STAGE WEST: "Beau Jest" at North Coast Repertory Theatre

A Seder meal with an imposter guest proves awkward and hilarious in "Beau Jest." Photo by Aaron Rumley

            With a lot of cutting and no genuine loss of substance, James Sherman’s romantic comedy “Beau Jest” could be condensed into one of those 15-minute vignettes they broadcast on “Love American Style.”
            Call it “Love Jewish-American Style.”
          Instead this longtime staple of both professional and community theater runs a couple of hours long, North Coast Rep’s current production included. “Beau Jest” is pure fluffy fun and so without sexual suggestion or innuendo that it could be rated G. Even more than one of those old “Love American Style” episodes could have been rated G.
            I’ve seen “Beau Jest” a couple of times now, and finally I’ve learned a lesson that maybe even playwright Sherman didn’t intend, that everyone needs a shrink in the family. Because it’s therapist Joel Goldman (a superb Josh Cahn at North Coast) who finally tells beleaguered sister Sarah (Katrina Michaels) what she needs to do: TELL THE TRUTH! He also tells her something that anyone who blames his, her or their parents for whatever is wrong with their lives must do: GET OVER IT!
            But brother Joel, who is not painted as a very sympathetic character in spite of his common-sense wisdom, only gets to impart these truisms to Sarah well into Act 2. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have a show. You wouldn’t have Sarah’s “beau jest.”
            For newbies to this 1989 comedy, Sarah Goldman is a single Jewish woman in her 20s whose helicoptering mother and complicit father don’t approve of her Gentile boyfriend, Chris Cringle (as if there were any doubt that he isn’t Jewish). So to placate them, because she MUST have her parents’ approval even in her 20s, Sarah hires an affable actor named Bob Schroeder (Sam Ashdown, quite good in this production) to portray a Dr. David Steinberg, someone who will meet all of Mother and Father’s requirements as a fitting romantic companion for their daughter.
            Over a series of gatherings in Sarah’s Chicago apartment, Bob stands in beautifully as David, winning over Sarah’s mom (Jill Remez) completely and satisfying her dad (Joel Polis) in the bargain. Only the aforementioned sage brother Joel is suspicious, and we know he has reason to be in spite of Bob’s impressive thespian skills.
            Much laughter is wrung from Bob managing to fit in at the family dinner table, including at a Seder meal, and if physical comedy is “Beau Jest’s” calling card, that can be attributed to director Omri Schein, who’s a master in that department. He’s also performed himself in a production of this show before, at Lamb’s Players Theatre in Coronado. Even then Schein was smart enough to play the role of sage brother Joel.
            That Bob and Sarah fall for each other, leaving Chris Cringle (Benjamin Cole) out in the cold (brrrrr) and foreshadowing a literal moment of truth in front of parents Miriam and Abe is inevitable.
            While the comic material is somewhat old hat by today’s rom-com standards and “Beau Jest” could use a little spicing up, it’s still a drawing-room playground for actors with the spirit, and the North Coast Rep cast one and all has that spirit. Ashdown’s part is the meatiest, and he doesn’t disappoint. Hell, if I had a daughter I’d want her to marry him too.
            Can’t help but feel a little sorry for Chris Cringle – not just for his unfortunate name but that he never really has a chance with the overly emotional, mercurial Sarah.
            But all’s fair, as they say. Maybe Chris found a good, helpful therapist at some point, you know, who told him to get over it.
            “Beau Jest” runs through May 24 at North Coast Repertory Theatre in Solana Beach.