier versions of all the Disney movies.

“I love how even if there’s murder and people being ripped in half, there’s still a moral story there that I fell in love with,” he said.

In improv, audience participation is crucial to the success of the bit. In shows like the Spectaculathon that take inspiration from improv, this is also a huge factor.

“It’s so hard nowadays to get an audience to participate because we’re trained when we’re young to be silent once the lights go down. I hope this audience actually participates,” Nilsson said. “There’s a few parts where we need audience participation, like to make scary breathing or horror music. We need the audience to be involved and invested to make the scenes work.”

The audience will have a more interactive and entertaining time if they participate in the way the cast hopes, Nicolino said.

“I think the audience will enjoy the participation the most,” she said. “They’re pulled into the show and are a part of it, they’re not just watching.”

“The Brothers Grimm Spectaculathon” will show this weekend, opening at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday with additional shows on Friday and Saturday nights. There will also be a matinee at 2 p.m. on Saturday. All shows will be performed in Wadleigh Theatre in Daggy Hall. Tickets cost $5 with student ID and $10 without.

“I really hope that, if nothing else, the audience has a good time,” Nilsson said. “We’re telling over 200 stories in two-and-a-half hours, it’s not going to be some ‘Notebook-like’ story of love and romance. It’s just supposed to be a good time.”