DOWAGIAC — Secrets will be revealed, friendships will be tested and audiences will experience side-splitting laughs at a play opening at Dowagiac’s Beckwith Theatre this Friday.

The Beckwith Theatre, 100 New York Ave., will host the first show of its spring 2019 season beginning Friday. The play, “Rancho Mirage” written by Steven Dietz, will host showings at 7:30 p.m. April 26, April 27, May 3 and May 4. There will be showings at 2 p.m. April 28 and May 5. Tickets are $15 and can be bought at the box office at the time of performance. Seats can be reserved by calling (269) 782-7653.

“Rancho Mirage” is a dark comedy that follows three couples over the course of a single wine-fueled evening. Each pair is harboring secrets that are revealed throughout the play’s runtime.

“The comedy is really fast-paced, really hilarious,” said director Larry Nielsen. “The themes of it are friendship, marriage, love and how it all gets turned to chaos in this ‘wine not’ night with a case of wine and a few six-packs of beer when everyone decides to tell the truth and everyone’s secrets come out.”

“Rancho Mirage” will be the second play Nielsen, of Benton Harbor, has directed at the Beckwith, having directed last year’s “Dearly Departed.” He said he chose “Rancho Mirage” because he believed that the dark comedy aspect of the play would be a new challenge for him and that he believed audience members would be able to relate to the overall themes of the play.

“There will be times when audiences might shed a tear and others where they might want to give a character a hug,” he said. “I think audiences will enjoy the comedy and the chaos, but I think they will also enjoy looking at what it really means to be friends with someone. I think they may leave thinking, ‘how am I really with my friends? Have we shared that sort of stuff? What would they do and what would I do if we had those experiences?’”

For the actors featured in “Rancho Mirage,” several said they are most excited to see the reactions of the audience to the play’s comedy.

“It will be nice to get some laughter in here,” said Rebecca Maxey, who plays Diane. “Live theater is the most fun when you have an audience to play off of, and I think a lot of audiences will see themselves or their friends in the characters because even though some crazy stuff goes on, it’s still very relatable.”

Kelly Carlin, who plays Pam, agreed, saying that she hopes the play will be well attended because she believes that live community theater offers a unique experience for audiences.

“There is an energy and connection you get whenever you see something live,” she said. “There is a different connection that is just more alive. It’s an experience you can’t get anywhere else.”