Ten to Life

Comments (0) By Deborah Klugman Thursday, May 21 2009

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Leave logic at the door and you'll get your full quota of laughs from this quartet of one-acts, each of which blends sci-fi, sex and absurdity in an entertaining way. Written by Annette Lee, "Hacienda Heights" is about a homicidal teen (Ewan Chung) living with a sexually predatory and abusive mom (Janet Song) and even more abusive grandmom (Emily Kuroda). Off to commit mass murder, he's forestalled when his alternate self (Feodor Chin) arrives from another dimension to redirect his aggression toward the villains at home. In Nic Cha Kim's "RE:verse" (the evening's funniest and most satisfying), a man (Chung) headed for his 10th high-school reunion undergoes extensive cosmetic surgery at a bargain-basement price; the catch is that it's for three days only, after which he'll revert — at an inconvenient moment, of course, else it wouldn't be funny — to his former self. Tim Lounibos' "Be Happy" concerns the power struggle between a psychiatrist (Chin) and his patient-wife (Peggy Ahn). The setup is confusing at first and it's a bit of a wait to the final payoff — but worth it. Judy Soo Hoo's "The Red Dress" is about a married woman (Song) who, strangely, keeps insisting to her husband (Elpido Ebuen) that they renew the warranty on her "red dress" — a plea he rejects, precipitating hellish consequences. No small part of the production's humor comes courtesy of designer Dennis Yen's sound and Christopher M. Singleton's lighting; the latter highlights the erotic and/or gruesome scenarios that intermittently play out behind set designer Philippe Levine's classy sliding screens. GTC Burbank, 1111-B W. Olive Ave., Toluca Lake; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m.; through June 7. (818) 238-9998. A Londestone Theatre Ensemble production.
Fridays, Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m. Starts: May 2. Continues through June 7, 2009