STAGE REVIEW : The Queen of Hearts : Stage: San Diego Rep’s ‘Mirandolina’ is as easy to fall in love with as the title character herself.

SAN DIEGO â€”  There’s something funny going on in the Lyceum Space.

It’s called “Mirandolina,� and it continues through April 25.

Carlo Goldoni’s exquisitely controlled 1753 comedy about a female innkeeper who plays with the hearts of her guests gets a handsome updating from the San Diego Repertory Theatre in a fresh translation by Melissa Cooper.

Under the deft direction of Douglas Jacobs, artistic director of the Rep, the play moves effortlessly into post-World War II Italy, with an aristocratic (but financially bankrupt) nobleman, a rich Texan, a U.S. Navy officer and an Italian servant vying for Mirandolina’s hand.

In the only other production of Cooper’s translation, done by the Portland Stage Company last year, the characters were Italian and the play was set in the 18th Century. Cooper traveled to San Diego last month to help fine-tune her translation for the Americanized characters and did a flawless job of making the dialogue seem natural and contemporary.

John Redman’s simple, mottled walls and heavy wooden furniture give the feel of a not-too-prosperous Old World-style inn. And Ingrid Helton’s costumes define the characters’ stations and class simply but effectively.

But the greatest strength of the show is in its fine cast.

Kim McCallum, who last electrified local audiences in 1987 as the bully in “When You Comin’ Back, Red Ryder?� provides the element of danger as a woman-hating naval officer who is teased by Mirandolina into falling in love with her.

Through McCallum’s part, Mirandolina (a smart and seductive Tracey A. Leigh) learns that there is a price tag on her heart-earned victories. As the captain becomes increasingly lovesick, he becomes dangerously jealous. And as McCallum, reddening to the roots of his red hair, begins to release a pent-up fury at being frustrated, the comedy (and Mirandolina herself) is shaken to the soul before good humor is ultimately restored.

Veteran San Diego performers Ollie Nash as the rich American with a bought title (he calls himself a count) and Leon Singer as the bankrupt Spanish marquis (who talks honor but begs, borrows and steals where he may) shoot off sparks like an old-time comedy team, playing off each other’s absurdities with split-second timing.

Leigh as Mirandolina and Bray Poor as Mirandolina’s faithful (and loving but increasingly impatient) servant, Fabrizio, bring a rich acuity and detailing to their performances that give credit to their local training. Leigh, who has acted at the La Jolla Playhouse and the Rep, is a graduate of UC San Diego’s master of fine arts program, and Poor, who has performed at the Old Globe Theatre and the Rep, is a graduate of the Old Globe/University of San Diego MFA training program.

Peter J. Smith, a local but fresh face, does a ferociously funny comic turn as the American captain’s spit-and-polish aide who also can’t help falling for Mirandolina.

Similarly, it is hard to stop oneself from falling for the play.

Part of what makes it so irresistible is a delicious mix of light-headed antics and mind-provoking theories about the very nature of love. On the silly side, Michael Roth’s music and sound design give cartoon-like hints of revelations to come as characters suddenly turn to the audience to reveal their latest brainstorms.

But for those who need a deeper turn, the story has enough meat to sustain serious examination. The seriously inclined can even see the captain as a symbol of American naivete in dealing with foreign affairs. But, more simply and irresistibly, “Mirandolina� can be viewed as a textbook illustration of some of the most common misconceptions about the heart.

The captain’s error is his military-inspired illusion that he can force victory in love by strength. The count has the rich man’s illusion that he can buy love with money. The marquis suffers from the notion that he can command love through rank. Only Fabrizio understands that even a poor man can earn love with loyalty and devotion.

But, while there’s a lot to chew on in this “Mirandolina,� one doesn’t even think about the message until the madness, the fight scenes and the chases are all over. Because it is so much fun.

‘MIRANDOLINA�

By Carlo Goldoni. Adapted by Melissa Cooper. Director is Douglas Jacobs. Sets by John Redman. Costumes by Ingrid Helton. Lighting by Diane Boomer. Music and sound design by Michael Roth. Fight choreography by Christopher Villa. Stage manager is Susan A. Virgilio. With Tracey A. Leigh, Kim McCallum, Ollie Nash, Bray Poor, Leon Singer and Peter J. Smith. Tickets are $19-$22. Performances are at 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays and 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays through April 25. At the Lyceum Space, 79 Horton Plaza. Call 235-8025.