The upcoming Grove Players production, “Over the River and Through the Woods,” is about love, among other things. The love in this story is familial rather than romantic, as the story is about a young man, Nick Cristano, who is in his 30s, and his two sets of grandparents, Frank and Aida Gianelli, and Nunzio and Emma Cristano, who are in their 70s and 80s.

These relatives want their beloved grandson to find romance and love so he can marry and begin a family. They also don’t want him to move away from the area in which he grew up — close to them. His parents and sister have already moved away from Hoboken, New Jersey, where the action of the play takes place.

A lot of the play’s humor is the result of the older generation’s ways of expressing their love — through their matchmaking attempts and through food, symbolic of their desire to nurture Nick.

Their attempts to come to terms with the younger generation’s way of doing things, including using technology like telephone answering machines, is also comedic. Audience members of all ages should be able to relate to and enjoy the play’s humor and its message about the importance of family.

The cast of six includes David Amato as Nick Cristano, Rusty Steiger as Frank Gianelli, Renata Allelujka as Aida Gianelli, Catie Early as Caitlin O’Hare, Judy DiVita as Emma Cristano and Richard H. Baker as Nunzio Cristano. The play is directed by Larry Boller and overseen by Grove Players President Marilyn Ludwig.

Written by Joe DiPietro, this warm-hearted, multi-generational story opens on the Lincoln Center stage at 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, and runs for two weekends through Sunday, Feb. 15. For more information, see The Guide, call (630) 415-3682 or visit www.groveplayers.org.

In other news...

• Kate Skegg and Rosalie Oppenheim of the Downers Grove Area Branch of the American Association of University Women have been attending regular planning meetings on a new event. The “Dare to Dream — Get Educated” conference will target middle school-age Latina girls.

According to the AAUW’s Web site, Latina girls have a dropout rate that is four times higher than that of their white counterparts. Moreover, the demographic’s attendance rate is low. Statistics further show that the number of Latina girls who enter college is extremely low.

This conference aims to address that situation. It is being modeled after one started in California and will take place on Saturday, April 4, at Elmhurst College. Meantime, the sponsoring groups — including other area AAUW branches, the DuPage Regional Office of Education, the DuPage Community Foundation and local businesses — all hope to promote attendance at the conference and obtain additional funding.

For more information, call (630) 808-3533, visit http://aauw-il.org/latina or e-mail daretodream@latinaconference.org.

• Kimberly Thompson was recently able to show friends the artwork that will accompany the text for her children’s book, “Toulouse on the Loose.” The colorful renderings of the title turkey’s adventures were on display along with other artwork by the book’s illustrator, Chris Easey, when the DuPage Art League recently held a reception in his honor.

• Longtime Downers Grove residents Shirley and John Hiddleston recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with friends and family, champagne punch and a lot of cake. Those who know them know their relationship is made up of many things — from a shared love of animals and books to patience and humor. But the main ingredient of their marriage is love.