THEATER REVIEW : In Grand Company With ‘Ruthless!’

The costumes by Bob Mackie might be enough reason to see “Ruthless!,” the new show at the Canon Theatre. These are grand, brightly colored overstatements in feathers, froufrou and flimflam, usually topped by cartoonish wigs sprayed into terminal unbreakability (the work of Joann Komin). But then there’s more. Like subtle lighting by Michael Gilliam and witty sets by Lawrence Miller.

And, oh yes, the show: A broad, slapstick, exuberantly collegiate sendup of--as all the press releases are only too happy to state--”child stars, stage mothers, pushy agents and acid-tongued critics.” One must say this for book and lyric writer Joel Paley: He knows an easy target. But targets alone don’t a satire make. It takes work. In this case, about 15 years’ worth.

Not surprisingly, this most recent addition to the annals of theatrical lampooning started out as entertainment at somebody’s birthday party. Those origins are still detectable, but “Ruthless!” comes to us from one of the producers of “Forever Plaid” (Joan Stein) and of “Crazy for You” (Elizabeth Peck Williams) via an Off-Broadway run. And it has securely staked out territory once exclusive to San Francisco’s “Beach Blanket Babylon” or the episodic “Real Live Brady Bunch,” which held legions of its TV fans in thrall at the Westwood Playhouse.

“Ruthless!” is that kind of insider event, but aimed at a much broader public, because everybody knows about child stars, stage mothers, agents and critics.

It has the nerve to have a man playing a woman’s role (Loren Freeman, BIG in every way), and the guts to have a real child starring in its midst: astute and diminutive 8-year-old Lindsay Ridgeway, who relishes every unlikely line that comes out of her mouth. As for those who like to feel “in the know,” umpteen overt and covert references will satisfy the craving, from scenes that mimic “Les Miz” to a plot that pulverizes “The Bad Seed,” “Gypsy” and “All About Eve.”

What plot you ask? It’s a killer, sprinkled with high-decibel songs that explode at every momentous turn. (The music by Marvin Laird knows how to match a song to a mood and a moment.) Involving generations of mothers and daughters (no, this is not “The Joy Luck Club”), the story is so preposterous that one wouldn’t dream of giving it away.

Musical highlights aside (and there are many, especially the brassy “I Hate Musicals,” “I Want the Girl” and the title song), “Ruthless!” is also peppered with shameless repartee (“I’m trying”--”We can all be sometimes”), double and triple takes, and overbearing, oversized characters--all but Ridgeway, that is, though there’s nothing small about her performance.

*

Credit book writer Paley, who also directs, for choosing such a smart company. Aside from the tiny Ridgeway as Tina Denmark, a child consumed by a ruthless need to become a star, and the giant Freeman as her pushy agent Sylvia St. Croix, Joan Ryan delivers a smash portrayal of Tina’s mom, Judy.

This woman transforms from mousy housewife to imperious star and back again without the assistance of a fairy godmother or a mutant pumpkin, but with lots of help from her own great timing and well-tuned voice.

No slouch either is Nancy Linari, who doubles as a third-grade teacher of questionable credentials and as a reporter of questionable sexuality. As for Joanne Baum, who plays Louise Lerman, Tina’s third-grade nemesis, she segues expertly into Eve, stage star Judy’s invidious assistant and a woman she knows all about.

Finally, one is happy to announce--you read it here first--that Merman mimic Rita McKenzie has at last found the role to match her talents: As ruthless theater critic Lita Encore, she of the voice that breaks glass and the words that demolish careers.

Yes, the critics are in for it again, in hilarious, stereotypical high dudgeon. And this critic at least enjoyed it to the hilt, probably because the performance was so uproariously over-the-top.

“Ruthless!” is ruthlessly unredeemable zaniness and the fact that one can enjoy it so helplessly says a lot about the production’s quality. It is at the Canon for as long as the traffic will bear--a fine antidote for end-of-year holiday overload, and not half bad as a let-your-hair-down gift.

* “Ruthless!,” Canon Theatre, 205 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills. Tuesdays-Fridays, 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 5 and 9 p.m.; Sundays, 3 and 7 p.m.; Special 2 p.m. matinee Wednesday; Nov. 28, 3 p.m. only; Dec. 22-23, Dec. 29, 2 p.m.; Dec. 31, 7 and 10 p.m.; dark Thanksgiving Day, Dec. 24-25. Indefinitely. $32.50-$37.50; (310) 859-2830. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes. Loren Freeman Sylvia St. Croix

Joan Ryan: Judy Denmark

Lindsay Ridgeway: Tina Denmark

Nancy Linari: Myrna Thorn/Emily Block

Joanne Baum: Louise Lerman/Eve

Rita McKenzie: Lita Encore

Producers Joan Stein, Elizabeth Williams. Associate producer Kayla Pressman. Book and lyrics Joel Paley. Music Marvin Laird. Director Joel Paley. Sets Lawrence Miller. Lights Michael Gilliam. Costumes Bob Mackie. Wigs Joann Komin. Sound Michael C. Cousins. Musical director Nick Venden. Musical supervisor Marvin Laird. Production stage manager Kathleen Horton.