The actors at Whidbey Children’s Theater are growing. Quite literally.

And the premier of WCT’s adult acting troupe is starting this Friday.

“Stories on Stage” is an added element in the theater’s already-rich list of performance activities. To kick it all off, full-grown men will act like amphibians in a playful rendition of the popular children’s book, “A Year With Frog and Toad.”

Whidbey Children’s Theater founder Martha

Murphy chose the “Frog and Toad” stories for the troupe’s first production because of its widespread appeal.

“Most of us parents have read them to our children,” she said. “They’re often stories that you start with young children, and adults often enjoy them for the humorous qualities you get to see in the two main characters.”

Murphy’s personal affection for the book sparked her interest for the play.

But she said when she heard the play’s musical accompaniment, it sold her.

“It’s really fast-paced,” she said. “It’s little individual stories throughout the year about the friendship between these two characters.”

All of the actors on stage in “A Year With Frog and Toad” are local adult actors who have previous stage experience.

“For this first production I tapped the shoulders of some of our tried-and-true WCT adult actors and supporters,” Murphy said.

All of the actors play animals. There are no humans in the story.

“But there is a human element to all the things they do, the relationships they have and the activities they do. So that makes it very fun,” Murphy said.

The story “A Year With Frog and Toad” has an education message for its audience, too, as will every play presented by “Stories on Stage.”

The troupe was created to entertain children, but to help them learn, as well. The goal for the troupe is to have an educational message or moral within each of the troupe’s productions.

Other plans for the troupe include travelling to communities beyond South Whidbey and creating a program that will provide a supplement to school lessons.

Not only will the plans for the adult-troupe push WCT’s mission further, the troupe will satisfy a longtime goal of the founder.

“That element — of adults performing for children — has not been present in the entire 25 years I’ve offered classes for youth,” Murphy said.

“I’ve always wanted to have an adult troupe that would do live theatre and have an educational element to it,” she added.

“Stories on Stage” productions will start locally and, in the future, will to travel other communities.

“We anticipate starting out with two productions next season, and then expanding that as we grow,” Murphy said.

“It takes a lot of advance planning to get into other communities,” she said. “But we are reaching out to other communities to get them to come see our production. And we will be contacting other school districts next year.”

Another opportunity “Stories on Stage” could present is getting children involved in the play-writing process.

Next year, a WCT board member will teach a playwriting class. And Murphy said there is a possibility that “Stories on Stage” could adapt one of the children’s stories into a future presentation.

“It gives the opportunity for our youth to submit their own individual work. We really want to encourage that element of the creative process,” she said.

“If you can spark the interest of children at a

young age to write, then it’s both empowering and

lays the groundwork for future opportunities,”

Murphy said.