The name of the play alone should be a warning: Beware the presence of a deep, dark secret as Sam Shepard's "Buried Child" comes to The REP, Point Park University's professional theater company, tonight through Feb. 21.

The cast of the Pulitzer Prize-winning drama includes Steve Mendillo, a Broadway veteran who should be familiar from numerous guest-starring TV roles. He plays Dodge, the head of a Midwest farming family. Dodge's wife, Halie, is played by stage and screen actress Lisa Richards.

"Buried Child" uses biting humor to deal with the family's nightmarish dysfunction as a son returns after a long absence. The REP production is directed by John Shepard, chair of Point Park's Conservatory of Performing Arts theater department who was a Post-Gazette Performer of the Year for his Willy Loman in The REP's 2008 "Death of a Salesman."

"Buried Child" is at the Studio Theatre, Pittsburgh Playhouse, Oakland, 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets are $24-$27 at 412-621-4445 or www.pittsburghplayhouse.com.

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