The dramatic nature of the situation and characters in Little Footsteps has earned the play a humorous nickname shared by the cast and crew.

It’s been dubbed the Birth Control Show’ by students working on the set, director Lori Merrill-Fink said.

The play, which begins its first of four performances tonight at 8 p.m. in McLeod Theatre, is a light-hearted comedy about a 30-something professional couple living in Manhattan. The couple is standing frantically at the juncture of parenthood expecting the birth of their first child.

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Merrill-Fink said Little Footsteps is reminiscent of the show Mad About You and the book Men Are From Venus Women Are From Mars because of the relationship between the actors and the high level of comic energy on the stage.

Ben is the parent that has the biggest worries about their expecting child. Ben’s uncertainty and frantic actions cause his wife, who is at the time six months pregnant, to leave for her mother’s place. And Joney’s father Gil, played by Aaron Hanna, a senior in theater from Hurst, is not too happy with that idea.

Parenting never stops, Hanna said. Once you commit to parenthood, it’s for life. The scope may get smaller, but they never stop needing you.

Joney and Ben are played by SIUC theater students Melody Hesketh and Thom Miller respectively.

Neither Hesketh nor Miller have committed to parenthood but the knowledge and experience of director Merrill-Fink provides the two lead actors with first-hand experience.

Hesketh said the help she receives from the director makes her acting job easier and more fun.

Lori’s great. She’s a real mother. She knows what it’s like to be pregnant, deliver and parent a child, she said. I didn’t even have to do any research.

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Julinda Wilson, a senior in theater from Chicago and stage manager for Little Footsteps, said after viewing the play and listening to the director her parenting dreams are not going to be too pleasant anymore.

In the beginning, the wife has to deal with two babies, said Wilson. Listening to the director coach Melody [Joney], by relaying her parenting experiences, makes me not want to have kids anytime soon. That’s why we call the play The Birth Control Show.’ Merril-Fink’s decision to direct the play was based on her review of playwright Ted Tally’s work and the numerous monologues from various performers.

But in spite of the comedy in and surrounding the play Merrill-Fink thinks there is a notable lesson to be learned from the play.

Merril-Fink said parenting is no walk in the park, but it is still a life-changing experience as the play comically presents.

It’s in-your-face reality. There are a few things in the world that can change your life, she said. A child is one of those things that shapes one into a grown-up in the true sense of the word.

Factoid:Little Footsteps will run at McLeod Theatre Feb. 20, 21, 27 and 28 at 8 p.m. and March 1 at 2 p.m.

Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and $5 for children and SIUC students.

For information, call 453-3001.