FARMINGTON – Songs and scenes in a new musical comedy, “Hurricane of Change,” will ask the audience to look at the world through the eyes of its wildlife – who see greedy, self-centered humans.

The show, involving 200 adult and teenage actors, musicians and puppeteers premieres at 7 p.m. Friday at Mt. Blue Middle School gym on Middle Street.

The serious message of the show is mixed with a lot of humor, said Anne Geller, director of Foothills Arts Center. But, it also is an activist piece that asks “what’s happening and what can we do?” she said.

“There was some interest in doing a new musical,” Geller said, “and at the time, there was a Time magazine cover story on global warming that depicted a polar bear sitting on a block of ice with no where to go. This became the inspiration for the show created and written, mostly, by the people performing,” she said.

“Hurricane of Change” includes nine scenes and seven songs created by more than 50 people, local adults and students among them. The show, she said, a collaboration of the Foothills Arts Center and Mt. Blue Middle School, is a celebration of the nature of western Maine and a call to action to save it from global warming and pollution.

The show opens with a processional of giant, colorful puppet creatures representing endangered and thriving species. Then, desperate creatures plead with the audience, using words from a poem by student Joan Kelly. One creature says: “We see your world is a mess, your streets unclean. And worst of all, most of the damage is unseen. Open your eyes, show us you care. Look around you if you dare.”

Students from the Middle School, Cascade Brook School and Mt. Blue High School along with community members perform in the show. The Middle School band, orchestra and chorus as well as a community chorus will perform with the actors, she said.

Besides giant creature puppets, the show will feature fabric art banners celebrating nature, two giant totem poles based on stories of respect for Mother Earth, huge shadow puppets, projected backdrops and projected watercolors by Temple artist Marni Lawson.

The two-hour show, a year-long venture, is under the direction of Foothills Arts Center artist-teachers: singer/songwriter Martin Swinger, theater artist Jeri Pitcher, artists Alan McGillivray, Danielle Guerrette, wood artisans Mark Prentiss and John Schoen and special assistants Kathy Kerr and Laura Grover.

Along with project directors, Geller and Debbi Hiltz, other key figures in the production are stage directors Kevin Miller and Deborah Muise, community chorus and orchestra director Steve Muise, band director Darryl Pike and chorus director Jim Perkins.

Tickets are available at Howard’s Rexall or at the door: $6 adults, $4 seniors and $2 for children under 18.

For more information, contact Geller at Foothills Arts Center, 778-0448.