>La Grande Observer | Union and Wallowa Counties' News Leader

HARD TIMES: D.J. Lincoln as Jim Casey discusses his loss of faith with Jacob Lynn as Tom Joad in the Enterprise High School production of "The Grapes of Wrath." (Photo/JESSY OSTERLOH).

ENTERPRISE - "The Grapes of Wrath" will surface again in Wallowa County, not as the focus of the Big Read, but as a stage play by the Enterprise High School drama troupe under the direction of Teah Evans. The novel by John Steinbeck has been adapted for the stage by Frank Galati, who won 1990 Tony Awards for Best Play and Best Director for this dramatization.

Production dates are tonight at 7, Saturday at 6 p.m. and Monday at 3 p.m. in the Enterprise High School multi-purpose room. Admission is $3 for students and $5 for adults.

According to director Teah Evans, the play compares quite favorably with the novel.

"It's condensed, of course, but very accurate and quite different from the movie," she said.

The stage in the multi-purpose room has been extended to accommodate the cast of 21 characters. Steinbeck's story of the Joad fam-ily and their journey from the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma to California in search of work, a home and security comes alive in this adaptation of the novel.