A Walk In The Park

Neil Simon's effervescent, classic comedy "Barefoot in the Park" will begin its run at the Arts Center of the Ozarks tonight, and cast member Ty Volz -- last seen at ACO as Curly in "Oklahoma" -- expects it to be a hit with family audiences.

"People are like, 'Oh my gosh, I connect with this!'" says the actor who plays newlywed Paul Bratter. "The fights [Corie and Paul] have are absolutely ridiculous, but so many couples look at it, and they're like, 'I've been in that fight,' so it's just a chance for them to see it on stage. It's the connectivity, I think, that really draws people to this show, because you're almost able to laugh at yourself."

Director Jacob Christiansen agrees that the play, Simon's longest running hit on Broadway, is a real crowd pleaser.

"Even a cursory reading of a Neil Simon text is hilarious, and you understand 99 percent of the jokes and 99 percent of the character arcs," he says. "He's a very accessible artist.

"I think the audience will be rolling in the floor laughing, and I also think they're going to be very impressed with the quality of cast that they are going to see."

In addition to Volz, the cast includes Sidney Grutz as Paul's new bride Corie. Grutz was last seen in the ensemble of "Oklahoma" at ACO.

"All the way through high school until now, I've always been supporting cast," she says. "This is my first lead role. So this is ... scary."

Grutz echoes the sentiment that the play -- which follows the mismatched newlywed couple over their first four days in their new, big city apartment -- is relatable and says that she felt a kinship to Corie.

"I am her, she is me," she says, laughing. "I'm even finding myself saying some of her lines at work."

"Each of the characters really has an interesting arc," says Terry Vaughn, who plays the role of Corie's mother, Ethel Banks. "They start in one place and end in another. I love these characters."

Vaughn and her husband, Tim Gilster, who plays wacky upstairs neighbor Victor Velasco in the show, are newcomers to the ACO stage. They returned to Northwest Arkansas around five years ago from New York.

"My husband and I were in New York for 28 years," Vaughn says, "and our dream was always to relocate and have theater as our Act II -- so we're living the dream!"

The two were thrilled when they were both cast in the same show, especially because Gilster performed in a previous production of the show in the role of Paul.

"I'm just relishing being able to visit the material again," he says. "I'm not letting any time go by without relishing every minute."

Jim Olmstead, who plays the telephone man, and John Crochet, who plays the delivery man, are the veterans on the ACO stage and have both been working with the theater for around 10 years.

What keeps them coming back?

"Good quality work and lots of good folks to work with," says Olmstead.

"And huge dressing rooms!" adds Crochet to much laughter.

"Seriously, this is probably the nicest theater we've ever worked in," says Gilster after the laughter dies down.

Volz promises audiences will fall in love with Corie and Paul.

"You see that, just because they're opposites, and they have all of these fights, they're still the perfect couple," he says.

"There are always moments in a couple's relationship where -- you may not like the other person, but you always love them. That's how it is with Corie and Paul."

NAN What's Up on 11/11/2016