NATCHEZ — Family, memories and perhaps the old adage, “You can’t go home again,” take the stage in Natchez Little Theatre’s latest production.

Judy Wiggins, who is plays the lead role of Carrie Watts in “The Trip to Bountiful,” said the play about an elderly woman trying to get back to her hometown makes her think about the past.

“Thinking about my parents, who are gone, and thinking about the hymns my daddy used to sing, it brings a sense of nostalgia,” Wiggins said. “The play touches our hearts. We have cried several times in rehearsal, and we have also had a ball laughing.

“The actors and actresses at The Little Theatre are top notch — it’s a jewel so many in Natchez have yet to discover.”

The play by Horton Foote is set in Houston where the economy has forced Watts’ son, Ludie, and wife, Jessie Mae, to live together on Carrie Watts’ retirement. Despite her son and daughter-in-law’s attempts to stop her from returning to her hometown, she ultimately travels to the fictional town of Bountiful.

NLT Artistic and Executive Director Layne Taylor said his inspiration for this play was the 2013 Tony-nominated revival of the play on Broadway starring Cicely Tyson, Vanessa Williams and Cuba Gooding Jr.

The play touches on Southern themes, which Taylor said makes it perfect for Fall Pilgrimage.

“No mater where you are in the South, there are very strong matriarchal institutions,” Taylor said. “It is very entertaining and heartfelt, and like all great literature, features a good dose of humor with the sadness.

“The sadness is not about tragedy, just memories of the past.”

The NLT version features a black Watts family on some production nights and a white Watts family on the other nights. The casts alternate performances.

Taylor said one of his goals when he first arrived at the theater was to make it more representative of the community of Natchez.

Actor Terrence Robinson said there is another benefit of having the two casts. If one watches both casts, he or she will get a different experience, even though it is the same source material, said the actor who plays Ludie.

“It is always interesting to see how different the interpretations can be,” Robinson said. “It is a play full of great performances.

“We have had mostly Caucasian audiences, and they have been very supportive. It really speaks to the unity of Natchez. I hope African-American audiences will go out and support the Caucasian performers,” he said.

Bo Allen, who also plays Ludie, said a moment during the play that drains on his emotions is when Mrs. Watts tells her son that he looks like her father.

“I look so much like my own grandfather,” Allen said. “I miss him deeply — he was the patriarch of the family.”

Ludie is the middle man between two strong women, Mrs. Watts and Jessie Mae. Robinson said he can relate.

“I myself am married,” Robinson said. “Every now and then there comes a time when you have to choose between the woman who gave you life and the woman you have chosen to live your life with.

“It’s like being stuck between a rock and a hard place.”

Jessie Mae is a strong-willed, opinionated woman not afraid to speak her mind, and Morgan Mizell, who portrays the character, said she can relate.

Mizell said the play was a look into the life of an American family.

“I think it is a timeless play,” she said. “It is set more than 60 years ago, but a lot of it still applies today.

“The tough economic situation is still relevant. People are still trying to make it through this life we all have.”

Though Sara Davis is only 24, she is cast as Mrs. Watts. Originally cast for another part, Davis received the lead role when another actress dropped out.

Davis, who had two weeks to learn the part, said she met a group of audience members after the show one night and was impacted by their comments.

“They said, ‘You are so good, we believed you,’” Davis said. “They said, ‘You had us in the front row crying.’”

Camille Taylor, 17, said her character Thelma has a refreshing perspective in this play, which is both emotional and funny. Katie Borum, 17, also plays as Thelma on alternate nights.

Taylor said she hopes to see Natchez come support the play.

“If you want to change things up and get out from under your TV, the theater is a great way to be entertained,” she said. “It is something very easy to fall in love with and become addicted to.”

Five performances remain. The two remaining weekday performances will be Monday, Oct. 3, and Wednesday, Oct. 5. Both showings are at 7:30 p.m.

The final weekend performances will be Friday to Sunday, Oct. 7 to 9. On Friday and Saturday, showings will be at 7:30 p.m., while the Sunday matinee will be at 2 p.m.