Theater Review : This Whiny ‘Jake’ Has Lost Laughs

The more serious Neil Simon becomes, the more intricate are his plays. And the potholes lying in wait are better hidden.

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But Simon is still writing comedies. “Jake’s Women,” at Orange Coast College, is a case in point.

Jake is at war with all of the women in his life, from his current wife to his sister, from the memory of his late first wife to his daughter, from his analyst to his latest temporary squeeze. It’s Thurber for the ‘90s, is what it is. And that’s funny.

Even Simon’s semi-autobiographical conceit of having writer Jake continually creating imaginary dialogues between himself and his mental clones of his ladies is pure Thurber.

Director John Ferzacca doesn’t always see it that way. His view is serious indeed, and a lot of the honestly wrought laughs in the script slide by unnoticed.

David Scaglione, as the one-man army against feminine control, also takes his Jake too seriously. Jake is nothing if he doesn’t have a sense of humor, and Scaglione doesn’t have the comic touch that would even make Jake likable.

His Jake is a whiner and deserves all of his problems. There is little in him to make his wife, Maggie, want to return to his side, or to keep his sister in his corner. And this weak, self-pitying slob is certainly not the mensch his delightful first wife married.

The women in his life earn points in direct relation to the actresses’ understanding of the light comedy involved in Simon’s parable.

Leslie Rowe’s Maggie is crisp and has a faint edge of satire in her portrait of a career woman entranced by a Manhattan marriage, and Alice Ensor gives a charming, bubbly facade to Jake’s sister Karen.

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Even Corinne Hart, as Jake’s 12-year-old daughter, Molly, catches some of the kidding quality of the piece. Lynn Laguna is just fine as a woman Jake dates after Maggie leaves. Rachel Stolte, who plays Molly as an adult, doesn’t catch much of the humor and is rather hard-edged, along with Susan Shearer’s analyst, a one-note reading that misses altogether.

Nectar Rose has the tone of the play and its sense of humor wrapped up tight. As Jake’s late first wife, Julie, she lights up the stage, and her buoyant flavor almost makes one forget Scaglione’s frowns and grimaces.

Scaglione also designed the set, which looks just right, and works better than his Jake. David Dunbrack’s lighting and Catherine Labaut’s costumes are both on target in a staging that misses its bull’s-eye.

* “Jake’s Women,” Orange Coast College, 2701 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa. Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, 3 p.m. Ends Sunday. $7-$8. (714) 432-5880. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes. David Scaglione: Jake

Leslie Rowe: Maggie

Alice Ensor: Karen

Corinne Hart: Molly (at 12)

Rachel Stolte: Molly (at 21)

Susan Shearer: Edith

Nectar Rose: Julie

Lynn Laguna: Sheila

An Orange Coast College Department of Theatre Arts Summer Theatre production of Neil Simon’s comedy. Directed by John Ferzacca. Scenic design: David Scaglione. Lighting design: David Dunbrack. Costume design: Catherine Labaut.