More Boffo Than Baffle Involved in Whodunit

A hush-hush military document--so crucial to global security that every superpower in the world is hot to get its hands on it--is stashed away in the European mansion of dear, dead Andre Denouement. Within moments of his death, the place is crawling with top spies from around the globe, each more crafty, and more ridiculous, than the next.

Your mission? Determine which of these 25 loony--tunes are the Real McCoy. Nasty Nurse Terse? Or Celebrated Decorator Armandrico? And where is the mysterious document hidden? Is it the dark and dank root cellar . . . or in Lady Denouement’s powder room?

The Shadow knows. And the members of the audience--if they are watching closely.

That is the game plan for “Vestibule Espionage,” a wacky combination of intrigue and broad farce that invites the audience to help solve the mystery.

Conceived, written and directed by M. James Breslin, an independent theatrical producer based in Orange, the show runs tonight only in the Cal State Fullerton Pub, a presentation of CSUF’s Associated Students Productions.

An ever-changing cast includes the likes of Nurse Terse (described as “a woman who’s so scary, she’s funny”), a pair of swishing interior designers both claiming to be the famous Armandrico, an unfortunate Avon lady who gets stabbed on the service porch, and a delightfully muddled but ever-gracious Queen Mum. If “Vestibule Espionage” sounds more boffo than baffling, that is exactly what Breslin intended.

“The show is absolutely ludicrous . . . ‘Masterpiece Theatre’ taken to high farce,” he admits proudly.

When Andre Denouement departs for the great polo ground in the sky, his bumbling country doctor spills the news of his death--via tapped phone line--to every secret agent in the world. They immediately arrive en masse with an arsenal of clever disguises and slapstick schtick to uncover the mysterious document.

Each of the four acts takes place in a different room in Andre’s country house. The audience, seated in and around the four set pieces, is invited to track the mystery with score cards.

“I call this a kind of environment theater,” explained Breslin, who presented “Who Tripped Mama Crass?” at CSUF last season.

“It’s a bizarre cross between motion pictures and stage. In a sense, the audience is eavesdropping, but because they’re actually on the set, they’re also right in the middle of the action. I think it’s much more exciting than traditional theater.

“At the CSUF show, I’m placing the four sets randomly through the room and packing the holes between them with audience. So they’ll not only see the action that takes place right in front of them, they’ll see the characters exit into other rooms and walk all around them as they wander through the house.”

At the beginning of the show, audience members will be given ballots to fill out as they follow the mystery. The goal, Breslin said, is to uncover the various alter egos to find at least three characters who really are who they claim to be and, “if they’re very, very clever,” the location of the secret document. Breslin, who acts as master of ceremonies, will collect the ballots at the end of the show and award prizes to the winners.

“Vestibule Espionage” was born last summer as a sketch for the now-defunct Kobre Theatreworks, an ensemble of local actors co-founded by Breslin and Brian Kojac which presented environmental theater and “theater for hire” in parks, restaurants and private residences across the county.

When he was contacted by Cal State Fullerton, Breslin expanded the show into a full-fledged theater piece by rewriting dialogue and developing more colorful characterizations.

Tonight’s cast, which includes Todd Langwell (as a goofy version of “Masterpiece Theatre” host Alistair Cooke), Dan Michelson, Martina Paris, Dirck Prelitz and Andrea Stevens, have all worked with Breslin when they were students in the Fullerton College theater arts department, and several are veterans of the Kobre troupe. Each portrays up to five different characters in the show.

“It’s wonderful to watch the actors adopt their different characters,” Breslin said. “They change everything; their body posture, their voice, their looks. . . . Sometimes they’re very subtle, sometimes they’re right up front about it.

“For example, Andrea starts off as Nurse Terse, then she’s a brash Cockney cook, then Lady Denouement, then a Parisienne named Renaissance who’s obviously a spy, and finally the ill-fated Avon lady. The (costume) quick changes alone are incredible.”

He continued, “We must have done the shortened version of this show 50 times last summer, and everybody always had a great time. It’s very relaxed . . . a real party atmosphere.”

By the way, if you miss tonight’s performance, “Vestibule Espionage” will be repeated Saturday, April 23, at Rutabegorz restaurant, 158 W. Main St., Tustin. Tickets, priced at $14, include a three-course lunch served at intermissions. Call (714) 639-4196 for reservations.

‘VESTIBULE ESPIONAGE’

Tonight, 8 p.m.

The Pub, Cal State Fullerton, 800 N. State College Blvd., Fullerton

Tickets: $3 to $5

Information: (714) 773-3501