Courting has mixed results for would-be young couples in the play. At left, Aric Weston as John Brooke and Aria Larsen as Meg seem smitten, but Molly Oien, as Jo, right, doesn’t seem as interested in Laurie, played by Brayden Cafazzo.

Looking to direct her first musical, Carly Keone knew she had a corps of young women eager to perform.

So it was natural when the Peninsula Association of Performing Artists chose “Little Women” for its summer 2024 production, which opens on Friday and runs for five weekends through Aug. 4.

Its four main characters are the March sisters from Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 semi-autobiographical classic.

Keone said before diving into the coming-of-age novel she enjoyed the 2019 movie by Greta Gerwig (who later created “Barbie”), which featured Meryl Streep and “Harry Potter” actress Emma Watson.

“I had not read the book, but fell in love with the movie and then the play version,” Keone said. “I fell in love with the characters.”

The wholesome story dovetails with the Long Beach Peninsula troupe’s family-friendly mission. “There is something about the sisters’ dynamics and the theme of family unity,” she said. “It’s perfect for PAPA. And we have so many talented teenage girls, and I wanted to have a way to use them.”

Teens

Five teens have been cast as the March sisters.

Aria Larsen plays the eldest, Meg, a level-headed genteel peacekeeper. Larsen, who just graduated from Astoria High School, has acted in productions since fifth grade.

“The community here has been great,” she said. “It is fun to have this opportunity.”

Molly Oien, last year’s Astoria Scandinavian Midsummer Festival queen, is also a 2024 Astoria High School graduate. She plays Jo, the free-spirited writer who forges a nontraditional path for women of the era.

Agatha Davidson plays the shy but kindly Beth — Keone calls the character “a complete angel” — whose illness adds tension to family life; Davidson is an incoming freshman at Ilwaco High School.

Anjolena Wakefield, who just graduated from Warrenton, and Isabel O’Connor, an incoming sophomore at Astoria, are double cast as Amy, the spoiled youngest.

Katheryn Hagen plays Marmee, their mother, and Robert Scherrer plays their father, who serves as a Union chaplain during the Civil War. Jane Schussman portrays Aunt March, an irritable neighbor, and Genice Normand and Sydney Weston are double cast as Hannah, the housekeeper who has helped raise the girls.

Brayden Cafazzo appears as Laurie and Aric Weston is John Brooke, the sisters’ love interests. Others in the cast are Dave LaPere, Kurt Owens and Paul Kuhn, with an ensemble that includes Ophelia Frazer Wise, Jessica Garcia, Kyleigh Koehler, Josephine Giles, Bruce Mihalek and Jered Hagen.

‘Cry’

The “Little Women” script chosen by the troupe was created by longtime Utah-based theater writer Jay Richards in 2008. (It is not the 2005 Tony-nominated play.)

“It is not the Broadway version, but audiences are going to be delightfully surprised,” Keone said. “Jay Richards wrote a great adaptation and when I heard the first couple of songs, well … they will make you cry!”

Keone directed the Peninsula Association of Performing Artists’ 2022 back-from-COVID show “Letters to Anne of Green Gables” and appeared last year in “Steel Magnolias” and as Maria in “The Sound of Music.”

Angela Grote, the troupe’s president, has created the costumes. The musical director is Pamela Klifar, who directed the Peninsula Players’ March production of “Nunsense” in Ilwaco.

‘Laugh’

Keone invites audiences to embrace the show, which has a historical setting but ever-present themes.

“Obviously the show takes place during the Civil War, but it is still relatable, a family going through hard times, with joy and grief and loss. They will, as a family, connect with the audience in different ways, and we see them becoming stronger as a family. People are going to cry and laugh … it is a cathartic experience.”

Especially poignant is Jo’s song, “I Will Fly,” the director said. “She is on a par with any Disney princess. I am very excited about it.”

‘Little Women: A Little Musical’

‘Little Women: A Little Musical’

By Jay Richards, directed by Carly Keone

Staged by the Peninsula Association of Performing Artists at Fort Columbia Theater, 475 U.S. Highway 101, Chinook

Opens Friday, shows continue at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Aug. 3, with 2 p.m. matinees on Sundays through Aug. 4

Tickets are $16 to 23 online, at Okie’s Thriftway Market in Ocean Park or by phone at 360-436-4448

A Washington State Parks Discover Pass is not required to enter the park to attend the theater

www.papatheater.com