Comedy serious about music

He’s one of the world’s most famous conductors. If only the musicians could understand a word he says -- and dodge his baton.

The spirit of Victor Borge is alive and well in “Baron Rabinovitsj,” the zany, critically acclaimed comedy concert from the Netherlands’ Het Filiaal company. After a Broadway appearance last year, the show makes its West Coast premiere at the Orange County Performing Arts Center’s Samueli Theater from Friday through Sunday.

Presented by OCPAC’s family series, the show, intended for adults and children 6 and older, is a collaboration between Het Filiaal artistic director Monique Corvers and Canadian Hungarian composer Gabor Tarjan, who rules the podium in the guise of his madcap alter ego, Baron Rabinovitsj. They’ve collaborated on several works for Het Filiaal, known for creating musical theater for families.

The twist is that the seven musicians in this chamber ensemble are the real thing: professional classical and jazz players who take everything the baron throws at them -- sometimes literally -- and still come up with the legit musical goods, an eccentric mix of classical, klezmer and ‘30s swing.

“Sometimes you can fool around with these comedy concerts and the music is not good anymore,” Corvers said, but here, despite all the shenanigans, the musicians “keep the music intact and beautiful.”

Corvers likes comparisons to Borge’s signature brand of music-based entertainment that the show has received. “He wasn’t being deliberately educational,” Corvers said of Borge, and neither is the baron, although underneath the comedy, the music is the message.

“Sometimes people say, ‘Oh, it’s for kids; it’s educational.’ That was never our goal. Our goal was to make a good comedy concert for everybody.”

The local performances have been incorporated into Orange County’s annual “Imagination Celebration” of the arts. Related activities include conducting workshops with the baron, a Q&A; with the cast and craft activities.

*

-- Lynne Heffley