A lovable green ogre will take the stage this weekend in a community musical at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts.

The “Shrek” stories most people are familiar with through film will find new life on the stage this weekend and next weekend.

Renee Perry Mitchell’s studio RPM Dance is partnering with the center on the production.

The show has a cast of 33 ranging in age from 7 to more than 50, Mitchell said.

She likes that the show will be more accessible, because many people are already familiar with the Shrek movies.

“We want people to discover theater,” she said during a rehearsal in February. “We wanted to choose a show that was more accessible to more people.”

The story follows Shrek, an ogre, who befriends the slightly annoying Donkey. The two fight a dragon and rescue Princess Fiona, who is cursed with turning into an ogre at sunset.

Three local young people will play the three lead roles.

Suffolk resident Timothy Wright, a student at Tidewater Community College, will play Shrek. Nansemond-Suffolk Academy sophomore Ryan Horton will play Fiona, and Old Dominion University junior Justin Jones will play Donkey.

The show will take place on April 1-2 and 8-9 at 8 p.m. on Saturdays and 3 p.m. on Sundays. Visit www.suffolkcenter.org for tickets or more information.