 Well, if you're a fan of The Simpsons, Brainerd Community Theater's latest production is right up your alley. Clayton Castle has the story. It's dark, weird, and not kid-friendly. Those are all phrases used to describe the upcoming Brainerd Community Theater production, Mr. Burns, opposed to electric play. It's set at a point in the near future when, for reasons unexplained, the electrical grid has failed. So there is no more electricity and no way to have any more electricity. The show starts around a campfire, and the characters begin telling stories, including recreating an episode of a famous animated television show. And of course, one of the stories they come up with is trying to recreate an episode from The Simpsons cartoon show. The show then involves the characters performing the episode as a sort of currency, receiving essential survival goods in exchange. Spradlin says he picked the show because it's a challenging show to produce. And the actors say that one of the most challenging things in Mr. Burns, opposed to electric play, is the quick gear shifting. We have to go from acts one and two where I'm the same character to act three where I'm a completely different character, and now having to portray him in a different manner in a different way of doing things and showing how, you know, what's happened, showing what's going on. Many of the cast were already huge fans of The Simpsons growing up, seen as an advantage in their performances. I've always really been, and my mom will confirm this, kind of a huge fan of Bart Simpson, so getting to kind of play like a post-apocalyptic Bart Simpson is definitely very fun. Then there are some actors who were not familiar with the show. Not necessarily, I was aware of it, like growing up, but my family never really watched it. I am now, I enjoy it. I haven't seen a ton of it, but from what I've seen, I really enjoy it. Mr. Burns, opposed to electric play, opens on Thursday night at the Schalberg Theater at Central Lakes College, reporting in Brainer Clayton Castle, Lakeland News. The show runs for the next two weekends at CLC. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.