You can be stuck at home and still experience local theater.

Children’s Theatre of Charlotte is hosting a watch party on April 18 of “The Invisible Boy” on Facebook and YouTube Live. The 60-minute, one-act musical made its world premiere in November at CTC as part of its Kindness Project and based on Trudy Ludwig’s award-winning children’s book. Ludwig and illustrator Patrice Barton will host a preshow to talk about their inspiration for the book at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday.

The musical begins at 4 p.m. and concludes with a Meet the Adaptors segment at 5:10 p.m., where playwright Chris Parks, composer Josh Totora, director Adam Burke and a few cast members will share the process of turning a book into a musical. “The Invisible Boy” will be available on demand April 20-24 for educators and patrons.

The story follows a boy named Brian. No one includes him at school, leaving him feeling invisible. He takes to drawing to express himself. Then a new kid, Justin, joins their class.

“He uplifts Justin, who is Korean, after the other kids made fun of his food,” explains Kayla Ferguson, who plays Carla. “Brian sends Justin a letter saying he thought Justin’s food looked cool, and that’s his way of reaching out and trying to be that person he wishes he had for himself. My character, Carla, is this little ballerina who fits in with the group but is on the outskirts of the popular kids. She’s trying to always make sure that people know she’s around.”

Ferguson’s character was created for the musical.

“We spent a lot of time trying to figure out Carla’s character, because in the book she didn’t exist,” Ferguson said. “It was actually a little boy named Emilio instead.”

The trio become friends over the course of the show with a resounding message: words matter.

“It’s a really beautiful story, and the show is done so well. I miss it,” Ferguson said.

CTC’s season, like arts organizations across the country, was cut short due to COVID-19. Ferguson, like other artists, is navigating life without live theater.

“The arts are what keep everything going,” she said. “You can even look at Netflix and Hulu, and how people are watching a lot more now that they’re stuck at home, or reading. Being able to see a show that you may or may not have gotten a chance to see, and being able to experience live theater [how CTC is presenting it], even though everyone is stuck at home, it’s really encouraging and inspirational because things are not normal right now, but we’ve got this thing that we can show people that they can still sit down and enjoy.”

Ferguson said she is encouraged seeing people participate in musical theater challenges on social media. She even started a YouTube channel called “Voraciously Kayla Simone” to keep her craft sharp until the opportunity to perform on stage returns.

“It gets hard when you’re stuck at home,” Ferguson said. “I know people in the theater community, and people everywhere, suffer from depression or anxiety. Being stuck and not being able to perform and have that outlet is hard, but being able to watch it and see performances fills me with joy, and it gives me hope that things will eventually get back to where I can perform again.

Ferguson, who lived in Charlotte for the last seven years, recently moved to Wilmington, where she’s an essential worker at Lowe’s. She wears a mask and gloves at work and makes sure to wash her hands every 20 minutes while maintaining her distance. Her family still lives here.

“A lot of people shop at Lowe’s right now,” Ferguson said. “During this time where people don’t have much to do, they’re working on their home improvement. They’re working on their gardens. They’re painting. I just go to work and come home, and make sure that I’m limiting my contact with people as much as I can.”

On the Net:

www.ctcharlotte.org