It'll be not one, but two Waterstons on offer at Syracuse Stage June 6, when the New York theatre begins performances of O'Neill's Long Day's Journey Into Night. Sam Waterston will play James Tyrone, while his blood son, James Waterston, is Edmund Tyrone.

John Slattery will take the role of Jamie Tyrone, and Elizabeth Franz plays Mary Tyrone. Kent Paul directs.

According to a statement, the elder Waterston saw James play the role of Edmund in a Pittsburgh production, and the performance inspired him to appear in the play with his son.

Waterston senior, a product of the New York theatre, is best known through his regular role on the long-running television series, "Law & Order," and by films such as "The Killing Fields" and "The Great Gatsby." He last appeared on the New York stage in a grand revival of Robert E. Sherwood's Abe Lincoln in Illinois at Lincoln Center Theater. He made his New York debut in 1962 in Arthur Kopit's Oh Dad, Poor Dad... He also appeared in Kopit's Indians. During the 70s, he played several major Shakespearean roles including Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, at the Delacorte Theatre and on Broadway; Prospero in The Tempest at the Vivian Beaumont; and Hamlet, again first the Delacorte and later on Broadway.

Franz won a Tony in 1999 for her performance as Linda Loman in Death of a Salesman. Journey will play June 6 to July 2, with an opening June 14.

Slattery, a stage veteran often seen on New York City's stages, boasts credits including Night and Her Stars, The Extra Man and Three Days of Rain, all by Richard Greenberg, all at Manhattan Theatre Club. On Broadway, he has starred in Neil Simon's Laughter on the 23rd Floor.

Tickets are $15-$40. Syracuse Stage is located at 820 Genesee Street in Syracuse, New York. For information, call Syracuse Stage at (315) 443 3275.

--By Robert Simonson