Playwright: Patricia Kane. At: About Face Theatre at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont. Phone: 773-975-8150; $25. Runs through: Dec. 12
In the first act of David Storey's 1969 play, The Contractor, a group of men erect a pavilion tent for a wedding; then, in the second act, they take it down again. Patricia Kane's crew is the Budapest Women's Club ( pronounced "Boo-DAAH-pest, by the waythis is the Midwest, not Europe ) and the group's goals are the construction and dismantling of a float for a Christmas parade. What these projects have in common is that they can't be accomplished by a single person but, instead, require many participants to put aside their differences and work together.
Our assemblers are, not surprisingly, a diverse band of sisters: Recently widowed Arletta whines selfishly while recently divorced real-estate agent Char tells vulgar jokes, married Doodee ( in whose barn the festive object is garaged ) and attempts to keep peace between them, with the help of orphaned spinster Luce and progressive-minded newcomer Marty. The initial focus of conversation, also unsurprisingly, is the scandal engendered by the minister of Doodee and Luce's church having been caught viewing lesbian porn in his office. However, as the day progresses, the secrets of those who would judge are disclosed and the faith of those who would preach are questioned.
Kane's text still bears hallmarks of hasty revisionsthe activities of offstage personnel are often nebulous and scene transitions so abrupt, you can almost see the page divisionsbut the fluency of the vernacular employed in the dialogue makes for an aural accuracy to soften its symposial structure. This is no small feat with a premise that could ( and, in future productions, likely will ) stumble with equal ease into didactic pomposity or hee-haw caricature.
Director Leslie Buxbaum Danzig, a co-founder of the acro-punk 500 Clown, is adept at configuring multiple bodies over quasi-Jungle Jim structures like that engineered by scenic designer John Musial ( a DIY gazebo, held together solely with velcro and gravity, thatare you listening, Hasbro?in a smaller version, could lead next year's gift lists ) . But this would be only tinsel on a haywagon if it weren't for the warmth generated by a pitch-perfect cast of regional favoritesWendy Robie, Adrianne Cury, Peggy Roeder, Rengin Altay and Amy Mathenybonding in the sorority that transcends petty squabbles.