By JOHN EBY

Dowagiac Daily News

“Friday night when we had our first audience, we were reminded of how good” the poignant Beckwith Theatre comedy “Over the River and Through the Woods” is, lead actor Jeff Gunn told Dowagiac Rotary Club Thursday noon.

Three performances remain this weekend — tonight and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 7) and Sunday at 2 p.m. — to see the adult cast Rich Frantz directs after staging Joe DiPietro’s play with Union High School Nov. 17-18, 2006.

“I’ve been in more than 20 shows over 18 years,” Gunn said, “and I’ve had a lot of people come up and say, ‘That person is my grandmother.’ The characters are so true to life. You can tell that Joe DiPietro really lived this life and put a lot of his heart into it. We’ve put a lot of our hearts into it, too, because one way or another, it resonates with everyone in our cast, and I think it will with everyone who comes to see it.”

Gunn plays Nick, the Italian-American bachelor from New Jersey who sees both sets of grandparents every Sunday for dinner until he must inform them he’s been offered his dream job as a marketing executive.

Since it will take him to Seattle, his beloved, but annoying, grandparents scheme to get him to stay.

Also appearing are Max Sala, Mary Ann Bengtsson, Marilyn Haslett, Jack Gannon and Karen Dorman.

“There are some very funny scenes in it,” Gunn said. “There are a couple of times every night I have a real hard time not starting laughing. It goes the opposite direction, too. It’s also very heart-wrenching and I have a hard time not tearing up on stage.

“People come out every night saying, ‘You made me cry.’ That’s what we try to do unless you’re crying because you hated it. But that’s generally not been the case. It’s a really good show.

“I guess I’m the lead just because I have more lines than anyone else, but it’s really an ensemble cast,” Gunn said.

Tickets cost $10.