Photo courtesy of Per Peterson Jay Fultz and Amelia Sahlstrom rehearse a scene from “State Fair.” The show opens today at Tracy Area High School.

TRACY — Amelia Sahlstrom hadn’t been in too many plays before auditioning for the Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical “State Fair.”

She got one of the main parts and shares the stage with a few of her siblings.

“(I’ve been in plays) only two other times and I didn’t have a big part either, so I thought it would be a good opportunity and a fun experience for me,” she said. “And so far I love getting to know the people who are in the play and I also love the singing and learning the new dances.”

The Fine Arts Council of Tracy, along with Tracy Community Education, is presenting “State Fair” at 7 p.m. today and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Tracy Area High School. The show is directed by Erin Dahmes.

Dahmes said there’s no big changes from the original show, but there are a lot of differences between the state musical and the movie.

Ryan Juutilainen of Marshall said he decided to try out for the show after seeing a Facebook post about it.

“I looked up some YouTube recordings to get a better idea for what the show was about,” he said. “I immediately liked the show and decided I wanted to try out for it. I liked this show because it has a nice blend of singing and dancing in it.”

Jay Fultz of Tracy has always enjoyed being a part of community theater. So when the show was announced, he jumped at the chance, he said.

“It’s fun to get on stage with other people and take on a different persona,” he said. “Being someone else for a couple of hours is quite refreshing.”

“State Fair” is a fun show about a family’s experience at the Iowa State Fair in 1946, Dahmes said.

Juutilainen portrays Abel Frake, the patriarch of the Frake family. Abel and his wife, Melissa, have two children, Wayne and Margy. Abel is also fixated in raising his Hampshire boar named Blue Boy, he said.

“It is his goal to enter and win the grand sweepstakes at the Iowa State Fair,” he said. In developing this character, I really tried to think about what Abel would be feeling at this point in his life. He has worked really hard to raise the finest swine in all of Iowa, and his wife spends most of her time attending to their two young adult children. It’s time for the kids to find a spouse and move out of the house.

“Then and only then, would he have his wife all to himself again.”

Melissa is trying to win the blue ribbon in the pickles and mincemeat judging, Dahmes added.

Sahlstrom portrays Margy and describes her character as outgoing but unsure of what she wants in life.

“She is confident but shy,” she said. “After I read through the script a few times I learned what my character was like. I sorta added my own twist to my character I would say.”

Fultz portrays Pat Gilbert, a newspaper reporter for the United Press.

“Pat is a ladies man, always knows exactly what to say,” Fultz said. “He is frustrated with his current employer but has given up on finding a better job until a different type of lady walks into his life that changes his point of view. I am definitely not a ladies man so I’m trying to emulate some college friends of mine who could always strike up a conversation with any woman and make them laugh.”

Dahmes said the actors have brought a lot of personality to their roles.

“They have really worked hard to add their own personal touch to the characters they play,” she said. “Plus I have a brother and a sister playing brother and sister, and it is fun to see them interact with each other onstage.”

“State Fair” is entertaining from beginning to end, Juutilainen said.

“It has a lot of catchy showstoppers that will keep your feet tapping long after the show is done,” he said. “I really appreciate the amount of dance that is involved, and the quality of singing from everyone in the musical.”

The big thing with community musicals is not everyone has to be able to sing and dance to participate, Fultz said.

“We have numerous cast members who are not comfortable singing or dancing but they like being a part of something bigger and putting themselves out there,” he said. “And I love the fact we are pulling actors from all over besides Tracy. There is a lot of talent in our area, and I am appreciative that these brilliant actors are sharing their talents with everyone else.”

Directing the show has been a lot of fun and a lot of work, Dahmes said.

“It takes a village to put on a musical, and I luckily have a wonderful community that has come together to make this play a success.”