‘Apollo’ Toys With Expectations in Playful Staging

“Would you like me to teach you the secret of not trembling before men?” So begins the divine revelation bestowed by an enigmatic stranger on a painfully shy woman seeking a job interview in “The Apollo of Bellac,” an obscure 1942 playlet by Jean Giraudoux. J.M. Higgins’ perfect staging for Buffalo Nights Theatre Company evokes the wit, insight and poetic virtuosity in this stylish parable.

Sorry, you’ll have to see the play to learn the secret truth. But as the applicant (Karen Tucker) quickly discovers, it is simple, elegant--and hilariously effective.

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Under the guidance of her unexpected mentor (Michael Goorjian), she uses it on a succession of obtuse male officials to rise through the bureaucratic ranks, instantly conquering their hearts in the process.

Tucker makes her transition from mousy doormat to power-wielding femme fatale credible and inevitable, and Goorjian strikes a perfect balance of buffoonery and shamanistic intensity. The entire cast skillfully infuses human frailty and depth into what might have been mere caricatures.

To call the piece a revival would be a disservice to Higgins’ inventive staging, which extends rather than evokes Giraudoux’s absurdist universe.

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Set against a striking visual backdrop combining neoclassical and surrealistic elements, the male characters are amusingly adorned with the features of animals, clowns and other symbolic figures appropriate to their station.

While it’s common enough to find upended theatrical conventions in a 20th century experimental play, the thoroughly delightful surprise here is how avant-garde expectations themselves are so deftly overturned.

Instead of the brooding, acerbic bite that so frequently accompanies the genre, “Apollo” is unfailingly lively, playful and a pleasure to watch.

BE THERE

“The Apollo of Bellac,” Powerhouse Theatre, 3116 2nd St., Santa Monica. Fridays-Sundays, 8 p.m. Ends May 21. $15. (310) 289-2999. Running time: 1 hour.