No Identity Crisis Here

Mistaken identity has been successfully mined for comedy by everyone from Shakespeare to Larry Shue. And for proof that the well has not run dry, look to James Sherman’s “Beau Jest,” which premiered in Chicago in 1989 and is now in a very funny production at the North Coast Repertory Theatre.

Sarah Goldman (Natascha Nicolai), a nice Jewish girl, doesn’t want to upset her parents by telling them she’s dating a guy so Gentile his name is Chris Kringle (her parents refer to him sarcastically as “Santa Claus”). So she calls an escort agency and orders up a young Jewish man to impersonate her boyfriend.

Only the young man, Bob (Dan Gruber), an out-of-work actor who escorts to pay the bills, turns out to be just as non-Jewish as her boyfriend. He relies on an old performance in “Fiddler on the Roof” to fake his way through Shabbos dinner.

Things get more complicated as he finds out during the course of the conversation that he’s not just got to pretend to be “David Steinberg” but a heart and brain surgeon as well.

Inevitably, somewhere between Shabbos and an even more Gentile-challenging Seder two weeks later, Sarah and Bob start falling for each other.

And why not?

The kindergarten teacher and actor may not seem to have a lot in common, but they do, after all, share unusual skills at conning people. But if she told her parents who he really is, then they would be upset she was dating a non-Jew, so . . .

Steve Gallion’s direction doesn’t miss a joke. The cast, too, is fine, though it occasionally tries too hard.

The funniest is Sue Kaye as Sarah’s overbearing mother, Miriam. Kaye plays her as a woman who doesn’t suffer fools gladly, but, hey, since they’re her family, she’ll put up with them anyway.

*

Daniel Mann offers strong support as the excitable Abe. Rick Shirer brings a witty skepticism to Joel, Sarah’s divorced therapist brother. Nicolai’s Sarah is lovely, charmingly anxious and eager to please. Though it would be better if Gruber were just a tad Semitic-looking for the part, his timing and ability to literally turn beet red after ingesting an overly generous portion of horseradish at the Seder table, is truly awesome.

And Tom Peters plays the original boyfriend, Chris, with such sincerity and good spirit that you find yourself rooting for him too.

*

This is not a particularly deep play, and the issues ultimately resolve with neat sitcom-like satisfaction. But you don’t need to be deep to be funny, as “Seinfeld” proves on a weekly basis.

In fact, “Beau Jest” would make a great “Seinfeld” episode. Can’t you just see Elaine getting someone to impersonate her boyfriend for her parents as Jerry looks on, in the brotherly Joel role?

It’s a smartly written “Jest” that could bring laughs in almost any arena.

BE THERE

“Beau Jest,” North Coast Repertory Theatre, 987D Lomas Santa Fe Drive, Solana Beach. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Ends April 12. $14-$16. (619) 481-1055 or (619) 776-6278. Running time: 1 hour, 48 minutes.