THEATER

Happy Part

by Michael Sonnenschein

directed by Matthew Pakulski and Michael

Sonnenschein

at Leverett E Basement

Student playwright and co-director Michael Sonnenschein blends quirky characters, a complex plot and skillful direction in Happy Part, a tale of life, love and bowling. Bowling? Is this a subject for high drama? Well, not exactly. But Sonnenschein's dark comedy about frustrated aspirations in Tulsa, Oklahoma provides amusement and even a bit of truth in its own offbeat way.

Sonnenschein places his characters in cliched situations and then abruptly undermines the cliche with a sarcastic twist; his sense of humor produces great moments. But at times, the action degenerates into a melodramatic mish-mash (murders, explosions and family desertions abound).

Happy Part features Jim (Jason Cooper), an ex-con who did time in a minimum-security prison for parking violations; his son Steve (Alex Burger), who is trying to break into professional bowling to win back his deadbeat father's affection; and Maxine (Susan Swearingen), Jim's lovelorn but down-to-earth girlfriend.

Jim is trying to stay clean and put his life back together when Jane (Erin Scott), his exwarden, convinces him to help her con innocent people out of their money. As Maxine's jealousy and frustration grow, Jim's boss Herb (Jonathan Weinberg) falls in love with her.

There's ample comic material here, and directors Matthew Pakulski and Sonnenschein make full use of it. They are working with a small space in the basement of Leverett E, but manage to transform it into several different sites with an economical use of props. The directors have also made skillful use of the cramped space in their stage direction. Maxine and Jim's exchanges occur on a couch in their apartment, and their placement becomes significant: when the power balance between them shifts, they switch places on the couch.

When the characters drift down memory lane, the directors switch to a blue spotlight. This almost campy technique works because of its campiness: the audience laughs, but at the same time, the light focuses the audience on Steve's monologue. When he reminisces, the audience chuckles. But when he concludes, "Anticlimax--I like that word" and the light snaps off, the theme that links these characters' lives lingers.

The three central actors turn in competent, entertaining performances. Burger's light tone softens his earnestness, and he delivers his funny lines without overdoing them. Cooper's Jim is similarly understated, which is essential considering the succession of rapid emotional trials he experiences. Swearingen's straightforward Maxine is also entertaining: "My heart is like a rollercoaster, but it isn't really all that exciting," she complains.

At times, however, both the actors and the writer overdo it. The second half of the play, though full of slapdash action, is woefully short on the humor that characterizes the first. When Sonnenschein's script puts trite psychobabble into the mouths of these Tulsa bowling enthusiasts, the effect is unconvincing.

But Sonnenschein's clever dialogue saves the day. By the end, Happy Part returns to its natural, light-hearted self and lets comedy conquer cliche.