Two performers will take on 20 characters in the Vicksburg Theatre Guild’s upcoming production of “Greater Tuna,” which opens at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

The script only calls for two male performers, director Paul Ballard said, which adds to the play’s comedic effect.

“Seeing the same person dressed in different costumes and using different voices lends itself to a good bit of humor,” Ballard said, especially when the characters include women and children.

Set in the fictional town of Tuna, Texas, “Greater Tuna” has become one of the most produced plays in American theater history.

Written by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears and Ed Howard, the play premiered in Austin, Texas in 1981. A year later, it opened Off-Broadway, where it ran for more than a year. It then went on to tour major theaters across America and spots overseas for more than 30 years.

The characters portrayed in the play are the sorts you would expect to find in a small southern town, Ballard said, and the show is also filled with southern satire and idioms.

Tyler Gardner and Hayden Wood will each play 10 characters, which Gardner says has been hectic.

“We are still getting costume changes down. Some have to happen in 30 seconds,” he said.

Of the 10 characters Gardner plays, he said Bertha Bumiller is his favorite.

“Bertha is a good Christian girl, who has three crazy children and a husband who spent a year in jail for robbing a gas station for $47.”

Gardner is a VTG regular and has also performed for the Westside Theatre Foundation.Wood is a newcomer to the area and will be making his debut in Vicksburg, Friday.

“I have always liked theater and wanted to get back into it,” he said.

Moving to Vicksburg from Illinois with his family, Wood said he is currently a student a Hinds Community College.

“I haven’t even lived in Vicksburg for a year. I had not found anything to do, so I went to watch ‘Mary Poppins.’”

“Mary Poppins” was performed by the VTG in February and this is when Wood said he found out about auditions for “Greater Tuna.”

Wood said he is excited about his first local show and thinks the audience will find it funny.

In addition to Friday’s opening night, “Greater Tuna” will also be offered at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and May 6 and 7. Matinee performances will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday and May 8 at the Parkside Playhouse, 101 Iowa Ave.

Tickets are $15, $10 for ages 65 and older and $8 for ages 12 and younger and are available the day of the show at the box office. Advance tickets are available online at showclix.com/events/10243.