A flimsy ‘Perfect Moment’

May 16, 1969, is the date “That Perfect Moment” seeks to reclaim. No need to notify the principals of Charles Bartlett and Jack Cooper’s seriocomic play at the NoHo Arts Center, for it’s the sum total of their crafted situation.

That date, immortalized in the poster that dominates the home of Mark and Sarah Vanowen in “lower Van Nuys,” was when love-rock band the Weeds played the Venice Pavilion. Ponytailed Mark, lead singer, has arranged a reunion tonight in an attempt to resurrect the past.

Sarah thinks differently, leaving him at the outset, and it’s soon clear that the Summer of Love isn’t quite as frozen in mind for his fellows as it is for Mark. Former bassist Albert and keyboardist Gabriel have their own issues. The wild card is now-conservative Skip, whose holiday letter sets the formulaic plot in motion.

Director Rick Sparks avoids tricking up the material, doing what he can to make the synthetic honest, and his cast is capable. Tait Ruppert keeps Mark sympathetic within the juvenilia; Bruce Katzman turns Skip into a solid foil. Guerin Barry wrings subtlety from Gabriel’s gay urbanity, Kelly Lester offers adept double duty as underdeveloped Sarah and agent Woodley, and John Bigham is a hoot as cosmic Albert.

Yet merely the hilarious video footage of the young Weeds (courtesy of designer Adam Flemming) exposes unexplored narrative areas, especially given Sky Keegan’s zingy original songs. “That Perfect Moment” has its moments, but they don’t add up to much.

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“That Perfect Moment,” NoHo Arts Center, 11136 Magnolia Blvd., North Hollywood. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Ends Nov. 8. $25. (323) 960-7745. Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes.

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David C. Nichols --

‘Doctor’ a wacky take on Moliere

Post-commedia antics are the prescribed treatment in “The Doctor Despite Himself” at Electric Lodge. Ipanema Theater Troupe’s wacky take on Moliere’s 1666 “Le Medecin malgre lui” is awash in slapstick aplomb.

That is obvious from the pre-show intrusion by woodcutter Sganarelle (Charles Fathy) and bickering Martine (Clara Bellar), his shrewish wife, as we take our seats.

Their Punch-and-Judy combat leads to Martine’s revenge -- giving her thick-headed spouse his comeuppance by passing him off as a learned physician. The plan backfires, to put it mildly.

In director Guru Monteiro’s hands, “Doctor” gambols about the black-box setting as though it’s a tony Second City workout. The translation by Bellar and the cast is slight but serviceable, and designer Swinda Reichelt’s costumes must be seen to be believed. Constructed of foam-core and stretchy elements, the outfits merge circus whimsy with a structural extravagance that suggests pet chew toys come to life.

Fathy’s deadpan drollery and Bellar’s amiable hectoring are in the classic style, albeit overextended. Raquel Brussolo gets ample mileage from the statuesque figure and blond locks of her tarty nursemaid to ingenue Lucinde (also Bellar), whose muteness provides Sganarelle’s big test.

She and inamorato Leandre (Brad Schmidt) wear campy color-coordinated cat suits, and Steven Houska’s various authority figures go from loopy to loopier in farcical form and function.

It is not really satirical, apart from a running list of treatments that directly reflects the current healthcare debate. But the company’s main objective is unassuming silliness. As such, “Doctor” is enjoyable, even if Moliere’s wit plays second fiddle to the wardrobe.

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David C. Nichols --

“The Doctor Despite Himself,” Electric Lodge Performance Space, 1416 Electric Ave., Venice. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Ends Nov. 8. $20. (310) 823-0710. Running time: 1 hour, 10 minutes.

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‘Hello’ looks at early AIDS crisis

Arthur Meiselman’s “Hello and . . . Goodbye,” written in 1991 and currently revived by the American Latino Theatre, provides an intriguing time-capsule look back at the AIDS crisis. This modest drama, played as a series of telephone conversations, admirably avoids easy emotional resolutions, but its two main characters remain stubbornly vague and out of focus.

Danny, a single gay man living with AIDS, is on a self-destructive bender while making random telephone calls to his friends at 2 in the morning. One day he receives a call from Sandra, a woman who also has AIDS and is part of a social outreach group called the Friends Project.

“Hello and . . . Goodbye!” carries the faint whiff of an uplifting public-service drama, but there’s enough emotional ambiguity to keep the audience off balance. Most of it comes from Danny -- an actively unpleasant character who seems intent on alienating everyone.

Performed by a rotating cast, the production (directed by David Llauger-Meiselman) features English- and Spanish-language nights. The English-language performance seen by this reviewer starred Alfredo Maduro and Jennifer Plascencia, both of whom plunged into their roles with ferocity.

The play ultimately comes up short in terms of character depth. The roles are alluring on the surface, but they remain half-written at best -- ciphers for an illness and lacking a full inner life.

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David Ng --

“Hello and . . . Goodbye!” The Lot, 1041 N. Formosa Ave., West Hollywood. 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; 5 and 8 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Ends Oct. 31. $20-$25. (323) 850-2655 or at www.americanlatino theatre.com. Running time: 1 hour, 10 minutes.

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‘Meet Me in St. Louis’ on the air

Fake Radio, Los Angeles’ “premiere old-time radio comedy troupe,” launches its new season of radio reenactments with “Meet Me in St. Louis,” a truncated radio adaptation of the 1944 film that first aired on the Lux Radio Theater in late 1946.

“St. Louis,” co-produced and directed by David Koff, who also performs, plays in repertory with “The Philadelphia Story” and “The Lone Ranger” and features a rotating cast of guest stars -- as do all the shows. Last weekend, the headliner was Phil Proctor from the old Firesign Theatre comedy group.

Slickly professional in every particular, this production features an adept cast of voice performers that clusters around a bank of fixed microphones, while sound designer Dan Foegelle provides the requisite creaks, beeps and thuds so crucial to the fun.

A singing trio opens the bill, followed by a quickie dramatization from “The Adventures of Superman,” featuring the formidably funny Dave Cox as the Man of Steel. Tongue-in-cheek commercial breaks for sponsor Lux Soap punctuate the action.

Proctor and his wife, Melinda Peterson, play the married patriarch and matriarch of the piece -- a sweet touch in a notably sweet show. As Esther Smith, arguably Judy Garland’s most memorable screen performance, dulcet-voiced Julie Millet courageously follows in Garland’s footsteps in a surprisingly pleasing turn. Also surprising, Proctor proves a standout singer in his single musical number.

However, during the opening weekend, this almost reverentially exact re-creation seemed to be a bit lacking in sheer goofiness. A shorter running time and a few more acid quips would help make this enjoyable evening truly memorable.

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F. Kathleen Foley --

“Meet Me in St. Louis,” Fake Radio at the Lost Studio, 130 S. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles. 8 p.m. Saturdays. Ends Oct. 24. $20. (877) 460-9774. www .fakeradio.net. Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes.