Kennedy Theatre's first play of the season may sound like a stinker, but "When the Cassowary Pooped" is actually a sweet little play the whole family can enjoy.

Director Tamara Montgomery adapted her children's book of the same name for the stage, using a combination of human actors and puppets to show how the giant endangered cassowary helped to create the New Guinea rainforest.

The cassowary — a giant, flightless bird resembling an ostrich or emu — is a grand-scale puppet who plays a critical, but silent role: eating, pooping and creating homes for a host of characters that includes colorful birds, a coconut crab, tree frogs, a bat and even a hip-hop tree kangaroo. Tying it all together is the storyteller, who uses a copy of Montgomery's book to help the animals create a habitat, and helps introduce the audience to the various animals of New Guinea.

While the play is an environmental message aimed at children 4 to 8, the humor and interactivity that keeps the kids engaged is amusing enough to entertain the entire family.

Autographed copies of "When the Cassowary Pooped" by Tamara Montgomery and Jodi Parry Belknap and illustrated by Joseph D. Dodd will be available for purchase after the shows.

Visit Treena Shapiro’s Family Tree blog to see video on what kids ages 5 to 7 had to say after seeing “When the Cassowary Pooped” on a field trip earlier this week. http://familytree.honadvblogs.com. Read about the book that inspired the play “When the Cassowary Pooped” by Tamara Montgomery and Jodi Parry Belknap at www.HawaiiReaders.com at http://stage.hawaiireaders.com/blog/2009/09/21/when-the-cassowary-pooped-a-tale-of-new-guinea/