A wide variety of Island talent will be on display next week at the Grange Hall in West Tisbury, where Circuit Arts will be presenting Locals, a two-night performing arts festival on April 27 and 28.

Inspired by a Boston University class taken by Brooke Hardman Ditchfield, the festival is meant to encourage performers to take creative risks and step outside of their comfort zones.

“My theatre professor and fellow Islander, Jon Lipsky, created a safe, celebratory, no-pressure atmosphere,” Ms. Ditchfield said in a press release. “It is in that spirit, and with gratitude to his family for giving us their blessing, that we offer up the same opportunity to our community.”

The event will feature nine acts ranging from improv scenes to dance to music to storytelling.

With such a diversity of performances, the rehearsal process was vastly different for everyone, said Circuit Arts executive director Brian Ditchfield. Some performers needed only time and space to practice and others sought mentoring from Ms. Ditchfield, who is the theatre and live events programmer for Circuit Arts.

The line-up includes dancer and choreographer Jesse Jason, the students from the Martha’s Vineyard Public Charter School performing scenes from their version of Peter Pan before heading to Scotland to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, a new play by Jonah Lipsky, an excerpt from a new theatre piece by Nicole Galland and Scott Barrow, the NAACP of Martha’s Vineyard and more.

Tickets are available at circuitarts.org/events and are donation-based.