Theater nuts and art enthusiasts alike may be happy to hear about the “Search for Signs” Tour that arrives in Ames tomorrow.

“The Search for Signs of Support for the Arts in Iowa” walking tour, a statewide benefit for the arts, will arrive in Ames late in the afternoon of July 7. It is the first-ever 200-mile walking tour to benefit arts organizations.

More than 20 arts groups from all over the state are participating in the tour, and many individuals who think that the arts in general are underfunded are taking pledges and walking on behalf of their favorite arts group.

To sweeten the deal and really earn the funds they collect, walkers, most of whom are professional actors, put on a performance of The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe for each city in which they arrive. They will perform this Saturday at 8 p.m. in the Ames City Auditorium.

Ames is only one stop on a rather exhausting journey. Walkers started June 19 from the Riverside Theatre in Iowa City, for which most of them perform. From there, they journeyed to Cedar Rapids, to Grinnell. After Ames, the group will arrive in Des Moines next Thursday, which is the end of their long journey.

Several ISU faculty members are participating in part of the walk. Gregg Henry and Jane Cox, both associate professors of theater, will be tightening their shoelaces and limbering up to show their support.

Henry, a member of the Ames Community Arts Council, encourages all students to scrounge up $5 to see the show; he promises that there will be a lot of side-splitting and knee-slapping.

“It’s one of the greatest plays ever written,” he said. “It’s roll-over, pee-your-pants funny. Lily Tomlin originally did it, and it won a special Tony award.”

“The Search for Signs” idea grew out of the recent trend in the government cutting funding for arts, George Dowker of the Ames Parks and Recreation Department explained. He also said that most of the money Ames people raise will go to the Ames Community Arts Council, which in turn distributes grants funds to various arts organizations.

Tickets for The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe are $7 general admission and $5 for students. They are available at the Ames Parks and Recreation Community Center Office, at the door or at 294-7611.