Fans of four-legged funnies, rejoice: Dog Man: The Musical is coming to the Massey Theatre for one weekend only. 

The musical is based on a kids’ graphic novel by Dav Pilkey—who, as the creator of Captain Underpants, the Dragon series, and Ricky Ricotta’s Mighty Robot, has sold so many millions of books that he’s probably single-handedly responsible for a significant portion of children’s literacy rates. 

The story follows two fifth-grade best friends, George and Harold, who are trying to bring their Dog Man comic to life as a musical. Drawing inspiration from the third Dog Man book A Tale of Two Kitties, the musical follows the story of the eponymous canine-headed cop as he fights crime, tries to save the city from Flippy the cyborg fish, and fights the world’s most evil cat (with the incredibly evil name of Petey).

Pilkey himself is a fan of the production. “Dog Man: The Musical surpasses my highest expectations,” he says in a statement, calling it “the perfect mash-up of memorable music, humor, and love.”

Dog Man: The Musical is on as part of the Children’s Graphic Novel Writing and Illustration Festival. The festival runs on October 28 and 29 and also includes a book fair and market, a themed cafe, a dance party, and kids’ workshops run by author and illustrator Jeff Chiba.

The musical was originally written by Kevin Del Aguila and Brad Alexander, who collaborated on kids’ TV series Peg + Cat and Clifford the Big Red Dog. It’s being performed by TheatreWorksUSA, with director Jen Wineman, as part of a North American theatrical tour.

While the musical only runs for two days, there are a total of four performances. Give it up for the hardworking actors—it can’t be easy to do two all-singing, all-dancing shows a day, dressed as a giant dog, for that most discerning of audiences: children. 

Dog Man: The Musical 

When: October 28 and 29, 1pm and 4pm

Where: Massey Theatre, 735 8th Avenue, New Westminster

Admission: From $28, available here