Actors Can’t Carry Heavy-Handed ‘Angel’

Michele Raper Rittenhouse’s “Angel on My Shoulder” centers on a mercenary soldier recalling his brief love affair with a student, as he attempts to detox the druggie daughter who was the result of the union. This production at the Coast Playhouse suffers from Mark Leonard’s heavy-handed and high-decibel direction.

The angel of the title is a young woman named Angela (Sandra P. Grant). During her stay in Africa to learn about her heritage, she is taken hostage by the mercenary, Luke (Joe Inscoe). Hoping to use her in a hostage exchange, Luke falls in love with her instead.

When Luke is forced to return to his soldier-for-fortune activities, Angela leaves him, returning to the U.S. When Luke hears from her again, she is dying of cancer and summons Luke to save the daughter (Anita Thomas) she never told him about.

Inscoe manages a respectable performance, although some of the sequences between him and Grant--particularly a fight scene in which she disarms him--aren’t particularly convincing. Grant gives a heartfelt performance, and her singing voice is pleasant.

Thomas is asked only to scream and shout--until her blood vessels seem likely to burst under her cascading curls. Her transformation into cautiously loving daughter is predictable, but not particularly believable.

* “Angel on My Shoulder,” Coast Playhouse, 8325 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m. Ends Aug. 20. $25. (323) 655-8587. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes.