Morgan Rusler, Tom Shelton and Gail Godown head the cast of Stephen Mallatratt's The Woman in Black, which just opened at the Laguna Playhouse for a run through March 21. The thriller holds the record as the second longest-running play in London's West End, surpassed only by The Mousetrap.

The play's protagonist is a grieving lawyer who believes a curse has been placed on his family by the spectre of a woman in black. In an attempt to exorcise her spirit, he hires a disbelieving young actor to help him test his story. The clash between reality and fantasy heats up over the course of the action.

The Woman in Black was adapted by Mallatratt from a novel by Susan Hill. Directing is Andrew Barnicle.

The Playhouse also announced that it has revised its 1998-99 season as follows: How to Eat Like a Child (and other lessons in not being a grown-up), a Youth Theatre production, will play Apr. 2-13. On the mainstage, Eugene O'Neill's A Moon for the Misbegotten will be performed Apr. 20-May 16, followed by the musical Gunmetal Blues, May 25-June 20.

For tickets and information call (949) 497-2787. -- By Willard Manus
Southern California Correspondent