Becky's New Car

Becky Foster (Joanna Daniels) has been married for 28 years to laidback roofer Joe (Jon Eric Preston); and her 20-something son, Chris (Nick Rogers), is studying psychology and living in the basement. This she confesses to us as she breaks the fourth wall to draw the audience into her life, even including helping her change clothes onstage. It sounds like pretty standard fare, but what sets this comedy apart is the warmth of the characterizations, genuinely funny dialogue by Steven Dietz, and superior direction by Michael Rothhaar.

Becky is a workaholic title clerk for a car dealer. Late one evening an eccentric widower, Walter Flood (Brad Greenquist), arrives and wants to buy nine cars for his office party. Assuming she is a widow, he invites her to a party at his home, and she succumbs to temptation and goes. From then on, her life twists and turns wackily all the way to Dietz's clever ending.

Daniels pulls out all the stops, and her expressive reactions to Becky's circumstances are part and parcel of the success of the production. The phlegmatic Preston is wonderfully low-key, making Joe seemingly unaware of his life around him. As the third of the trio, Greenquist also delights as a slightly dotty and endearing millionaire.

Not since Tony Randall's Felix in "The Odd Couple" have we seen such a hilarious turn as Christopher Shaw delivers as Becky's co-worker who is mourning his wife's fatal accidental fall off a mountain. Rogers captures the youthful psycho-speak of his character, and Jules Willcox makes an attractive girlfriend. Rounding out the ensemble is Suzanne Ford, formerly wealthy, now adjusting to the real world with sophisticated aplomb.

Becky opines that when a woman says she wants a new house, she wants a new husband; when she says she wants a new car, she wants a new life. This very accomplished adventure is a droll and witty realization of that impulse.

Presented by and at Pacific Resident Theatre, 703 Venice Blvd., Venice. July 10–Aug. 14. Thu.–Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 p.m. (310) 822-8392. www.pacificresidenttheatre.com.