‘Fantasticks’ is
the ultimate classic

What: "The Fantasticks" presented by Diamond Head Theatre Where: 520 Makapuu Ave. When: 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and 4 p.m. Sundays, through April 10 Tickets: $12 to $42 Call: 733-0274

After a song that trivialized rape was rewritten into something lighter by the show's creators, "The Fantasticks" was set for what turned out to be a 41-year, 8-month off-Broadway run that made it the longest-running musical -- and the longest-running stage show, period -- in the United States. Dwight Eisenhower was president when the show opened in 1960. It closed early in 2002 after 17,192 performances.

What is there about this fanciful and improbable tale of two feuding families that made "The Fantasticks" such a smash, and a staple of community theater and high school drama classes for 40 years? Is it the romance between The Boy and The Girl? El Gallo, the odd narrator? The enduring popularity of its wistful hit song "Try to Remember?"

Find out in Diamond Head Theatre's three-week run. Eden-Lee Murray directs, Roslyn Catracchia is musical director, and Po'okela Award-winning fight choreographer Tony Pisculli handles stage combat.