What an imagination it must take to create an adopted, obsessive-compulsive computer genius determined to find her birth mother in China but too agoraphobic to leave the house -- and therefore compelled to construct a robot as her proxy. It's an outrageous premise, but for the most part playwright Rolin Jones makes it work. This occasionally over-the-top yet touching techno-comedy at San Jose Repertory Theatre, written when Jones (a self-described "white dude from the Valley") was a student at the Yale School of Drama, is a charmer.
In the overlong first act, 22-year-old computer genius Jennifer (in an energetic, engaging, and ultimately heart-wrenching performance by perpetually pajama-clad Sue Jean Kim) pounds away at her laptop, instant-messaging through voice-recognition software. In fact, all of Act I is crammed with too much information: Jennifer interacts with her adoptive parents (a simpatico, overly protective father and a combative, frustrated mother); reveals her physical compulsions and emotional issues; sends frantic IMs to various correspondents (who pop up like computer ads in trying-too-hard-to-be-funny caricatures); and formulates a preposterous plan to construct a self-navigating robot to seek out the Chinese woman who gave her up long ago. It's a confusing, contrived beginning that doesn't take shape until the end of the act.
In the much more successful Act II, Jennifer's homemade android, Jenny Chow (a hilarious, spot-on Ka-Ling Cheung), zooms off to Asia, controlled by housebound Jennifer at her computer in virtual-reality goggles. More than a wacky gimmick to make us laugh, the concept of a robotic alter ego manipulated by a lonely shut-in illuminates Jennifer's longing to believe that her birth mother is her true, loving mom. It also illustrates Jennifer's wistful desire to be a whole, healthy human being. A scene in which proxy Jenny meets Chinese Mom (Valerie Stevens plays both mothers) while an agonized Jennifer watches from her bedroom is tenderly staged by director Kim Rubinstein and beautifully acted by the three women.
Rubinstein's production, with set design by G.W. Mercier, is chock-full of amusing, low-tech special effects and comic moments. It also boasts all-around strong performances by Craig W. Marker (as an affable but dim-bulb pizza delivery boy who befriends Jennifer), Tim True (as Jennifer's low-key father), and Kevin Rich, who is impressive in various subsidiary roles, including all Jennifer's online associates. If the plot gets a little muddled at the end, that's forgivable in a play that generates so many hearty laughs and even some tears. It's a testament to Jones' writing, Rubinstein's direction, and the cast that you even empathize with the robot.
The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow runs March 24-April 16 at San Jose Repertory Theatre, 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose, Calif. Tickets: (408) 367-7255. Website: www.sjrep.com.