Keeping comedy short and satiric

Although the eight rapid-fire vignettes that make up “Live Sex Comedy” at the Court Theatre aren’t as risque as the name implies, they nevertheless dispense a copious share of outrageous satire. Savvy enough not to tackle more than it can deliver, this good-natured revue combines sharp writing with enthusiastic performances by co-creators Carolyn Omine and Billy Wright.

A writer and producer for “The Simpsons,” Omine (who also directs) is an onstage dynamo, providing arch, acerbic counterpoint to sketch comedy veteran Wright’s freewheeling antics.

Agreeable chemistry propels their loopy characters through various scenes, cleverly transitioned with painted set flats that open like leaves in a book.

The particularly strong opener finds an empathetic pet therapist hired by a divorced housewife to diagnose the angst of her sulking Chihuahua.

As the doc’s excessively specific findings wallow in anthropomorphic pop psychology cliches (“Mommy can drink and smoke pot, but I can’t have a slice of cheese!”), the woman’s pent-up hormones come increasingly to the fore, requiring some unorthodox obedience training for her as well.

A later, equally accomplished sketch turns the tables with Wright’s nerdy telemarketer under the thumb of Omine’s heartless supervisor, who manipulates him out of his job while breast-feeding her infant, with predictable but still-hilarious sight gags.

Another stellar turn features Omine as a gospel-belting evangelist whose call for testimonials draws Wright’s sewer-mouthed lowlife from the audience to confess his sins with questionable repentance, much to her growing dismay.

The most fully developed characters are a pair of live sex show performers who combine kinks with surprising innocence as they begin a charming courtship, and return in the final scene for an outrageous wedding ceremony.

Even when the characters are stretched thin -- as in two horror/suspense parodies and a fight between rival sibling doctors -- the exuberant slapstick keeps the scenes from wearing out their welcome.

-- Philip Brandes

“Live Sex Comedy,” Court Theatre, 722 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood. Saturdays, Sundays, 8 p.m. Ends June 8. $15. (323) 692-0010. Running time: 1 hour, 5 minutes.