It's love the second time around in "The Philadelphia Story," a comedy for which cast and crew are busily preparing for at the Butler Little Theatre.

The tale is that of a haughty Tracy Lord (Heidi Lazor) who is embarking on nuptials for a second time to a stuffy George Kittredge (Chuck Morris), but she is forced to reckon with a reporter, Macaulay Connor (Casey Bowser), and her free-drinking first husband, C.K. Dexter (Phil Ball).

The show will feature a cast of veterans and newcomers to the BLT stage. For director Robert Meals, the cast of 15 is a bit of a challenge to arrange on the theater's intimate stage.

"That is a lot of people on the stage at once and there are several scenes where they are all out there," said Meals. "We have had to make some staging changes but they won't detract from the show," he said.

The play was made into a movie staring Jimmy Stewart, Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn.

Connor, a reporter who's been sent to cover Lord's wedding in the country near Philadelphia, was played by Stewart in the movie. Bowser opted not to see the original before taking on the role.

"I want to try to make a connection with the audience in a different way than our friend from Indiana. I wanted to make my own choices on the character and not be persuaded by the things that Stewart did. I want to give people a new look at a character they have probably seen before," Bowser said.

Lord is forced into learning some painful lessons and taking an unaccustomed look into her own heart because of the presence of Connor and her ex-husband.

Two young newcomers to BLT are Mara Shingleton and Emma Neely. They play the young Dinah Lord and the housemaid.

Shingleton is in sixth grade at Center Elementary and was spotted by Meals during a play at her school.

"I knew we were doing this show and it called for a young girl, so we had auditions and I asked her to come," said Meals.

"I am surprisingly comfortable with this bunch of people," said Shingleton. "I didn't expect to have that kind of experience for my first production. I am learning a lot."

Neely who is in the ninth grade at Butler Intermediate High School, has participated in BLT workshops and is now putting that training to good use.

"I play the housemaid, and I also keep watching the veteran actors on stage as well. It is nice to be around people who are serious about acting and being around well-trained actors can help me learn how to be better at it," said Neely.

Both girls obviously have been bitten by the acting bug and hope to do more work on stage in the future."This far surpassed my expectations, and I look forward to doing this again soon," said Shingleton.Kathi Finch of Avalon will also make her BLT debut as Liz Imbrie, the photographer for the reporter who comes to cover the wedding."Liz is smart and has a sarcastic sense of humor she uses to protect herself from being hurt. She has a good heart and would do anything for her partner at Destiny, writer Mike Connor," said Finch, who is enjoying her first BLT experience."I really like the play. It's very witty and has a lot of snappy dialogue, which I always enjoy as both an actor and as an audience member," she said. "The group of people working on the production - the cast, the crew - are so much fun to work with, and they make coming to rehearsals a great experience."For several in the cast, this show is a family affair. Director Meals shares the stage with his daughter Sydney, who plays Sandy Lord. The pair has worked on productions in the area for years."This is our thing. It is what my family does, and I enjoy sharing that with my dad," said Sydney.Seth Lord, the suave, middle-aged father of Tracy, is played by Tim Perschke, who shares the stage with his daughter Gretchen, who plays the young May."It's hard to find something that a father could do with his teenage daughter and spend so much time together," Tim Perschke said. "This project enables us to be together a lot and its fun."Another pair is Kate Wallace and Ben Roth, who play Margaret Lord and Thomas.Playwright Phillip Barry's sparkling comedy of manners and well-developed characters takes a critical but affectionate jab at the lives and behaviors of the upper class.He combines wit, satire and romance with a heroine at the helm who both delights and exasperates, but also moves the audience. Will they marry?Find out for yourself when the play starts May 14.