On Theater: Boy chases girl, gets hit with restraining order, and the rest is mostly laughs

Reality and fantasy meet head-on in Eliza Clark’s intriguing and surprisingly accessible new comedy “Future Thinking,” now enjoying its world premiere at South Coast Repertory.

Although set at San Diego’s Comic Con festival and focusing on one of the show’s headliners, there’s little fodder for pulp fiction nerds here. Rather, Clark zeroes in on the real drama behind the fictional swashbucklers, though “drama” might be a strange choice of words in this instance.

There’s a bit of seriousness here and there, but Clark’s primary mission is to elicit laughter, and with the contribution of director Lila Neugebauer and a well-chosen cast, she succeeds splendidly. There’s far more intrigue going on in the hotel rooms than in front of the cameras.

The show’s initial premise centers on a 51-year-old fanboy (SCR and TV veteran Arye Gross) who’s being detained for breaking a restraining order served on him by a gorgeous young actress, the unwilling recipient of a gift from Gross’ character, a vial of his blood, at the previous Comic Con.

That opening scene, between Gross and swaggering security guard Enver Gjokaj, may run a bit overlong in establishing characterization, but what follows is a comical banana split. We meet the beautiful object of Gross’ affections (Virginia Vale) and share her issues with Mommy (Heidi Dippold) and her no-nonsense bodyguard (Jud Williford).

Gross is terrific as the pathetic pet photographer yearning to encounter his dream girl, a fixation that has cost him his marriage. Gjokaj ably projects authority overly impressed by its own importance.

The sweet and sour nymphet, a showbiz veteran curiously still virginal at 23, is wonderfully interpreted by Vale, particularly in a late-show scene where she dresses in character and allows Gross to act out his fantasies. Dippold revels as her overprotective mother, while Williford exudes command as the bodyguard more attuned to guarding Mama’s body.

The multiple settings, by Dane Laffrey, swoosh on and off stage virtually propelled by Stowe Nelson’s brilliant sound designs. Melissa Trn has created some impressive costumes — particularly those for Gross and Vale in their climactic encounter — and Lap Chi Chu’s lighting effects are striking.

Come for the Comic Con appeal but stay for the true comedy of “Future Thinking,” a highly literate and wildly funny world premiere at South Coast Repertory.

TOM TITUS reviews local theater.

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IF YOU GO

What: “Future Thinking”

Where: South Coast Repertory, Segerstrom Stage, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa

When: 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 8 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays, and 2:30 p.m. matinees Saturdays and Sundays until April 24

Cost: Tickets start at $22

Information: (714) 708-5555