The play is a classic and the cast is experienced. It’s just the director that’s new.

Joyce Merriam has years of experience in various aspects of community theater, but directing the Neil Simon comedy “I Ought To Be In Pictures” at the Jewel Box Theatre marks her first time in the director’s chair.

“It’s been an interesting experience,” she said. “There’s a lot more to it than I thought. The actual directing is only a small part.”

With a small theater such as the Jewel Box everyone takes on more than one role, and the director is in charge of everything from scheduling rehearsals to arranging cast photos, and of course, directing the play.

Merriam took a directing class from Jewel Box co-director David Speck at his suggestion. During the class each participant chose a play they would like to direct and then did a mock direction, which included making notes and exploring character motivation.

This year, Speck asked Merriam if she would like to direct “I Ought To Be In Pictures,” and she found herself at the helm of the current production.

“I love this play,” she said. “The characters are very alive, very human. They reminded me of people I knew.”

She continued, “A good comedy should have both touching and funny moments, and this one does.”

The characters are Herb, played by Ashley Hurd, a Hollywood scriptwriter in the midst of a personal and professional crisis, his long-suffering girlfriend Steffy, played by Shirley Bomgaars, and Herb’s 19-year-old daughter Libby, played by Shirley’s daughter Andrea Bomgaars, who arrives on Herb’s doorstep after not seeing him since he left the family in New York 16 years earlier.

Libby has backpacked from New York to Hollywood with dreams of making it big as an actress. What she lacks in acting experience she more than makes up for in enthusiasm, and she’s hoping her father will be able to provide her with the “in” she needs.

“She’s the catalyst — she sets things off,” Andrea Bomgaars said. “Libby is very determined, passionate and impatient. And confident.”

The father-daughter reunion does not go smoothly, as Herb has a lot of issues to deal with, both in the present and the past.

“Herb is a father that doesn’t regret leaving his wife, but for 16 years he’s bothered that he left his children,” Hurd said of his character. “He’s been punishing himself ever since. At one point he says of his house, ‘It’s the house that guilt built.’”

Not surprisingly, Herb has trouble making a commitment. He’s been married twice, but his current girlfriend, Steffy, despairs of ever wresting a ring from him.

“Steffy is way too patient with Herb,” Shirley Bomgaars said. “He’s been putting off making a commitment and she’s been letting it slide.”

In classic Neil Simon fashion, the dialogue is natural yet witty and sharp, peppered with the type of zingers and perfect comebacks that only occur to most people long after the fact.

At a dress rehearsal on the eve of opening night the cast had their lines down, but there was a lack of the energy bordering in mania that is needed to deliver Simon’s rapid-fire repartee. The part of Libby in particular needs to be played with a fire-in-the-belly attitude, which was missing on this particular night. Perhaps she was just saving her energy for a real audience.

The 1979 play is said to mark a transition for Simon from superficial comedy to plays that mined the pathos and poignancy of everyday life. The play was not one of Simon’s big hits, but it has enjoyed a long life in the community theatre circuit.

“I Ought To Be In Pictures” opened July 28 and continues weekends through Aug. 26. Showtimes are 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets are $14 adults, $12 seniors, students and active duty military and their dependents, available at Liberty Bay Books in Poulsbo, the Kitsap Mall information booth or by phone at (360) 779-9688.