The Voysey Inheritance, Harley Granville Baker's 1905 family play which still rings true today, gets several readings and a recording with L.A. Theatre Works Jan. 31-Feb. 4 at the Skirball Cultural Center. Broadway veteran Paxton Whitehead (My Fair Lady, Lettice and Lovage, Camelot) stars.

The Voysey Inheritance explores the moral dilemma facing young Edward Voysey - his family's money has been stolen from his father's rich clients. He must decide to either reject that wealth and face paying back what his family owes or to accept the fortune gained through deceit. The Voysey Inheritance is British actor-producer-author Granville Baker's best known play - his other works are Prunella (1906), Waste (1907), and The Madras House (1910).

Whitehead's Broadway credits include both plays and musicals, also encompassing farce (Run For Your Wife, Noises Off, Habeas Corpus), Stoppard (Artist Descending a Staircase) and Sherlock Holmes (The Crucifer of Blood). He also served as the artistic director of Canada's Shaw Festival for ten years.

Joining him are Royal Shakespeare Company veteran Simon Templeman, Douglas Weston (Blood Brothers, "Six Day, Seven Nights"), Serena Scott Thomas (Kelly Ward on "Nash Bridges") and Judith Owen.

Tickets are $36-$32. The Skirball Cultural Center is located at 2701 N. Sepulveda Boulevard. For tickets, call (310) 827-0889. L.A. TheatreWorks is on the web at http://www.latw.org. All "The Play's the Thing" theatre productions are recorded for future broadcast on Santa Monica College's KCRW 89.9 FM. Productions have won several awards including the Corporation for Public Broadcasting's Gold and Silver Awards, three Sony Awards, the Writer's Guild of America's Best Comedy Award and the 1999 Audie Award for Best Dramatic Production from the Audio Publishers Association. The company's recording of The Prisoner of Second Avenue, starring Richard Dreyfuss and Marsha Mason, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Comedy Album.

— By Christine Ehren