Who hasn't checked their e-mail, only to find a plaintive cry for help in exporting a vast amount of wealth from a third-world nation? Haven't you wondered who these people are? Dean Cameron, in this epistolary romp, has found out for you. It's probably the silliest look at human greed currently running. The initial plea inspires Cameron to respond, "Great! Do you have any toast?" This leads to an ongoing exchange, currently at 11 months, in which Cameron adopts the persona of a wildly wealthy albeit clearly unhinged Floridian who desires nothing more than to marry the widowed Mariam Abacha. Mind you, Cameron gives absolutely no reason for anyone to believe he's anything other than a hoax: He obsesses about his (fictional) cats Mr. Snickers and Joe Joe the Dancing Clown; his legal staff consists of Perry Mason and Owen Marshall, counselor-at-law; and he's laboring under the illusion that Nigeria is somewhere south of Mexico. The putative Abachas hang on, though, even after the discovery that Cameron is posting their exchanges on a Web site (spamscamscam.com)--a bit of duplicity blamed on the (also fictional) pouty, hairless, Thai houseboy. The Abachas continue to wheedle Cameron to come through with the necessary funds to this day.
Cameron has much verve as a performer, but at the same time he can never be accused of being overly comfortable or slick onstage. With his round head, peroxided hair, and almost cartoonish brows, he's easy to buy as a deranged Floridian. The writing--for which he is only partially responsible, I suppose--is fresh and funny. In his role as both Abachas, Victor Isaac is remarkably subtle. His splayed hands evoke as much of the aggrieved Mrs. Abacha as does his face. Paul Provenza's directorial tone strikes just the right balance of whimsy and venality. He also does a nice job of energizing the basically static structure of two men at lecterns reading from laptops to each other. The entrance of the unbilled Aldrich Allen as an additional Nigerian scammer was a surprise, and a nice one. Oh, and bring a piece of small but interesting crap with you. You'll see why.