What if the U.S. government had access to a chemical pheromone compound that could make anyone fall in love? Would we use this power for good, or for evil?

Well of course, the answer is that we would not use it for good. This is the age of NSA, after all. And Obama Spy Drama, now playing at the Acme Comedy Theatre in Hollywood, won't let you forget it.

The musical comedy piece opens with Michelle Obama (Arielle Widemon Siler) reprimanding her husband (Matthew Harris) for spying on George Clooney, but they both eventually become too infatuated with the power they have to give it up. ]
Enter Danger! No, literally – CIA official Carlos Peligro (“danger” in Spanish, played by Guillermo Lozano) explains that with this pheromone perfume, they will be able to convince Edward Snowden (Dan Amerman) to fall in love with their new agent, Dania (Beth Triffon), and leave Russia. Of course, nothing goes according to plan, and after Vladimir Putin (Christopher Robert Smith) accidentally falls in love with Snowden, things take a turn for the absurd (aren't all international conflicts settled by arm-wrestling?). 

The show, which is a world premiere from the D.C.-based City in a Swamp Productions, has a few clever and amusing moments, but most of the jokes are trying to be funnier than they are, and it becomes painful to watch one after the other in Nicholas Zill's script fall flat.

Mercifully for both the audience and the actors, the show (directed by Caitlin Hart) zips by in an hour and a half, including intermission. The cast isn't done any favors by the canned orchestra or the flat lights. Maybe another audience would enjoy the humor of Obama Spy Drama, but that audience would probably need to be drunk.

Acme Comedy Hollywood, 135 N. La Brea Ave., Hlywd; Fri. & Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m.; through March 30. (626) 274-1745; www.acmecomedy.com.

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