Boogaloo Folk Life’s latest production, “Can’t Live With ‘Em,” studies the battle of the sexes with a combination of comedy and intrigue.

The play will be presented June 4 through June 7 and June 11 through June 14 at the Lakeside Drive theater. Show times are Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 7 p.m. There will be Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3 p.m. Tickets are available at the Union County Arts Council on Main Street and through Monte Lancaster at Arthur State Bank.

“We think this is a fun play with a little bit of mystery along with comedy,” said playwright Betsy Trakas. “As I wrote, I realized that although the male and female characters had conflicts, they were also very much alike instead of very different. The theme is how people change themselves and the results are sometimes for better and sometimes for worse.”

“Can’t Live With ‘Em,” includes several new songs by Union County High School drama department director Ralph Lawson.

Mrs. Trakas uses story gathering sessions to glean story lines and characters for Boogaloo productions. One of the characters in this summer’s production is based on a man a story provider met on her Meals on Wheels route.

“One true story is from a Union County story published in a crime magazine in the 1940s,” Mrs. Trakas said.

The police officer featured is loosely based on former Sheriff Rochelle Boyle.

Other parts of the play are based on conversations Mrs. Trakas has overheard where someone is complaining about his or her significant other.

“I took them and wove them into the story,” she said.

The play features several recurring characters, including Delores, who is played by Sarah Garnett. Mrs. Garnett’s dog, “Special” has always been a frequent guest during practice. This year she has a part in the play, but not a lot can be said about it because it would spoil a surprise.