‘Dog Story’ Could Use More Bite

“Stray Dog Story” at the Saint Genesius abounds with flagrantly stereotypical gay characters, scads of homosexual sex and the kind of in-your-face iconoclasm that made its playwright, the late Robert Chesley (“Jerker,” “Night Sweat”), notorious.

Although typically outrageous, “Dog Story” is a kinder, gentler satire than some of Chesley’s other works. The lonely John (Robert Ellington) casually wishes that his devoted dog Buddy were his human lover. Soon after, Buddy receives a visit from his Fairy Dog Mother (Paula Kay Perry), who magically transforms Buddy into a human.

With Fairy Dog Mothers like this, who needs enemies? After John dies in a brutal gay bashing/slashing, the human Buddy (Spencer Beglarian) must fend for himself on the mean streets of New York City. But the true-blue Buddy never masters the routine cruelty and dissimulation he needs to survive in human form, and so careens through a series of tragicomic disasters.

Leon Joosen’s simple set, which largely consists of a New York cityscape upstage, is versatile and handsome. Rob Cron’s costumes, though predictable, are certainly stylish. Ellen Monocroussos, who also did the lighting, delivers a witty sound design full of vintage dog songs, from the familiar to the hilariously arcane.

Director David Goldyn brings a sense of mission to his staging, but considering the slightness of the material, his zeal seems misappropriated. Goldyn never quite overcomes the inadequacies of his uneven performers, many of whom posture without panache. Exceptions are Beglarian, who brings dancer-like grace to a Sisyphean endeavor, and the poignantly amusing Perry, who also plays the Bag Lady.

As for Chesley’s play, it is cartoon nihilism at its blandest and most banal, a dog tale that won’t wag.

BE THERE

“Stray Dog Story,” Saint Genesius Theatre, 1047 N. Havenhurst Drive, West Hollywood. Thursdays-Fridays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 7 and 10 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m. Ends Sept. 20. $20. (800) 581-6249. Running time: 1 hour, 50 minutes.