Back in Boston for a limited engagement, F. Hugh Herbert's Broadway hit, "The Moon Is Blue," is in capable hands. It has a skillful cast headed by Marcia Henderson, James Young, and Hiram Sherman which rivals in every way the performances of the original production.

The plot of this disarmingly innocent sex comedy is simple enough. It concerns a virtuous young girl who is picked up by an architect atop the Empire State Building. They subsequently go to his apartment, where they are joined by an amiable but immoral neighbor (played by Hiram Sherman with a fraudulent Southern accent) living in an upstairs suite. From there on the presence of the naive and pure young lady in such worldly surroundings is situation enough for Mr. Herbert to spin a clever and funny play which never sags because of its witty conversation.

Marcia Henderson as Patty O'Neil gives a coherent and charming characterization. She actually looks as though she believes what she is saying, and she knows her cues perfectly. Miss Henderson's performance is all the more remarkable because she stepped into the role only two days before the opening.

Hiram Sherman as the cynical libertine has the best lines in the show, and his underplaying is effective. James Young, the confused young lover, is adequate in a straightforward role. Lester Mack also appears briefly as the girl's high-principled father. He bursts in belligerently, flattens his daughter's suitor, and then returns to the pinochle game backstage.

Stewart Chaney had dressed up the play with two colorful and pleasing sets depicting the tower of the Empire State Building and the apartment in which most of the action occurs. Director Otto Preminger's staging is on the whole adroit; it may may be picayune to point out that the dialogue near the end of the second act is somewhat monotonous.

Mr. Herbert is not an extraordinarily inventive writer, nor is "The Moon Is Blue" a very imaginative play. But the witty repartee and the expert acting result in a funny and diverting comedy.