‘Guantanamera’ a Dark Tale With Light Touch

As black comedies go, “Guantanamera,” at Bilingual Foundation for the Arts, leans toward the lighter side in its depiction of life in contemporary Cuba.

While abundant satire establishes a backdrop of poverty, corruption, and bureaucratic oppression, there’s an agreeably good-natured celebration of human survival in this original stage adaptation by director Margarita Galban and Lina Montalvo (from a screenplay by Eliseo Alberto Diego, Tomas Gutierrez Alea and Juan Carlos Tabio).

Presented with English and Spanish-speaking casts on alternating weekends, the play involves an episodic funeral motorcade across the island for an opera diva (Liane Schirmer, Tina D’Marco), who shortly before her death had returned to her native Cuba and the arms of her sweetly devoted childhood flame (Agustin Coppola, Hecmar Lugo).

Facing dilemmas at every turn is the diva’s niece, Gina (Eugenia Cross, Marie Curie), who had abandoned her career teaching economics for traditional married life, but still harbors dreams of self-expression. Her husband, Adolfo (Ernesto Miyares), is a petty bureaucrat trying to improve his job standing through his goofy motorcade, a plan to amortize the diva’s funeral expenses through different regions.

Of course, the procession is somewhat lacking in grandeur. The vehicle keeps breaking down, a pregnant woman (Ana Alfonso) delays the motorcade to give birth to twins, and in converging funerals, the coffins inevitably get swapped. Further complications arise with the determined pursuit by Gina’s infatuated former student (John Paul), who might even be willing to forsake his philandering ways if she’ll leave her husband for him.

Beyond the principal triangle, the momentum is largely plot- rather than character-driven. Brisk, energetic staging, broad slapstick and plenty of ethnically flavored humor smooth out imbalances in performance quality. The creators’ obvious affection for these characters shines through the darker complications that cloud their lives, and an ultimate affirmation of common sense triumphing over red tape is encouraging in any cultural context.

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* “Guantanamera,” Bilingual Foundation for the Arts, 421 N. Avenue 19, Lincoln Heights. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 3 p.m. English performances: Thursday-March 7, 19-20. Spanish: tonight-Sunday, March 11-14, 18, 21, and 25-28. Ends March 28. $18. (323) 225-4044. Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes.