OK, this isn't a Howard County thing, per se, but it's close. If you take Route 108 west into Montgomery County, you'll soon encounter the Olney Theatre Center, where my wife and daughters and several family members enjoyed a production of Michael Hollinger's "Opus" on Saturday.

I have to give you another disclaimer here, though: The ensemble cast includes Benjamin Evett, a professional actor (all the players are in Actors Equity) who also happens to be my wife's cousin. He and some of the other cast members came down from Boston, where they also performed the play, a fascinating study of the interpersonal dynamics in a fictional string quartet.

It's a drama, all right, but it's got more than it's share of laugh-out-loud moments. At least I thought so, and apparently it showed.

"Olney wants to hire you as a professional audience member," Ben told me after the show.

Anyhow, it's both clever and poignant, and is definitely worth your while. It's scheduled to run through July 3.