`ROYAL' FUN

Director Robert W. Dillon Jr. instructed cast members during a rehearsal of "The Royal Family." From left they are Amy Monfort, Rita Jana and Ellen Dillon.

Ethel Barrymore disliked "The Royal Family." In fact, "She hated the play so much she could quote from it for the rest of her life," says Robert W. Dillon Jr.

Director Dillon and the University Theatre will present the parody of the Barrymores, considered the first family of the American theater and ancestors of currently famous Drew Barrymore, beginning Friday at the Forrest H. Rose Theatre at Southeast. The comedy continues Saturday, Wednesday, Nov. 9, 10 and 11. All performances are at 8 p.m.

Ethel Barrymore's discomfiture resulted from a George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber collaboration that gently satirizes the Barrymores in a way that tries to address "how you and I and everybody has to balance personal life and professional life," Dillon says.

The Cavendishes of "The Royal Family" are caricatures of the Barrymores and their Drew forebears, who can trace their American theatrical history to a time when the colonies were ruled by England. The parallels are obvious: Aging leading lady and matriarch Fanny Cavendish with Georgia Drew Barrymore; her dignified daughter Julie with Ethel; and the brilliant and unpredictable Anthony Cavendish could only be John Barrymore.

The play is a combination farce and comedy of manners that offers romance, sword fighting, wackiness and the ready irony of people in exalted positions attempting to have a normal family life.

How difficult that can be for someone in the theater is revealed in a scene where they're having a rare meal together -- for some it's dinner and for others it's breakfast.

Dillon said 16 actors and actresses auditioned for the play, which has 16 roles. Among them was his wife, Ellen Dillon, who will appear as a guest artist in the role of the matriarch Fanny.

Amy Monfort, a senior who stood out in University Theatre productions of "Everyman" and "Three-Penny Opera," plays the pivotal role of Julie, an actress at the pinnacle of her career.

Other members of the cast are: Ryan Burkett, Amy Jo Diebold, Justin Heinrich, Rita Jana, Scott Mercer, Steven Ruppel, Shawn C. Seabaugh, Marty Strohmeyer, Troy Tirden, Terry Vallelunga, Jamess Vaughn, Kim Westrich and Jessica Wilson.

The technical director is Dennis Seyer, with Brooke Hildebrand serving as student assistant director.

Admission is $5 for the public, $3 for faculty and staff, and $2 for children under 12.