Rhoda is a sweet little girl with an evil side.

"The Bad Seed" is a play adapted from the film about an 8-year-old girl who is perfect in almost every way except for a trait she inherits from her maternal grandmother.

The Bath Community Theatre Guild aims to successfully portray the macabre atmosphere and sheer terror of the deviant Rhoda — played by 10-year-old Alissa Goeckel.

"It's the suggestion of scariness. It's not the portrayal. You don't see it in this play, you hear about it," said Chris Goeckel, who has a supporting role in the play.

Director Gary Riggs said the frightening parts of the play are broken up with some laughs. "I'd almost characterize it as a dark comedy," he said.

Goeckel is proud of his daughter for starring in the play.

"The thrill for me is being in a show with my little girl," he said.

Goeckel said doing theater with his daughter is a way of connecting with them. He has already been in four shows with his 13-year-old daughter.

"This has really been something — we're building a lifetime of memories by doing it," he said.

The play was considered too controversial by other local theater companies when it was proposed around the time of the Columbine shootings a few years ago. Alissa might not have been able to play the role had it not been proposed again.

"She (the character) has no conscience or remorse or guilt for her actions. She feels totally justified in what she's done and that's the horror of it," Riggs.

He said it raises questions about how people raise their children and how much influence they have.

"We like to think we're decent people, but at the same time we worry about what our children may inherit from us despite our best efforts ? there's something mysterious about human nature," he said.

Shows are at 8 p.m. tonight, Saturday, March 9, 10 and 11. Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 students and seniors. Performances are in the James Couzens Auditorium, which is adjacent to Bath Middle School, 13675 Webster Road in Bath.