‘Pot Mom,’ the straight dope

A decade before the acclaimed Showtime series “Weeds” explored suburban drug dealing, award-winning playwright Justin Tanner tackled the subject with even more believability and humor in “Pot Mom.”

Laurie Metcalf from “Roseanne” triumphantly revisits a role she last played eight years ago, joining a perfectly cast ensemble also seriously familiar with the material.

Burbank’s Third Stage Company is firing on all cylinders, bringing Tanner’s best work to life with all its bitterness and truths intact. The many joys of smoking pot regardless of one’s age form the foundation for a deeper examination of how constant self-comfort can lead to diminished dreams.

From the minute Patty (Ellen Ratner) lights up her first joint at 10 in the morning with best friend Michelle (Metcalf), it’s obvious that her life revolves around marijuana. Her live-in boyfriend Richard (Jonathan Palmer) grows it in a greenhouse right behind their Salinas home, selling the finished buds to local lowlifes like Gene (Cody Chappel) and Nick (Guilford Adams).

Patty’s three kids from a previous marriage beg, borrow and steal Richard’s pot for their own personal use until he reaches his breaking point. Troy (Todd Lowe) tears tickets at a nearby movie theater and mouths off to Richard. Lisa (Victoria Prescott) sunbathes nude just to torture Richard. Meanwhile, Lorraine (Tate Hanyok) longs for a more reputable future. She’s intent on impressing a mother (Sally Strecker) and daughter (Audrey Siegel) from a wealthy family enough to join their country club.

As Richard’s watches his discretionary income go up in smoke, he eventually delivers an ultimatum to Patty that her kids better shape up or he’s leaving.

And even though she’s happiest puffing away and watching “I Love Lucy” reruns, Patty vows to end her unemployment “vacation” and make things better around the house. Unfortunately, her crazy friend and her even nuttier offspring make that more difficult than it should be.

While everyone fits comfortably in their roles, Metcalf and Lowe stand out. Metcalf is fearless in portraying Michelle as a complete mess after breaking up with her boyfriend. Even when her character is tottering around blind drunk in a purple dress hardly able to stand, she still spits out biting and witty comebacks with expert timing. Many of her best lines are delivered under her breath, so listen closely.

Lowe makes eldest son Troy a lovable loser, breezing on and off stage to hurl an insult or get under Richard’s skin. Sometimes he just pokes his head through a door to attack someone, and disappears just as quickly.

Like short-term memory loss, the funniest moments disappear quickly into the thick haze of pot smoke constantly emanating from various paraphernalia.

Tanner, who also directs, keeps the one-liners coming at breakneck speed until late in the story. And when the smoke finally clears toward the end, he manages to show the downside of chronic use without condemning it completely.

FYI:

WHAT: “Pot Mom” by Justin Tanner

WHEN: 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays until April 1

WHERE: Third Stage, 2811 W. Magnolia Blvd., Burbank

TICKETS: $20, $15 for students, seniors, and 4-A union members

PHONE: (818) 842-4755

WEBSITE: www.thirdstage.org