The Musical Theatre Guild is working on staging the classic "Bye Bye Birdie" for the first time Oct. 21.

Though this musical with a 1950s setting is popular, the show hasn't graced the MTG stage until now.

The plot revolves around rock 'n' roll superstar Conrad Birdie and the complications that arise when his agent stages a publicity stunt on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in which he will kiss one lucky girl from Sweet Apple, Ohio, before being drafted into the Army.

"Bye Bye Birdie" opened on Broadway on April 14, 1960, and ran for 607 performances. It

originally stared Dick Van Dyke, Chita Rivera, Paul Lynde and Susan Watson.

The book, written by Michael Stewart, was put to music by Charles Strouse, with lyrics crafted by Lee Adams.

Donning leather and hair grease for the role of Conrad Birdie is Brad Griffiths of Chicora, last seen in the Butler Summer Dramatics Production of "Oliver!"

Audiences have heard Griffiths sing and they've seen some of his moves, but this is a different setting.

"Birdie is very flexible, his moves are much more fluid and getting that down is probably what I have to work most on," Griffiths said.

Of all the productions of "Bye Bye Birdie" that have hit stage and screen, the most recent made for TV production from 1995 is what Griffiths is using for inspiration.

"That version was truest to the original stage version, so I have been using that and they have me watching a lot of Elvis (Presley) in order to capture the essence of the character," he said.

Griffiths said "One Last Kiss" is his favorite song from the show. He is a sophomore at Butler County Community College, where he is pursing a communications degree.

Kim Macafee, the girl intended for the smooch, is played by MTG newcomer, Taylor Chalker, a senior at Pine-Richland High School."I knew of the show and was looking for some roles to audition for when I saw their ad in the paper. I am thrilled with the role of Kim," Chalker said."She is very much like a young teenage girl, wanting to be grown up but still being young and immature," she explained. "I guess playing that happy medium and maintaining and expressing her contradictory behavior is probably what challenges me the most."While Chalker loves all the music, she said she is partial to "Telephone Hour" and her solo, "How Lovely to Be a Woman."Chalker will be pursuing musical theater next fall at college.Another newcomer to the MTG stage is Kelly Winovich of Cranberry Township, who auditioned at the urging of her husband and mother."I played Rose Alvarez before and my family knew how much I enjoyed it so they encouraged me to audition," said Winovich who is a music teacher in the Northgate School District.Winovich has a master's degree in music education from Duquesne University and took 16 years of dance at Rosalene Kenneth Professional School of Dance, which comes in handy for this role.She said she is enjoying her time with the Musical Theatre Guild and plans to do more theater with them in the future."This has been a wonderful experience. Everyone is so friendly and nice to work with," she said.Her love interest in the play is Conrad Birdie's agent, Albert Peterson, being played by Brooks Decker."I love this role; he has great lines and the best songs," Decker said. "The role was one that made Dick Van Dyke famous. It is very comedic and fun," he added.His favorite song is "Put on a Happy Face" because he gets to dance. "I love working with new faces. It is fun to meet new people and welcome them to the MTG," he said.The show's director, Bill Lehnerd, is delighted to be doing the production."It has been done locally by high schools but our production will be a bit different due to our mature cast," he said."We are staying true to the script but did include one extra song for Mae Peterson that was not in the original production," he added. "We have a nice mix of new folks and veterans, which is always refreshing."Musical director for the production is Karen O'Donnell, who noted the copious amounts of music for the production."We will have 11 pieces in the pit for music and our guitar player, Mark Thompson, will be on stage for one number," O'Donnell said. "I am delighted to finally be doing this show. Bill and I have wanted the MTG to do it for a long time."Lehnerd said, "We like to do a show that allows us to use a lot of kids."Kids are the future of theater and it is in our best interest to get them on stage and experience."One young man benefiting from the experience is Daniel Terwilliger who plays Kim Macafee's younger brother, Randolph."This is my first theater experience and it has been really fun so far," said the third grader from Meridian Elementary School."Randolph is really quiet, which I am not, so I have to be careful to keep it toned down," he said. "The best thing about the experience is getting to meet new people and try new things. I have made new friends here," said Terwilliger, who was approached by the music director to audition for the role."I sing at my grandmother's church but I have never acted," Terwilliger explained. He said he is excited to soon rehearse on the big stage.The show opens at 8 p.m. Oct. 21 at the Succop Theater in the Cultural Center on the Butler County Community College campus.