Night-and-day-different 70somethings bond aboard ship in Dana Schwartz’s Early Birds, a World Premiere comedy as entertaining and charming as it is predictable, and nothing wrong with that.

Like every single “Odd Couple” comedy before it, Schwartz’s introduces us to a pair of diametric opposites, in this case Nora (Jean Gilpin), uptight and refined, and Ivy (Jayne Taini), garrulous and earthy, whose initial wariness and friction is guaranteed to give way to the best of best-friendships.

And just like its many predecessors, from Joanna McClelland Glass’s Trying (cranky old judge meets. perky young secretary) to Broadway’s The Book Of Mormon (world’s best missionary meets worst missionary ever), Early Birds proves a crowd-pleasing winner.

What sets Early Birds (shipboard lingo for seniors) apart from the rest is its cruise-ship setting, its widowed over-70 protagonists, and in the case of its Moving Arts debut, two of the most talented ladies in town.

Gilpin’s Nora married and buried two husbands (the first turned out to be gay, the second proved decidedly straight, and both had millions to leave her in their wills) and never once gave birth because (societal disapproval be damned) “It simply wasn’t what I wanted.”

Taini’s Ivy, on the other hand, got hitched just once (to love-of-her-life Morrie), raised three grown children (girl-boy-girl), has two sets of grandkids (also girl-boy-girl), and despite all that family, finds herself every bit as alone as her childless/grandchildless new chum.

It does of course, take these two Early Birds a full five days to cement their bond, during which they chat about movies and books, practice tai chi and self-defense, confront a health scare, and discover there just might be a way to make this brief cruise a full-time thing if they’re willing to take the plunge.

Can you spell bffs forever?

Wendy Elizabeth Abraham completes the Early Bird cast as the ship’s charming, full-of-life young Captain Devon, but this is Gilpin’s and Taini’s show all the way, the two seasoned stage pros delivering powerhouse, letter-perfect performances under Elizabeth Swain’s assured direction in roles each was born to play.

Add to that a production design by John Iacovelli (set), Martha Carter (lighting), and Jeff Gardner (sound) that makes you feel you’re right there onboard ship with the morning/afternoon/evening sun lighting the deck and ocean sounds and scents in the air and you’ve got a terrific follow-up to last month’s Apple Season.

Carolyn Mazuca’s character-perfect costumes and movement consultant Ronnie Clark’s graceful tai chi poses are winners too, and assistant stage manager Ellen Bergener shows up between scenes as a crew member making sure passengers are supplied with full bottles of water 24/7 while affording Gilpin and Taini time to change outfits.

Early Birds is produced by Cece Tio. Josie Austin is stage manager. Avery Reagan is assistant lighting designer.

Early-bird actresses across the land will have good reason to celebrate Schwartz’s crowd-pleaser if it ends up making the regional rounds, and Dames Judi and Maggie could easily take their pick of roles in an Anglicized movie adaptation.

In the meantime, Jean Gilpin and Jayne Taini are owning the stage at Atwater Village Theatre and L.A. audiences are reaping the rewards.

Atwater Village Theatre, 3269 Casitas Ave., Los Angeles.
www.movingarts.org

–Steven Stanley
August 19, 2019
Photos: Benjamin Simpson

Tags: Atwater Village Theatre, Dana Schwartz, Los Angeles Theater Review, Moving Arts