It Works: The Joke’s on Them

Seems December is the month for theater to spoof itself on NoHo’s Magnolia Boulevard. “Theatre Hell,” previously reviewed in this column and the opener of American Renegade Theatre’s new two-theater complex, depicted a British director nearly sent to the funny farm by a hapless Kansas community theater troupe.

We compared it to Michael Frayn’s now-classic backstage farce “Noises Off.” And wouldn’t you know it, Frayn’s comedy is being presented down the street from American Renegade at the Secret Rose Theatre.

Infinitely more complex, elegant and funnier than “Theatre Hell,” “Noises Off” takes on the same subject, which is that anyone who labors in the theater must be at least half-cracked.

It also concerns a Brit director, but this time, he’s in the mother country, trying to coax along a dreadful sex comedy titled “Nothing On” as it sets sail for a tour of the provinces.

A cynic would say that “Nothing On” deserves the increasingly anarchic treatment it gets at the hands of an overworked, hyper-stressed cast, but the fun of Frayn’s farce is to see how awful things can get.

Hint: pretty awful. Any fans of John Cleese’s insane TV masterpiece “Fawlty Towers,” to which “Noises Off” is the backstage farce equivalent, knows how hilariously awful it can get. The rule is simple: Anything that can go wrong, will.

Since “Nothing On” itself is a farce, with lots of doors opening and closing on cue and lots of confused identities and everyone at cross purposes, the actors must be on their toes. Director Lloyd Dallas (Jeremy Hall) knows this, but he’s too tired, and besides, he has a London production of “Richard III” to start worrying about. He’s also broken up with stage manager Poppy (Sarah Anderson) and is hot and heavy with brain-dead actress Brooke (Lora Caton), which spells trouble for the show as it tours.

Indeed, though the tour’s first stop in the sleepy seaside resort of Weston-Super-Mare is full of painfully funny problems, they’re mostly technical--doors not opening, too many plates of sardines on stage at once, that kind of thing. A month later, though, it’s gone beyond the technical with the overtaxed actors at one another’s throats.

We’ve seen the show “out front” in Act I, but now in Act II, we’re backstage (Tal Sanders’ set, per Frayn’s instructions, is simply turned around on the Secret Rose stage).

This is the act that has made “Noises Off” famous, where a talented cast can turn farce into something close to the high art of the best silent film comedy. Director Reva Fox’s cast is good, fairly talented and reasonably rehearsed, but this isn’t an Act II for the ages.

The microsecond timing is crucial, and it’s not always precise, while some characters, such as Tom Carey’s drunk thespian Selsdon, just aren’t funny.

The pace here is slow enough where we notice how stupid some of the physical business actually is--which is why the pace has to be too fast for the eyes to keep up with.

This may only be a problem, though, for audiences who know “Noises Off.” For those who don’t, this edition, which (unlike Lloyd’s production) has all of its technical I’s dotted and Ts crossed, puts across the essence of Frayn’s poison pen letter to the stage. The essence, if not the mad magic.

BE THERE

“Noises Off,” Secret Rose Theatre. 11246 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m. Ends Dec. 18. $12-$15. (818) 754-1518. Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes.