A favorite for generations, “The Old Peabody Pew,” has a few new features when it is staged this weekend in a quaint, Buxton church.

Bonny Eagle students and some graduates will be in the spotlight as cast members outfitted in vintage costumes. The actors represent a mix of veterans and new players, while Jane McCarthy of Hollis, a medical scientist, returns for her second stint as the show’s director.

“It was challenging this year because it’s mostly a brand new cast,” McCarthy, who also plays a role, said before dress rehearsal Nov. 29.

Presented in a matinee this year, the curtain goes up for the “The Old Peabody Pew” at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 6, in the historic Tory Hill Meetinghouse, at the intersection of routes 202 and 112 in Buxton. Tickets are $5, and $2.50 for children under age 12.

“Peabody Pew” was once produced twice annually but has become a Christmas classic in recent years. McCarthy said Sunday’s show marks its 152nd production.

Children’s author Kate Douglas Wiggin adapted the play from her book by the same title. A two-act romantic comedy, the play is produced annually by the Hollis-Buxton Dorcas Society, the women’s charitable group Wiggin founded in 1897.

Wiggin, a Hollis figure who gained widespread fame as author of “Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm,” resided at Quillcote, a short distance from Buxton’s Tory Hill. Wiggin, who died in 1923, chose the church as the setting for her play.

In the show, Justin Peabody returns home seeking the hand of the unmarried Nancy Wentworth, the girl he left behind years earlier to seek his fortune. But Peabody comes back with nearly empty pockets.

Christopher Hascall of Steep Falls, a sophomore at Bonny Eagle High School, plays Peabody for the first time. Samantha Komulainen-York, a graduate of Bonny Eagle High School and University of Southern Maine, is Wentworth.

Hascall, 15, is the youngest to ever play Peabody.

“It’s a church play,” Hascall said, “It’s a nice, light play.”

Komulainen-York, now an assistant producer-reporter at WCSH TV, is returning to fill the Wentworth role in a second appearance. She said it’s the same show but is a little different this year with some new players.

She enjoys her role in the show, which usually packs the church pews.

“It’s great to be part of a welcoming community,” Komulainen-York said. “I love being on stage. It’s being someone else for a day.”

For Karla Fossett of Portland, a Bonny Eagle graduate who grew up in Hollis, the show marks a return to the stage. She plays Mrs. Burbank. Fossett previously has performed in Biddeford and at the Schoolhouse Arts Center in Standish.

Fossett describes Mrs. Burbank as being in charge, keeping everyone in line and also encouraging them. The play was first performed in 1907, and Fossett said it was written in a very specific way so it’s important to know the lines.

Returning as a cast member after a 10-year absence, Sharon House, 74, knows by heart the role of Mrs. Sargent. House has previously played Mrs. Miller, Mrs. Buzzell and Sargent.

“I’ve been associated with this play over 40 years,” House said. “I love the play.”

House said Wiggin actually began writing the play in the church while waiting for a “conveyance” home.

“It’s such a warm and welcoming play,” House said.

Linda Piper for the fifth year is cast as Lobelia Brewster.

“I get a kick out of it,” Piper said. “She’s a fun character to play.”

Piper described Lobelia as the “man-hater” and playing the role as a lot of fun.

“It’s my alter ego,” Piper said.

Samantha Dery, 14, a Bonny Eagle Middle School student, debuted last year as Sally Bixby. The role was not in the original script but one Wiggin wrote in later as a birthday gift for a neighbor and namesake.

“She steals the doughnuts,” Dery said about what she likes about the Bixby role.

The cast includes Ashleigh Higgins as Mrs. Miller; Carolyn Vail as Maria Sharp; Margaret Maxwell as Mrs. Baxter; McCarthy as Jane Buzzell; and Catherine Lamson, the Reader.

Carla Turner, who provides authentic costuming for the play, will be in the wings.

“I’m the perpetual prompter,” Turner said.

Just before dress rehearsal, McCarthy spoke briefly with the cast.

“Have fun,” McCarthy said. “Relax.”

Christopher Hascall, a Bonny Eagle High School sophomore, and Samantha Komulainen-York, a Bonny Eagle graduate in 2010, play the leading roles in “The Old Peabody Pew,” at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 6, at Tory Hill Meetinghouse in Buxton. Hascall plays Justin Peabody and Komulainen-York is Nancy Wentworth in the annual holiday play. Staff photo by Robert Lowell