Neil Simon takes us back to 1953 when Sid Caesar’s Your Show Of Shows ruled the airwaves in Laughter On The 23rd Floor, his 1993 Broadway valentine to TV’s early years now getting a sensationally directed and performed Toluca Lake revival at The Garry Marshall Theatre.

Like his fictional alter ego Lucas Brickman (Jason Grasl), Simon was a mere twenty-five in ’53 and the new kid on the block in a writers’ room peopled by comedic geniuses like Mel Brooks, Larry Gelbart, and Ukraine-born head scribe Mel Tolkin, and like Brighton Beach Memoirs’ Eugene Jerome, it is Lucas who breaks the fourth wall during a four-week trial run he hopes will lead to a permanent staff position, or at least one that will last as long as “The Max Prince Show” does.

Unfortunately, with the network planning to cut half an hour from Max’s live 90-minute show, who knows how much longer that will be.

 That doesn’t stop Lucas from doing his best to make an impression on his fellow writers even if so far no one seems to know his name (Milt: “I called you Arnie last week and you never said a word.” Lucas: “I didn’t know you were talking to me.”)

It’s precisely this kind of setup and punch that has made Simon a comedy legend, a talent that stands him in good stead in Laughter On The 23rd Floor, whether these one-liners occur in the course of conversation (Val: “Is this a business call or a personal call?” Milt: “I don’t know. Let’s see who answers.”) or from writers showing off just how clever they are by being both straight man and comedian (Milt: “I did it. Broke every record on the Henry Hudson Parkway. Can you imagine if I had a car?”)

The Milt in question is Milt Fields (Ty Mayberry), attempting to make up in quantity of material what he may lack in quality, something that is most definitely not a problem for head writer Val Skolsky (Roland Rusinek), a man with a Joe McCarthy-era political awareness as sharp as his way with words.

 Completing the writers’ room staff are 30something “boy genius” Kenny Franks (Cornelius Jones, Jr.), who’s got a good twenty years of professional credits on his resumé; Carol Wyman (LaNisa Renee Frederick), bound and determined to prove herself any male writer’s equal; Brian Doyle (John Ross Bowie), whose caustic outlook on life hasn’t gotten in the way of his Hollywood dreams; and hypochondriac extraordinaire Ira Stone (Jeff Campanella), who may never arrive on time but is guaranteed to show up with a new terminal ailment.

 And then there’s Max himself (Pat Towne), whose anger issues help fuel his comedic genius and may be just what’s needed if budget-crazed network execs insist on having their way with his show.

Over the course of nine months, Laughter On The 23rd Floor, charts Lucas’s coming-of-age amidst comedic chaos, with director Michael A. Shepperd earning top marks for fine-tuning nine inspired performances and for inserting physical comedy bits every bit as inspired. (Watching Jessica Joy’s dumb blonde secretary Helen watch her step scores laugh after laugh as do Carol’s I Love Lucy-style attempts to maneuver her very pregnant self.)

Bowie, Campanella, Frederick, Grasl, Jones, Joy, Mayberry, Rusinek, and Towne prove themselves on top of their comedic game throughout, while a crackerjack design team give Laughter On The 23rd Floor a look that would do any Broadway stage proud.

 Alex Calle’s finely detailed adjoining-rooms set (the 24th floor atop it is a nifty touch) features Michael O’Hara’s multitude of props, pitch-perfect down to the early ‘50s phone cords, with Jared A. Sayeg’s vibrant lighting, E.B. Brooks’s era-and-character-defining costumes, Byron Batista’s equally fine hair and wigs, and Rebecca Kessin’s lively sound design (and its nostalgic phone rings) meriting their own kudos.

Marcedes L. Clanton is production stage manager. Casting is by Raul Clayton Staggs. Crystal Coreen, Matthew Koenig, Scott Keiji Takeda, and Jason Weiss are understudies.

There wouldn’t be Saturday Night Live if talents like “Max Prince” hadn’t paved the way, and there wouldn’t be 20th-century Broadway comedy without Neil Simon. Laughter On The 23rd Floor is the King Of One-Liners at his smart-and-snappy best.

Garry Marshall Theatre, 4252 Riverside Drive, Burbank.
www.GarryMarshallTheatre.org

–Steven Stanley
March 23, 2018
Photos: Chelsea Sutton

Tags: Garry Marshall Theatre, Los Angeles Theater Review, Neil Simon