The San Juan Capistrano-based black-box theatre troupe, shuttering soon, could have selected a much stronger piece to go out on than Paul Grellong's 2005 thriller. One character is a successful writer whose ex-boyfriend wants desperately to be a success too, a plot line that mirrors what Grellong is trying to do with this play. He wants Manuscript to be a Sleuth or Deathtrap for the 21st century, but he is no Anthony Shaffer or Ira Levin. We meet the wannabe writer, David (Paul Breazeale), and his best friend since childhood, Chris (Matthew Dougherty). Each has completed his first semester at different New England Ivy League colleges. During winter break, Chris brings his new girlfriend, Elizabeth (Bettina Saam), who has recently published her first novel, to meet him. David and Elizabeth have a history: They dated, then split up. What's more, she stole an article he authored and sold it to the New York Times magazine, the launching pad for her successful career. As Manuscript develops, the boys gain possession of an original, unpublished manuscript written by a famed, aging writer pal who lives just blocks away.
The obvious plot twists aside, Grellong saddles this revenge story with repeated, unnecessary references to the boys' addiction to recreational drugs. Steph N. Davis' staging is hampered by his casting, for Breazeale and Dougherty are in need of serious advanced acting technique classes, telegraphing that the boys are either gay or conspiring against Elizabeth (or both). Dougherty is unconvincing as the spoiled scion of a wealthy, privileged clan who's an athlete and classical music lover, yet is averse to reading. Breazeale's David switches between obsessive intense psycho and sensitive Jew wounded by his friend's anti-Semitism. Saam alone emerges unscathed, carving a portrait of an ambitious, worldly young woman who knows how to get what she wants.
Presented by and at the Orange Curtain Theatre,
31776 El Camino Real, San Juan Capistrano.
Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m., Sun. 3 p.m. May 16- June 1.
(949) 412-3252. www.theorangecurtaintheatre.org.