"Remember, sometimes a laugh is just a laugh," warns San Diego State alumnus Matt Thompson, co-writer and director of the play, "If the Shoe Fits."
The play is nothing but gags, jokes and physical comedy, which may be the reason its West Coast premiere has been extended two extra weeks through April 22 at The Coronado Playhouse.
The venue alone is reason enough to see a show. It's set on the bay, patrons sit at tables of four and order drinks and snacks to enjoy during the performance, giving the spacious theater a comfortable, friendly feel.
"If the Shoe Fits" successfully borrows signature elements and characterizations from classic (and cliché) movies from "Clue" to "Weekend at Bernie's." Moreover, Thompson's play takes advantage of the same gimmick that brings NBC's hit gameshow, "Deal or No Deal," such high ratings: No thinking is required.
The acting is exceptional. Four larger-than-life characters come alive in a nonsensical dialogue resembling Edward Albee's "The American Dream." Nicole Brokaw's portrayal of Delores, a restless housewife determined to kill her oblivious husband, explores a spectrum of vibrant emotions. Her range spans from gooey, nauseating affection to raging jealousy to exaggerated paranoia.
"I'm trapped in my own home with a homicidal shoe salesman!" Delores says in the play. "It's like I'm in a Lifetime movie."
The maid, Esperanza, played convincingly well by Faeren Adams, provides the most consistent comic relief in the show by Adams putting her own extreme spin on overused Mexican stereotypes, down to her last name (with many more names in between): Chimichanga.
Brian Mackey plays George, the complacent shoe salesman turned zany murderer, with the same depth as Andrew McCarthy of "Weekend at Bernie's." George's antics in concealing a dead body and impersonating a German doctor lacks any sense of subtlety but that seems intentional. As the plot gets crazier, so does he and watching Mackey react to the chaos is definitely entertaining, albeit predictable.
Speaking of predictable, Eddie Vandiver as the dense husband Marvin does what he can, but his character's two-dimensional personality leaves little room for interpretation. He does, however, get to perform horrible jokes and impressions, and he's dragged around the stage, which is somewhat of a novelty in theater today.
Thompson's direction adds several moments of genuine humor through physical action and vocal inflection on otherwise clear-cut dialogue; lighting, costume and set designs are competent yet unremarkable.
Once "If the Shoe Fits" gets going, an onslaught of falling, yelling, screaming, kissing, partying and panicking keeps the energy onstage at an incredible high. The silliness and banality might wear thin but if you're up for a laugh, you're guaranteed at least one.
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