MARBLEHEAD — There is a line in Neil Simon's "Brighton Beach Memoirs" that keeps running through Owen Grover's head.
It goes like this: "I always had this two-way thing about my brother. Either I worshipped the ground he walked on, or I hated him so much I wanted to kill him."
Grover laughs when he hears himself say those words.
"I'm pretty sure if I was that articulate when I was growing up, I would have said the same thing about my brother," the Boston College senior said.
Grover plays Eugene Morris Jerome, the lead role in Simon's semi-autobiographical comedy, which opens tomorrow night at Marblehead Little Theatre and runs through Feb. 5.
The 21-year-old Grover, a theater and Hispanic studies major, plays the younger of the two Jerome brothers. The part of the older brother, Stanley, is played by Grover's real-life older brother, Alex, 24, a music teacher in the Salem schools.
Other than a musical years ago at Salem High, when then-senior Alex had a lead and freshman Owen a bit part, this is the first time they have played prominent roles in the same play on the same stage.
It is definitely the first time the two brothers have played brothers.
"It's pretty cool," Alex said.
"Brighton Beach Memoirs" is a coming-of-age story about Eugene, a Jewish-American teenager growing up in the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn, N.Y., in the 1930s. It's a funny and serious story about a boy coping with family, relatives and the world around him. Eugene is both the narrator and central character.
Other leads in the MLT production are Ursina Amsler of Salem as mother Kate Jerome, Bobby Kerrigan of Wenham as father Jack Jerome, Meghan Holtz of Salem as Kate's sister Blanche Morton, and Jacqui Amrich of Tyngsboro and Annie Krivit of Marblehead as Kate's daughters, Nora and Laurie.
The Grover brothers, who have been in past MLT productions, were recruited by Steve Black, the director of "Brighton Beach Memoirs." He was the drama and choral director at Salem High when they were students there.
"He was actually the director of 'Guys and Dolls,'" Alex said of the Salem High musical where they appeared together.
The sons of Scott and Amy Grover followed similar paths to the stage. They played sports as youngsters and were on the golf and baseball teams at Salem High.
Alex got the acting bug first.
"One day, when Alex was in (Collins) middle school, he came home and said, 'I signed up for the play today," Owen said. "We were shocked."
A decade later, the shocks keep coming.
If you go
What: Neil Simon's "Brighton Beach Memoirs"
Where: Marblehead Little Theatre, 12 School St.
When: Tomorrow through Feb. 5; Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.
Tickets: General seating, $20 for adults ($25 at the door), $15 for students
More information: www.mltlive.org or 781-631-9697
