Full-Throttle Nellies Offer an Edgy Mix

Comedy is the last bastion of the politically incorrect, a refuge from the homogeneity of modern culture. The gender-bending, envelope-pushing Nellie Olesons understand comedy is at its best when its practitioners skim the margins of the socially acceptable without toppling into tastelessness.

The Nellies (named for the pigtailed moppet in “Little House on the Prairie”) sally bravely into tastelessness in “Full Frontal Nellie” at Highways. Group founders Nora Burns and Terrence Michael, who authored the material, perform with Marissa Copeland and John Cantwell.

Parody is paramount in this mix. The Nellies are most successful when they are sending up some of society’s more nauseating popular trends. However, there’s an oddly dark undercurrent to this Nellies outing, a near-nihilistic emphasis on murder, mayhem and molestation that is distinctly unfunny, almost defiantly anti-comic.

It’s an edgy, scattershot evening, with moments of genuine comic inspiration among the misfires. Abetted by director Matthew Kasten, the performers display the well-choreographed precision of a drill team--sometimes literally: Michael and Cantwell’s drag drill routines are gems of physical humor. Other campy highlights include Burns’ hilarious “goy toy” Menorrah, the “Jewish Madonna,” and Michael’s boozy, bitchy Joan Crawford, teaching a recalcitrant Helen Keller (Cantwell) sign language at the business end of a bottle of gin.

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* “Full Frontal Nellie,” Highways, 1651 18th St., Santa Monica. Friday-Sunday, 8 p.m. Ends Sunday. $15. (213) 660-8587. Running time: 1 hour, 20 minutes.