LONG BEACH, CA. -- Tom Dudzick's metaphysical comedy Greetings opened the International City Theatre's 1998 season on Jan. 16.

caryn morse desai [sic] directs Carolyn Barnes, Channing Chase, Alfonso Paz, Quinn Redeker and Joshua Schulman in the play, which ends its scheduled run Feb. 22.

Greetings concerns a young man who brings his Jewish-turned -atheist fiancee home to meet his blue-collar Catholic family.

"The play challenges thought and belief systems in a charming, uplifting way," said desai. "It forces us to examine our definition of 'normalcy' and to then look beyond that. In this day and age of cynicism and violence, it dares us to think about the spiritual world."

Producer Arthur Cantor was walking in downtown New York in Dec. 1991 when, by chance, he passed the tiny One Dream Theatre where Greetings was playing. On impulse, he bought a ticket. The next morning he bought the rights to the play, Tom Dudzick's first, for an Off-Broadway production. The New York Times called Greetings "the kind of play that comes along too rarely;" the New York Post found it "a beguilingly old-fashioned, daringly corny play about love, family, religion, faith, miracles and, oh yes, love." International City Theatre is a nonprofit professional theatre located at Long Beach City College, Clark St. and Harvey Way in Long Beach, CA. Fri. & Sat. at 8 PM; Sun. at 2 PM. Call (562) 938-4128.

Next up at ICT will be Emma's Child. At ICT's downtown theatre space, Everything I Needed To Know I Learned In Kindergarten continues to run through March 8. -- By Willard Manus
Southern California Correspondent