‘12 Steps’ a Caring Look at Family Woes

Think your family is peculiar? Writer-performer Rob Nash takes an affectionate look at a troubled “double-white trailer trash” Houston family and gently redefines the meaning of family values in “12 Steps to a More Dysfunctional Family,” the latest installment of a multi-part saga, at Highways.

Grandmother Mildred left her alcoholic husband, wrote a book about it and is making the talk-show circuit. Her gay son Fred is HIV-positive, but his credit accounts are all in the negative. Her lesbian daughter is systematically cleansing her body with every New Age fad that comes along. Granddaughter Ashley is bulimic and grandson Matt is a drug dealer. The children’s mother, daughter-in-law Margot (her husband died in an accident), is back in school and out of her children’s life.

Although some segments are briefly confusing, Nash does a remarkable job defining each of the six characters with gestures and voice. This isn’t white-trash bashing, and the problems this family faces have a hard edge. Nothing is neatly tied up and this lack of resolution hints that Nash is far from finished with this Houston family.

* “12 Steps to a More Dysfunctional Family,” Highways, 1651 18th St., Santa Monica. Today-Sunday, 8:30 p.m. Ends Sunday. $15. (310) 660-8587. Running time: 1 hour, 30 minutes.