Thornton Wilder's

"Our Town" chronicles life in a small town in America at the

dawn of the 20th century. What has made the show such an enduring success

is that the show illustrates the eternal truths of human existence. "Our

Town" enjoyed critical success, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and is

still popular with audiences today. Starr's Mill High School will present

"Our Town" on Thursday, Oct. 10 and Saturday, Oct. 12.

"Our Town"

is set in Grover's Corners, New Hampshire in 1901. The Gibbses are neighbors

to the Webbs and their children, George Gibbs, played by Matt Drake, and

Emily Webb, played by Jessica Merrick, are childhood sweethearts who marry.

Shortly after their union, Emily dies in childbirth and she is reunited

in the cemetery with those who have died before her.

"The lesson

of the play is to live life to the fullest," said Director David

Spearman, who considers 'Our Town' to be an American classic. "I

told the students that to build our reputation as a drama department we

would have to prove to the community that we could do the classics as

well as contemporary works."

Though the

majority of the cast is made up of drama students from Starr's Mill, Spearman

reunited with one of the stars from "The Sound of Music," which

he directed for Fayette Players and Community Theatre, Inc. over the summer.

Michael Houghtaling played Captain Von Trapp in "The Sound of Music"

and now gets to sink his teeth into the role of The Narrator.

"I have

always felt that the role of the Narrator has to be played by an adult,

someone with life experience." Spearman said. "When I mentioned

the show to Michael this summer, he volunteered for the role."

"Our Town"

has been performed thousands of times but each production will strike

new chords with audiences, whether they are familiar with the show or

not. The show stresses Wilder's belief that life is meaningful and that

the value is found in living for the moment.

"Our Town"

will be presented at 7 p.m. on Thursday and at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Saturday.

There will be two ten-minute intermissions. Admission is $5.

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