Two Marietta natives, 2000 Academy Award winner Alan Ball ("American Beauty") and Robert Myers, will be on the bill for the Georgia town's Theatre in the Square in season 2000-2001. Ball's Five Women Wearing the Same Dress will be revived Jan. 17-Feb. 25, 2001 with Myers' The Lynching of Leo Frank opening the season Aug. 16-Sept. 24, 2000.

In the third slot of the season, Ball's Five Women takes place at a wealthy wedding on a Knoxville, Tennessee estate, where five bridesmaids find each other and themselves while on the lam from their friend's impending nuptials.

The Lynching of Leo Frank, treading the same historical ground as Jason Robert Brown's musical Parade, examines the case of Frank, a Jewish factory manager accused of murdering Mary Phagan, one of his young workers. While imprisoned, he was taken from jail and hanged in Marietta, less than two miles from the theatre.

Also planned for the season are Terrence McNally's Master Class (Oct. 4-Nov. 12), a revival of Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire (March 21-April 2001) with Jessica Phelps West as Blanche du Bois and the Peanuts musical You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (May 9-June 17, 2001), closing off the season with a dedication to recently deceased cartoonist Charles Schultz.

Christmastime will see the return of the annual holiday show, The 1940's Radio Hour. The tribute to old-time radio shows runs Nov. 21 Dec. 31. For more information, call (770) 422-8369. Theatre in the Square is located at 11 Whitlock Avenue. Theatre in the Square is on the web at http://www.theatreinthesquare.com.

-- By Christine Ehren