THEATER REVIEW ‘DARK AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRS’ : Look of a Winner : Gothic Productions’ current play, William Inge’s 1957 melodrama, deals with sexual repression.

A company whose ambitions have frequently exceeded its accomplishments, Gothic Productions, has come up with a winner in its current version of William Inge’s 1957 melodrama, “The Dark at the Top of the Stairs,” directed by Michael Jordan.

“The Dark at the Top of the Stairs” was Inge’s last hit, following such successes as “Come Back, Little Sheba,” “Picnic” and “Bus Stop.” The play deals with one of his continuing obsessions--sexual repression--here in the context of two Prohibition-era Oklahoma families.

Rubin Flood, a former cowboy who’s now selling riding tack, is married to the demure Cora, whose sister, Lottie, is married to eye surgeon Morris Lacey. Rubin dominates Cora to the point of bullying her, but it’s Lottie who dominates her husband. The Floods have two children; the Laceys, none.

And the Floods’ offspring have their own problems: Sonny is a mama’s boy, dressed in Little Lord Fauntleroy garb and given to throwing tantrums, and daughter Reenie is sullen and withdrawn.

Things have changed considerably by the end of Act III, and it’s entertaining to watch events transpire.

The heavy, almost overwrought drama is leavened by a fair amount of comedy, particularly from the characters of Morris and Lottie Lacey. She (played by Suzanne McNabb) is brash and overbearing; he’s meek but--in Jim Diderrich’s sly portrayal--with an intelligence that raises the character above a stereotype Milquetoast.

An additional romantic element comes with the introduction of two military school cadets, on their way to a country club dance. The shy Punky Givens’ escort is flapper Flirt Conroy, and handsome, considerate Sammy Goldenbaum is Reenie Flood’s blind date.

Rebecca Hanes and Sergio Bertolli star as Cora and Rubin Flood; it’s to his credit that the husband can be seen as a vaguely sympathetic character. As Sonny and Reenie, Zeb Hanes and Jennifer Marie Lester get better and better as their characters develop, and Elizabeth Bernstein is a hoot as the well-named Flirt.

Tony Grande and Mark G. Goles are fine as the military cadets.

Fraught with symbolism from the title on down, “The Dark at the Top of the Stairs” provides plenty of fodder for post-performance analysis. It is hereby recommended especially for literature and drama fans from high school age on up.

* WHERE AND WHEN

“The Dark at the Top of the Stairs” continues through April 26 at the Arts Council Center, 482 Green Meadow Road in Thousand Oaks. Performances are at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights; 7 p.m. on Sundays. There will be no show on Easter Sunday. Tickets to all performances are $8 general admission; $7 for students and seniors. Seating is extremely limited, For reservations or further information, call 499-4355.