Catch the world premiere of a youth musical, "When We Climb Trees," at the Junction Center, 1875 Junction Road, Manheim. The show will be performed at 2 and 6 p.m. on Saturday, July 20, and at 2 p.m. on Sunday, July 21.

"When We Climb Trees" tells the story of a tight-knit group of friends who struggle with the conflict between sharing real-life adventures and succumbing to the draw of gaming devices and screentime.

"This show is really about finding balance between time to play, pretend, be a kid and be with friends with the ever-present allure of screentime and gaming," said Steven Courtney, who wrote the show. "I find it interesting to observe the youthful cast as they 'pretend' to bring this 'play' to life through their hard work yet willing spirits. Collectively, there are so many elements of teamwork, collaboration and planning to produce this playful, upbeat show with a rather serious undertone. More and more studies are showing the addictive power of devices."

Courtney, who is the producer, songwriter and playwright of the show through Sun Hill Productions, worked in partnership with Kami Deppen of Big Dream Players, who is directing the show and served as costumer and set designer. The pair held auditions earlier this year for local youths to record the musical's soundtrack.

"The recording of the soundtrack demo was super fun, and it went as good as we could have hoped," Courtney recalled. "We used the demo versions of the songs to share with the cast. After the cast selection process, we provided the soundtrack for actors to rehearse with prior to our official rehearsals. The instrumental parts of the soundtrack will be used in the live show, and the cast will sing live vocals for the performance."

The cast of "When We Climb Trees" is primarily youths ages 10 to 16 from Lancaster and York counties.

This is the first youth musical Courtney, a singer-songwriter, has written, but he knows it won't be his last.

"I am presently developing a new musical themed around my song 'Steven the Pirate,'" he shared. "I'm having a blast exploring the options for the storyline. There are a few other ideas in the vault as well. I do think I'll stay in the 'youth musical' lane for moving forward."

He hopes audiences will enjoy "When We Climb Trees," noting that it will be performed in Landis Hall, a state-of-the-art production theater at the Junction Center.

"This show is all-ages friendly and will run around 65 minutes," he said. "Bring the whole family."

Tickets will be available at the door or may be purchased in advance at http://www.thejunctioncenter.com/when-we-climb-trees.