Phillips said there will also be an unveiling of a bronze statue of Fred Adams on the festival's official opening night, Monday, June 26. "One of our donor families in Florida made this possible because they believe in his legacy.

"I didn't want to wait five years until the festival's 50th anniversary. Fred is 75, but he has the energy of a much younger man, coming to work every day full of excitement and joy. His undying spirit has kept the festival going."

This year also marks the first time in several years that Adams is being featured in one of the productions. In 1995, he played Pseudolus in "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum," and in 2001 he was the Major-General in "The Pirates of Penzance."

Phillips said Fred is finding the "H.M.S. Pinafore" to be "both exhausting and exhilarating. Director Brad Carroll has him running up and down stairs, but he's enjoying it."

Among the many performers who gravitate to Cedar City on nearly an annual basis is longtime audience favorite Brian Vaughn, who studied at what was then Southern Utah State College, and who has become a busy Equity actor, now based in Cleveland. "Brian plays Gordon Miller in 'Room Service,' " Phillips said, "a very strong physical comedy. Then he turns around and plays the title role in 'Hamlet.' Talk about going from A to Z in your emotional range."

Last year, Vaughn delivered strong performances as King Arthur in "Camelot" and played multiple roles in "Stones in His Pockets." "We've been waiting for the right time for him to play Hamlet," said Phillips.

In the case of "On Golden Pond," "A lot of people think they've seen (it) because they've seen the movie 20 or so years ago, but there's an entire generation that has never seen the film or the play," said Phillips. "Also, memory is selective, so they think they know the play, but they don't remember."

Several familiar festival players who are back this year include Leslie Brott, Victoria Adams-Zischke, Bill Christ, A. Bryan Humphrey, Corliss Preston and Peter Sham plus two Utah actors with plenty of local credits — Charles Metten and Eric Van Tielen.

Brott will be seen as Gertrude in "Hamlet," Mistress Ford in "Merry Wives" and Charmian, an attendant, in "Antony and Cleopatra." Adams-Zischke is playing Mistress Page in "Merry Wives" and Little Buttercup in "Pinafore." Christ has major roles as Claudius in "Hamlet" and Antony.

Phillips said he's not particularly worried about the impact that current gasoline prices might have on those who travel to Cedar City for the festival. "We've had gas scares before — a couple of years ago and in the mid-1970s. But people still traveled to and through southern Utah."

If you go

What: Utah Shakespearean Festival

Where: Cedar City

When: Thursday through Sept. 2

How much: $22-$46

Phone: 800-752-9849

Web: www.bard.org

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E-mail: ivan@desnews.com