The Butler Little Theatre's “Italian American Reconciliation” stars two actors new to the BLT stage and represents another actor's directorial debut.

The show will open Jan. 18 as the third production of BLT's five-show season.

“Italian American Reconciliation” was written by John Patrick Shanley, who also penned “Moonstruck,” a movie about an Italian family that starred Cher.

“Italian American,” written in the '80s, is a slice of Americana — Italian Americana, that is.

The newcomers to BLT are Justin Anderson in the best friend role of Aldo Scalicki, and Shannon McCarren, whose role of Teresa is a love interest to the show's star.

Whitney Ann Jenkins, who has appeared in BLT shows before, is directing for the first time.

Jenkins, 28, of Winfield Township, works as a paid actor and is in the process of recording an album for release later this year.

“I am very grateful to BLT for having the confidence in me to take on this show as director,” she said.

“Over the years, as an actor, I've had the pleasure of working with some very fine directors, so I have been able to reference them for guidance, and they have been nothing but supportive,” she said.

“It is incredibly rewarding to watch my cast grow with confidence and come into their roles. I am lucky to have an incredibly talented cast, with some new faces that have yet to be seen on the BLT stage, and I am very excited about that.”

The play spins the tale of Huey, portrayed by Phillip Ball, who has something to prove, and in search of his manhood and moving on with his life, he feels compelled to woo his soon-to-be ex-wife one last time.

Ball, 38, of Butler, last appeared in “Fools” at the BLT, and he directed BLT's last show, “It's a Wonderful Life — A Live Radio Drama.”

“Huey is suffering from his divorce from Janice (Megan Flannery). Because of it, he has no confidence or belief he can get his life on track unless he can win her back,” Ball said.

The part that is a stretch for him is coming across as Italian.

“I'm from German-Irish-English heritage, which are vastly different temperaments and expressiveness. This is where I hope my strength of being an actor kicks in. That when the audience looks at me, they envision an Italian,” he said.

Anderson, 22, of Karns City is a newcomer to the BLT stage, but wanted to be a part of his friend's directorial debut. Most recently, Anderson appeared at the New Castle Playhouse in “The 5th of July.”

He plays Ball's best friend who is trying to keep him moving forward.

“Aldo Scalicki can be overbearing at times but he means well and is rather likeable,” Anderson said of his character.

Anderson's approach to all of his characters involves research.

“I just try to do some background searching and try to develop a strong character each and every time I work with the role, until it becomes something I'm proud of,” he said.

Like Ball, one of the challenges Anderson faces in this role has nothing to do with the acting.

“As a blonde haired guy with very pale skin, playing someone right out of Little Italy can a challenge physically,” he said.

McCarren, 20, of Butler Township is a sophomore musical theater major at Indiana (Pa.) University who is appearing in a BLT show for the first time. In the role of Teresa, she is the new love interest for Huey.

“Teresa is a waitress at her family's soup kitchen. Teresa lives a rather modest and average life. Her personality, however, is not so average. She's loud, melodramatic and has quite the Italian attitude,” McCarren said of the hopeless romantic character she portrays.

“She's attractive, and men adore her, but she can't seem to find a guy that truly makes her happy,” she said.

McCarren read the script several times and combined it with her life experiences to come up with the character traits for Teresa.

“I think there is more to Teresa than what meets the eye. I have identified qualities in Teresa that I can relate to, and I feel that will help me to embody my character,” said McCarren, who believes this is the perfect opportunity to display her Italian heritage.

The motherly role of Aunt May is being played by Jana Semler, 53, of Clearfield Township.

“Aunt May is as warm and satisfying as a bowl of the minestrone soup she loves so much — with a little kick,” Semler said.

Aunt May is the type of woman who can't help sharing her advice with the youngsters.

“I'm having to learn to 'sparkle' with wisdom,” said Semler.

She said she loves how the play is written and was delighted with the script.

“It's really poetic in a very quirky way. Sometimes what the characters say makes no sense and yet it makes perfect sense,” she said.

The cast and crew all seem to agree that the audience is in for some laughs.

“It is a comedy, with outrageous and fun characters, but at the same time, it is also thought-provoking, with subject matter that people can identify with,” said the director, Jenkins.

In the words of the actor Ball, “It's kind of like lasagna; there are more layers than the plot of the story suggests.”

Stefan Lingenfelter is producing.

Tickets for the production will be available to the public starting today.

<B>WHO: </B>Butler Little Theatre<B>WHAT: </B>“Italian American Reconciliation”<B>WHEN: </B>Jan. 18 to 26, with curtain at 8:15 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and 2:30 p.m. Sundays<B>WHERE:</B> One Howard St.<B>TICKETS: </B>$10, available by calling 724-287-6781 between 7 and 9 p.m. Mondays through Friday<B>INFO: </B>www.bltgroup.org.