Like a bowl full of warmed oats with brown sugar, Fordell School's Porridge is a delight

Most people have heard a version of the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears, but how about one that features Papa Bear as a gangster?

That is how the character appears in Fordell School's production Porridge, which is a mash up of multiple nursery rhymes and fairy tales.

The school bought the play, in which Happy Valley has been hit by a crime wave of theft and kidnapping, reliant on Detective Jack Spratt to solve the mysteries.

Students from the school on Budge St gathered in Fordell Hall on Friday for their first dress rehearsal, dressed in colourful costumes and wearing all sorts of hats.

The performance opens with a lively jingle, followed by some jokes and then a young man appears on stage waving around some newspapers for sale.

Fordell School teacher Rachel Morrison said every student who wanted a speaking role was given one.

Fordell School's Porridge features Papa Bear as a gangster and a host of other nursery rhyme and fairy tale characters in different roles. Photo / Stuart Munro

"It definitely builds their courage getting up and standing on stage and it builds their confidence too.

"It offers a rich curriculum as well. They get drama, we've got kids on sound effects, we're adding art into it by creating the scenery and there's dance."

The students act out a scene in which newscasters are interviewing girls with porridge bowls on their heads and all of them speak fluently - remembering their lines well.

Morrison is in her fourth year of teaching at Fordell, this is her first year with the seniors and being tasked with putting the production together.

They made some changes to the original play, Morrison said.

"We have altered it to add in a few of our traditional Māori legends too, we changed a few things just so all of our children at Fordell are involved.

"It's something different. I wasn't a person that was always in school productions, but seeing different kids shine and have success has been awesome."

The students rehearsed their lines over the last school holidays and have been practising since the start of the term.

Their opening performance is at the Fordell Hall on Wednesday, September 26 at 11am, then they perform again that night at 6pm.

The final performance is at 6pm on Thursday, September 27 and the entry cost is a gold coin.

Look out for Hamish Cranstone as Papa Bear, dressed in a grey suit and with a big and boisterous voice - he is like no Papa Bear you have seen before.