Odyssey’s ‘Cementville’ Gets Lost in the Cartoonish

Is women’s wrestling enough of a caricature on its own or does it cry out for further lampooning? That second option may not have been what was intended, but that’s what we get in Jane Martin’s labored “Cementville,” staged by Ron Sossi at the Odyssey Theatre.

Martin takes us to the locker room of an arena in a small city in Tennessee (a superbly seedy set designed by Victoria Profitt).

A troupe of four women prepares for the evening’s bouts. The seed of something deeper than a lampoon is in the history of at least one of these women--Angelessa (Lyn Ross), who once placed 19th in the shotput in the Olympics. She takes her current work seriously enough to do stretching exercises before she goes on and to become riled when her paycheck from the sleazy Bigman (Joseph Cardinale) is overdue.

The other three women don’t have anything so momentous in their pasts. Beth Hogan plays sluttish, feisty Dani. Clarinda Ross portrays the taller, friendlier Tiger. Jacque Lynn Colton plays sweet, fat Netty, a lesbian with an eye for the naive Nola (Julia D’Orazio), a local groupie and wrestling wannabe.

Martin then imports a parade of even more cartoonish characters. Besides the repulsive Bigman and his even more disgusting brother Eddie (David Stenstrom), the Knockout Sisters (Robin May Florence and Kathy Christopherson) and their manager mother (Eve Sigall) enter the scene. This arrogant duo specializes in cheesecake instead of rough-and-tumble, but they’ve been banned from the circuit because of drug abuse and a tawdry liaison with the mayor of Los Angeles (as if a contemporary L.A. mayor were ever this colorful).

Although the play’s title and a program note suggest that the play tackles the larger community of people who dote on this kind of entertainment, only two representatives of the male spectators make brief appearances in this locker room--and they’re so psychotic that just about anyone can feel superior to them.

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Forget the women’s dialogue as to whether the audience consists of “fans” or “rubes”--these guys could hardly be more rube-like. It’s much too easy for L.A. urbanites to detach themselves from the play’s relatively remote setting, as well as from its superficial characters.

After much frantic plot-making, Martin aims for a touch of wistful nostalgia at the end, as a former boxer (David Connell) who once fought at this arena weighs in with memories, soft lights and, jarringly enough, gunfire.

It doesn’t fly.

The actors go through their assigned paces professionally enough, but the anticipated comedy never catches fire. And the farcical elements bury the little seed of substance that’s contained in the character of Angelessa.

* “Cementville,” Odyssey Theatre, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., West L.A. Wednesdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; most Sundays, 7 p.m.; June 16, 30 and July 14, 3 p.m. $17.50-$21.50. (310) 477-2055. Running time: 2 hours.