STAGE REVIEWS : ‘OWL’ MORE A TURNOFF THAN TEASE

“The Owl and the Pussycat� asks us to accept the notion that a very bright, rather prissy writer would fall for a noisy, simple-minded (but good-hearted, what else?) hooker in a matter of days, dumping his famous poet girlfriend in the process.

Bill Manoff’s 1964 comedy obviously asks a lot. But the notion of vastly different people coming together has worked before (in the musicals “My Fair Lady� and “Sweet Charity,� to name two) when an intangible charge (call it chemistry) ignites them.

The trifling “The Owl and the Pussycat� could have worked at the Grand Dinner Theatre with just such a spark between Felix (Patrick Wayne) and Doris (June Wilkinson). Unfortunately, this joining is more fits and starts than heat and sparks.

There’s much commotion after Doris storms into neighbor Felix’s apartment, accusing him of having her evicted because of her trade. Bold vixen that she is, Doris insists on staying until things can be sorted out. Curmudgeon that he is, Felix wants her out immediately. They end up between the sheets instead, Felix actually banging his head against the wall in guilty anticipation of the carnality to come.

But despite all the rambunctiousness, none of the PG-rated goings-on add up to much. The two never really connect in a passionate way; their physical prancing and vocal fencing are often funny, but they don’t generate the revelatory eroticism that should be percolating under the comic facade.

The problem is more Wayne’s than Wilkinson’s. His mincing, grimacing portrayal is too studied; it lacks a resonance that would help explain why Doris finds him so attractive. Wayne also fails to illuminate why, beyond her looks, Felix would be drawn to Doris. Wayne could be saying that there’s more than sex going on here, but he gives few clues as to what else it could be. He does show more shading in the last scenes, but it’s not enough to save the performance.

Wilkinson, despite having troubles of her own, comes off somewhat better. Although she’s too strident early on as she tries hard to define Doris’ brazenness, Wilkinson is more relaxed and engaging as the show progresses; her comic timing is sharp, and she never lacks for energy. The portrayal could have shown more of the inner self beneath the sassy exterior, but it’s a reasonably satisfying effort.

With her pretty face and knock-’em-dead figure, Wilkinson looks great, a fact that has not been missed by those associated with the Grand Dinner show. The program notes trumpet her Broadway experience but also stress that Wilkinson is best known as a Playboy model and at one time did commercials for the Mark Eden bust developer. At least one line was added to this production to draw attention to her remarkable bosom.

Under Jack V. Booch’s direction, the show, if anything, is resolutely playful, and, in this context, such high jinks might be forgiven. Still, it has the unmistakable aura of pandering, which, depending on your point of view, could be more a turnoff than a tease.

‘THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT’

A Grand Dinner Theatre production of the Bill Manoff play. Producer Franklin J. Wyka. Director Jack V. Booch. With Patrick Wayne and June Wilkinson. Set Tim Taulu. Costumes Garland Riddle. Lighting Walter De Jong. Plays at 8:15 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays; 8:45 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 7:45 p.m. Sundays. Matinees at 1:30 Saturdays and Sundays. Dinners are served 1 hour and 45 minutes before evening curtain time, and a buffet is available 90 minutes before the matinee curtain. Closes Sept. 27. Tickets $18 to $29.95. 7 Freedman Way, Anaheim. (714) 772-7710.