It's a wild, wild West in Texas for the mail order brides of Beth Henley's Abundance, opening June 10 at Austin, Texas' Zachary Scott Theatre. Robert Faires directs the comedy, running through July 2 on the Arena Stage.

Set in the Wyoming Territories in the 1860's, Abundance finds mail order brides Bess Johnson and Macon Hill awaiting their new husbands. Bess, expecting Mike Flynn, ends up, unhappily, with his brother Jack, while Macon finds her wealthy widower, William Curtis, less than perfect. Jack ends up burning down their cabin and taking Macon as his lover as Bess is abducted by Indians. Inspired by the Wild West shows that often theatricalized the life stories of Buffalo Bill and Chief Sitting Bull, Faires' concept with this show is to stage it as a turn-of-the century tent show, where a traveling troupe of actors would present stories for an audience with simple painted backdrops (designed for this production by Joe York).

Abundance author Henley is best known for her Pulitzer-winning Crimes of the Heart, as well as The Wake Of Jamey Foster (on Broadway in 1982), The Miss Firecracker Contest and her most recent Off-Broadway efforts, Impossible Marriage and Family Week.

The cast features Joe York, Barbara Chisholm, Scotty Roberts, Jannelle Buchanan and Jon Watson.

Tickets are $19-$16. The Zachary Scott Theatre is located at 1510 Toomey Road. For tickets, call (512) 476-0541 ext. 1. The Zachary Scott Theatre is on the web at http://www.zachscott.com. -- By Christine Ehren