IN ONE OF THE COMPARATIVELY few reminders thus far that there was such a thing as “The Civil War” in the Rome area, both tonight at 7:30 p.m. in the City Auditorium, and again on Saturday, a musical with speech excerpts portraying the sweep of that conflict 150 years ago will be presented. It will likely be both entertaining and informative

Put on by Rome’s Own Musical Ensembles (known as R.O.M.E.), the Rome Area Council for the Arts and the Montessori School of Rome the production includes an orchestra, 30 local actors and is probably the biggest thing since the firing of the visiting Noble cannon thus far in marking the huge event of which Floyd County was so much a part.

The musical, actually titled “The Civil War” and that premiered in 1998 and later won a Tony, portrays the conflict from Union, Confederate and slave viewpoints as well as that of the women who remained on the homefront.

It definitely sounds worth attending (tickets $10 and $15). While doing so think of the statue commemorating the role played by Confederate women that remains exiled to Myrtle Hill Cemetery, instead of being on Broad Street where it originally was. It needs a more prominent stage as well.