The dark comedy “Little Murders” will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 9 through 11 in the Bruce Owen Theater on campus. Thursday’s show will be free to those with a valid OCCC student ID.

General admission on Friday and Saturday will be $10 while the price for students will be $5.

Director and theater Professor Brent Noel said the play demonstrates a middle class family in 1967 handling the stress of an increasingly violent and disconnected culture.

He said he sees parallels in today’s events.

“We are inundated with seemingly random violence all over the place,” Noel said. “Cops shooting because of the color of one’s skin, terrorist beheadings for attention, increasingly fracturing the fabric of society.”

In its setting in the ’60s,“Little Murders” deals with government spying of mail and an increasingly atheist culture, among other conflicts. Noel said the characters question how they should respond.

He said the main character Alfred would rather withdraw from confrontation rather than engage, while his energetic fiancée tries to convince him that it’s better to face the issues rather than back away.

The play was written by Jules Feiffer.

The cast consists of Taylor Reich as Carol Newquist; Katheryn Lemons as Marjorie Newquist; Anthony Sanders as Kenny Newquist; Daraja Rae Stewart as Patsy Newquist; Colin Morrow as Alfred Chamberlain; Reese Baker as Henry Dupas; Derek Kenney as Miles Practice; and Tracy Lister as the judge. Roman Alcantara, Briana Nickell and Kelly Merlha will play the roles of wedding guests.

All the performers are current students or college employees, Noel said.Theater arts major Jarusha Brown will serve as assistant director and stage manager for the play.

For more information, contact bnoel@occc.edu.