South African angst

Three actors, a unit set and a weapon: Like last season’s stunning “Miss Julie,” the Fountain Theatre’s U.S. premiere of “Victory” proves how much director Stephen Sachs can do with very little.

South African playwright Athol Fugard’s new work, a brisk 65 minutes, is set in a present-day Karoo village. More than a dozen years after the end of apartheid, economic hardship still grips the country. Two black teenagers from the slums, Freddie (Lovensky Jean-Baptiste) and Vicky (Tinashe Kajese), break into the home of Lionel (Morlan Higgins), a retired white professor. Tearing the place apart in search of valuables, they are surprised by Lionel, who’s purchased a pistol after previous burglaries.

Vicky turns out to be the daughter of Lionel’s late housemaid, and her betrayal cuts to the bone -- that is, until this academic begins to understand just how blithely he, the thoughtful liberal, had overlooked the desperation around him. Meanwhile, Freddie and Vicky discover that ransacking white privilege isn’t as satisfying as they’d expected. Ironically, they can’t take anything of value from Lionel: He’s as bleak-hearted as they are. (But living in substantially more comfort, as Travis Gale Lewis’ shabbily elegant set makes clear.)

Morlan Higgins conjures a world of pain as the widower Lionel, who buried his optimism with his beloved wife. This superb performer finds more power in listening than most actors would with a mountain of dialogue. The striking Kajese movingly expresses Vicky’s fury and terror in the face of freedom without real support.

Fugard’s estimable oeuvre and activism aside, “Victory” wears its metaphors on its sleeve. These characters compel on their own, yet the playwright can’t resist telling us how their violent encounter symbolizes his country’s crisis. And to its credit and detriment, “Victory” feels like half a story. The end is shattering, yet what you really want to know is what would happen next.

-- Charlotte Stoudt

“Victory,” The Fountain Theatre, 5060 Fountain Ave., Los Angeles. 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays. Ends March 9. $18-$25. Contact: (323) 663-1525. Running time: 1 hour, 5 minutes.

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Inside the minds of brutal killers

Sons of Chicago millionaires, teenage thrill killers Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb shook the nation in 1924 when they killed a distant acquaintance, 14-year-old Bobby Franks, merely to demonstrate their Nietschzean superiority.

Of course, the bungled crime proved instead the hubris of the pair. Years later, the killers still have the power to fascinate.

A hit off-Broadway, Stephen Dolginoff’s two-character musical, “Thrill Me,” delves into the distinctive pathology of the youths’ relationship, a homosexual attraction that devolved into a master-slave dynamic of deadly proportions.

Now in its Los Angeles premiere at the Hudson Backstage, “Thrill Me” proves a propitious debut for the Havok Theatre Company. This show is certainly not an easy sell. In his 1948 movie “Rope,” Alfred Hitchcock filtered the proceedings through the perspective of a determined man out to bust the duo, at the same time keeping the homoerotic overtones strictly covert.

Times have changed. Dolginoff renders Leopold and Loeb’s twisted affiliation as, first and foremost, a love story. The lack of an empathetic connection is still problematic, although director Nick DeGruccio largely redresses that deficit in an emotionally charged staging. Stewart W. Calhoun and Alex Schemmer, who play Leopold and Loeb, respectively, are so convincingly boyish that they resonate not as mere monsters, but as kids trapped in an escalating game of triple dare. Under the guidance of musical director Michael Paternostro, they deliver wrenching performances that force us to care, almost in spite of ourselves.

Suitably grim production elements -- Tom Buderwitz’s set, Drew Dalzell’s sound, Rachel Myers’ costumes and particularly Steven Young’s noir-ish lighting -- complete the disheartening portrait of youth gone awry.

-- F. Kathleen Foley

“Thrill Me,” Hudson Backstage, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood. 8 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 3 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Ends March 2. $34-$38. (323) 960-4429. Running time: 1 hour, 20 minutes.

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An inventive take on Fellini

There’s much to admire about “Il Bidone,” presented by Rushforth Productions at the Bootleg Theatre. Patrick Mapel’s adaptation of Federico Fellini’s 1955 film has its quirks, but they spring from a glut of theatrical invention.

“Il Bidone” (“The Swindle”), filmed between “La Strada” and “Nights of Cabiria,” is a study of three swindlers in postwar Rome. Unevenly received in its initial release, the episodic plot faintly resembles TV crime dramas, peppered with trademark ironic humor.

It pivots on Augusto (Ralph P. Martin), a hardened cynic whether he’s scamming peasants while disguised as a monsignor or wheedling a big-time gangster. To Augusto, the grift is everything. Less so to his cohorts -- skirt-chaser Roberto (Ben Messmer) and aspiring artist Picasso (York Griffith), whose criminality wavers against Iris (Sarah Utterback), his volatile wife. A chance encounter between Augusto and his estranged daughter resurrects his conscience, which leads to disaster.

Approaching the script as Felliniesque palette, director Mapel creates vivid imagery on designer Janne Larsen’s evocative set. The players are proficient, if at times overblown, with the versatile supporting ensemble -- Andrea Tzvetkov, Michael Dunn, Alexandra Billings, Katharine Brandt and Dean Chekvala -- almost worth the show.

Such brio sustains an odd punch despite the equivocal mix of surreal motifs and neo-realistic material. Costume designers Jason Trucco and Kishu Chand do yeoman work, but dressing the chorus as clowns proves distracting. Some segments play better in English than others, and the transitions to composer Okulus Anomali’s lounge-flavored music grow repetitious. Still, “Il Bidone” is no mere curiosity. Its aplomb heralds a company well worth watching.

-- David C. Nichols

“Il Bidone,” Bootleg Theater, 2220 Beverly Blvd., L.A. 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays. Ends Feb. 23. $20. (213) 455-1495 or www.tix.com. Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes.

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High-concept ‘Merry Wives’

Before the housewives of Wisteria Lane and Orange County, there were Shakespeare’s homemakers in “The Merry Wives of Windsor.” These gossipy English matrons spend most of their time socializing and contemplating infidelity. In many ways, they are as modern as their TV counterparts.

The current production of Shakespeare’s comedy at the Globe Theater in Topanga updates the play to circa 1928 and features a Falstaff who is a hip-hop artist visiting from the present. The high-concept reinterpretation feels random, but the cast’s conviviality and love for the play are contagious.

Decked out in a loud orange suit and yellow hat, Falstaff (Archie Lee Simpson) arrives in a small Western town with plans to woo women “high and low, rich and poor.” His switchblade-wielding henchmen bully town leaders, but these urban time travelers are no match for the clever housewives.

Updating a play is no substitute for a coherent directorial vision, and this production often feels scattered despite the efficient staging by Dennis Gersten, who keeps the action moving at a clipped pace.

At times, the cast shouts lines as if they don’t trust Shakespeare’s words to speak for themselves. Still, their affection for the play is always palpable. Susan Foley and Heather Roop as Mistress Page and Mistress Ford, respectively, invest their roles with intelligence and passion. Best are Saundra McClain as Mistress Quickly and Peter Leake as Mr. Ford, who bring depth to their silly characters. Their infectious enjoyment makes it easy to forgive the production’s many weaknesses.

-- David Ng

“The Merry Wives of Windsor,” Globe Theater in Topanga, 1909 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Ends March 1. $36-$45. (310) 455-9400. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes.

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Asking who’s her baby’s daddy

The original title of “A Brief History of Penguins and Promiscuity,” now at the Grove Theatre Center’s Burbank space, was “The Importance of Ernest Being.” There’s little doubt why. In his farcical romp about a woman who is not sure which of three men fathered her child, playwright James McLindon owes an obvious debt to Oscar Wilde. (Note the witty dialogue.) He also owes a passing nod to Ray Cooney. (Note the puerile sexual puns.)

Granted, that puerility, however gleeful, can strain the gossamer thread of plot. However, the playwright’s distinctive blend of craft and crudity yields plenty of laughter.

For some strange reason, later to be explained, Albert (Jonah Hamilton Keel) and his wife, Julia (Sondi Kroeger Foley), both academics, speak in tony British accents that augment the Wildean tone. The couple’s notably ugly friend King (Michael John Walters), a biologist specializing in penguin behavior, arrives for a visit at Albert’s invitation. It seems that seven years ago, in Paris, Julia, under the influence of an aphrodisiacal penguin extract, had a fling with King that may have resulted in her pregnancy. Or is the father of her child Roquefort (a hilarious Travis Clark), a French waiter who also arrives on the scene to complicate the paternity issue?

A teeming rookery of stuffed and plaster penguins, Leonard Ogden’s set establishes a fittingly whimsical tone. Abetted by his limber, funny cast, which includes handsome Ryan McCann as the fantasy lover who pops up at intervals as a comical substitute for Julia’s less-than-prepossessing suitors, Kevin Cochran directs with an over-the-top goofiness that enhances his material.

-- F.K.F.

“A Brief History of Penguins and Promiscuity,” GTC Burbank, 1111-B West Olive Ave., Burbank. 8 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays. Ends Feb. 9. $30. (818) 238-9998. Running time: 1 hour, 50 minutes.

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A relatively smooth flight

Flight as metaphor steers “Departures,” now at NoHo Arts Center. This agreeable dramedy about 12 people in an airport terminal is intelligent popular fare, though it has some sui generis bumps.

Shaped by James J. Mellon in collaboration with members of Open at the Top, “Departures” is smoothly mounted. As passengers arrive at designer Dana Moran Williams’ fine stylized set, a flight attendant (Effie Hortis) mimes pre-show announcements, and “Departures” takes off.

Duane Poole’s buoyant “Fear of Flying,” Michael Catlin’s uplifting “The Man in the Chair and the Porter” and David Ferguson’s arch title piece have the most stand-alone potential. Other narratives owe more to the concept, which forms a secular parable about leaps of faith.

Overall, director Bob Morrisey maintains a clear trajectory, ably assisted by Luke Moyer’s lighting, Megan S. Densmore’s costumes and Jonathan Zenz’s sound and fueled by the cast. Melanie Ewbanks as the seemingly daft grandmother of Penelope Richards’ “Eye Spy” is perhaps the standout, though Andrea Lockhart’s runaway bride, Roger Ainsle’s panicky pilot and J.R. Mangles’ frazzled groom keep “Flying” hilariously aloft.

Danny Murphy and Curtis C. carry “Man in the Chair” through acute feeling past erratic technique. Writer-actress Hortis devours the graphic phone calls that comprise her “My First True Love” segments. Robert Arbogast reveals sly amorality in the title monologue. Zenz and Michael Craig Shapiro make touching would-be gay parents in Mark Wyrick’s “Mai Ling.” Morrisey and Jim Lunsford dig deep as grandfather and father of a soldier in Iraq in Lunsford’s “Remember the Hawks.”

The group conviction outweighs the pitfalls of a by-committee script, which encounters air pockets of issue overload and stylistic turbulence. Though it taxis down a slightly over-schematic runway, “Departures” should easily land with audiences.

-- D.C.N.

“Departures,” NoHo Arts Center, 11136 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Ends Feb. 24. $25. (818) 518-7101. Running time: 1 hour, 25 minutes.