THEATER REVIEW : ‘One Acts’ an Uneven, Entertaining Lot

Series A of West Coast Ensemble’s 10th annual “Celebration of One Acts” is a scant, uneven but nonetheless entertaining program of three short plays, all with a distinctly urban edge.

Lenore Carlson’s “The Recruiter,” exuberantly directed by Sharon Lee Connors, opens the evening with a light touch. Joan (Andi Matheny), a scheming executive recruiter in a nameless big city, tries to convince the reluctant Elizabeth (Carol McLaine) to take a job she doesn’t really want.

Matheny plays the maniacally manipulative Joan with a propulsive force that keeps Carlson’s somewhat slight vehicle in overdrive. Unfortunately, the final revelation of a conspiracy, never sufficiently explained, plunges Carlson’s work into confusion.

Brian Christopher Williams’ “Token to the Moon” transmutes a bizarre premise into a gentle love story. Doris Ann (Alison Vail), a lonely young interpreter at the U.N., speaks over a dozen languages but has no one to talk to at the end of the day. When Smitty (Rocco Vienhage), a strange, intense young man, approaches Doris Ann at a Manhattan subway stop, Doris Ann realizes that here is the perfect man to share her thoughts--literally. Smitty is telepathic.

Williams tends to overstate and oversimplify his drama, but director Richard Large’s staging is effectively subdued and sincere.

Series A culminates with H. Robert Griffiths’ “Yoogene,” a moving character piece about a bereaved Italian-American family mourning its dearly departed.

Set in Brooklyn, this is a slice-of-life drama with an Italian flair, a sort of downbeat “Moonstruck” that keeps the laughs flowing along with the tears. On first impression, these seem to be typical working-class Italians. What makes them atypical is the fact that Gene, who is being so sincerely mourned, was none other than the only son’s longtime homosexual lover, who has died of AIDS. And what makes Griffiths’ piece remarkable is its simple, matter-of-fact treatment of homosexuality, AIDS and death, and their effect on one unremarkable family.

Granted, Mama (Angela DeCicco), the widowed matriarch, has some unresolved issues about the manner of Gene’s death--but her reservations arise not from moral disapproval, but from her own fierce grief.

Richard Israel’s rigorously undemonstrative staging enhances the play’s emotional climax all the more. The talented cast includes Diane Shaver, Bill Dispoto, Carol Stanzione and Matt Gallagher, all bright satellites orbiting the splendid DeCicco, whose polished performance brilliantly refracts the piece’s shining humanity.

* 10th annual Celebration of One-Act Plays: Series A, West Coast Ensemble, 6240 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood. Saturday, 8 p.m.; Sunday, 3 p.m.; March 2, 3, 11, 16, 17, 25, 8 p.m.; March 12, 26, 3 p.m. $10. (213) 871-1052. Ends March 26. Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes.