Handling the

death of a loved one is never easy, but in Fayette Community Theatre's

production of "Dearly Departed," it sure is funny.

"The plot

of the play, which runs at Sams Auditorium March 30 - April 1 and April

5-8, deals with the Turpin family. The patriarch of the Turpin family

has passed on and his grown children must juggle their complicated lives

with the funeral. Ray-Bud, the eldest son, is drinking more and more as

the funeral bills mount, while his younger brother must deal with his

financial ruin, his monstrous children and a wife who suspects him of

infidelity.

Meanwhile,

Delightful, their spinster sister, deals with the loss by consuming mass

quantities of junk food. Their friends and neighbors also chip in their

two cents as they pull through their period of grief.

The play is

directed by Michael McClendon, a Fairburn resident who has worked with

Fayette Community Theatre and Southside Theatre Guild on numerous productions,

including "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest," "The Boys

Next Door," and most recently, "Twelve Angry Men."

McClendon studied

drama at the University of Tennessee and worked as an actor and director

after graduation. He returned to Atlanta in 1980 and appeared in the TBS

soap opera, "The Catlins." He has worked with many famous actors

and directors over the years, including Lily Tomlin, Patrick Swayze and

Tommy Lee Jones. He also appeared in "Blue Sky," the Oscar-winning

film by Tony Richardson.

"Dearly Departed"

played to sold out audiences when it was presented at Southside Theater

Guild and in Henry County by the Henry County players," said FCT

ticket Chairman Nancy De Lorenzo. "We expect the same sellout performances

here and are limiting seating in the auditorium because of the special

set design required for this show. We want to guarantee that every patron

will benefit from and enjoy the special staging by Grant Juneau and lighting

design by Vincent Anderson."

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