Theater New Reviews: Tooth and Nail, Sarah Sarah, Canned Ham

BAD DATES During Act 1 of Theresa Rebeck's monodrama, Haley Walker (Samara Frame) seems to be an addle-pated fashionista with a passion for shoes to rival Imelda Marcos. As a single mother, she has parlayed her way into a job managing a restaurant (and money-laundering operation) run by Romanian Mafia. Mostly, she worries about her clothes, and her unsuccessful efforts to find a good man. (She's also struck by the resemblance of her life to Joan Crawford's Mildred Pierce.) She recites a hilarious litany of disastrous first (and last) dates with losers: a pedantic Buddhist, a pompous law professor, et al. But Act 2 peels away the layers of her working life, which she manages with cleverness, hard work and spunk, outwitting the Mafiosi, and saving the restaurant. In an effective metaphor, she spends most for the early scenes applying makeup, and the latter ones assiduously removing it. Under the careful direction of Carolyn Howarth, a seemingly frivolous comedy is transformed into a portrait of a tough and resourceful woman. And Frame engagingly captures both aspects of her contradictory nature. Dan Mailley's wonderfully cluttered set is crammed with enough shoes and outfits to supply a Paris Fashion Week. The Lounge Theatre, 6201 Santa Monica Boulevard, Hollywood; Thurs. & Sat., 8 p.m., Sun., 2 p.m.; indef. Produced by Lone Star Ensemble. (323) 960-5770, plays411.com. (Neal Weaver)

GO  CANNED HAM While performing at the Ahmanson Theater in 42nd Street, performer Tom Judson shot his first scene in a porn-film, under the direction of ubiquitous entrepreneur Chi Chi LaRue, and, at age 42, he became porn star Gus Mattox. But that was only one chapter in his long, varied career. He performed on Broadway in Cabaret, playing multiple musical instruments. He has written music for TV (Sesame Street), off-Broadway (Vampire Lesbians of Sodom), and film (Metropolitan), and acted off-Broadway as well. His is a colorful story, and Judson tells it here in his solo performance with infectious charm and self-deprecating wit. He's done time as a professional escort, which left him feeling more like a psychotherapist than a sex object, and he was nominated (and lost) so many times for a GayVN award (the Oscars of porn), that he was compared to Susan Lucci, till he finally won as Performer of the Year. Along the way he plays some Chopin on the piano, and tells us about his longtime lover Bruce, who died of AIDS. Under the tactful direction of Kevin Maloney, this is a sweet and funny show. The Cavern Club Theater at Casita del Campo, 1920 Hyperion Ave., Silver Lake; Fri.-Sat., 9 p.m., Sun., 7 p.m., through May 16. Produced by TWEED Theater Works, Kearns Artist Services, and Chi Chi LaRue Productions. brownpapertickets.com/event/100513. (Neal Weaver)

EVA PERON: ENIGMA OF A DESTINY Though Angela Nicholas and Anibal Silveyra's new translation and adaptation of Anibal Aprile's original play aspires to, according to its press release, peel back the paint to discover Eva Peron's true colors, this is little more than a fawning, reverential homage to the much-adored, rags-to-riches wife of Argentinian President Juan Peron. The production, which touches briefly on young Evita's (Julia Szilagyi) destitute childhood before following Eva's (Angela Nicholas) journey from actress to first lady in Buenos Aires, attempts to integrate tango and music as a means of enriching the story. Unfortunately, while Zita Gonzalez's choreography is fine, the dance sequences are more disorienting than complementary. Worse yet, they feel like filler for a story that doesn't have enough to say. There's nothing inherently wrong with theatrically chronicling a historical figure's life. But if it has already been done, both famously and with extensive productions (Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's Evita), a company should have something more substantial to contribute to the conversation before joining in. Anibal Silveyra, who stars as Juan Peron, also directs. Knightsbridge Theatre, 1944 Riverside Drive, Silver Lake; Fri.-Sat, 8 p.m.; Sun., 6 p.m.; through May 16. (323) 667-0955. (Rebecca Haithcoat)

FULL DISCLOSURE The intriguing setup of Ruth McKee's site-specific play invites the audience to a real home for sale in a secret suburban location in order to enact the role of prospective buyers at an open house. We are greeted by overly eager, aptly named Realtor Sunny (Amy Ellenberger), who insists that shoes be removed or covered with booties. Sunny's over-the-top enthusiasm and pushiness (and plate of fresh cookies) is an auspicious beginning to what looks to be a participatory environmental theater piece. But the prospects soon dim into a long, seriocomic monologue about Sunny's complicated relationship to the house and its owners. The title does not refer to the problems of the home itself but to the annoying personalities who inhabit it. Ultimately the evening is an exercise in Sunny's self-pity, and audiences may feel that they've been trapped in an airplane with a seatmate who won't stop talking about her problems, all of which so obviously stem from her self-absorption, and who fails to recognize how her poor judgment and faulty ethics have been the cause of all her troubles. Sometimes a character's blindness is intriguing. Not so here. Chalk Repertory Theatre; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun, 7 p.m. 800-838-3006. In order to protect the privacy of the home's hosts, specific addresses will only be given at the time of purchase. (Tom Provenzano)