Below: (from left) Paul Carter, Susan Webb and Liz Masters enact a restaurant scene in "Canker Sores and Other Distractions."
Photos by AARON SHOWALTER/Tulsa World

'Durang-O-Rama' is not Heller's brightest moment, but it has its laughs

Not that you shouldn't support Heller Theater, the little black-box theater that could. Heck, go by and donate more than the $7 admission fee and know that you're supporting one of the area's entertainment gems.

But don't judge their efforts solely on this project, a collection of 10 short, sketch-like plays that comes off as wildly uneven in the hands of a gaggle of actors, five of whom share directing duties.

The results are all over the board, ranging from hilarious to relentlessly boring. Most fall somewhere in between, offering a few solid laughs while at the same time delivering a message or two, a trademark of Durang's plays ("Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You," "Beyond Therapy").

The show is made worthwhile thanks to the presence of Liz Masters, a classy clown and the artistic director for this project, and Gary Dean Sweeney, a veteran whose return to acting is a triumph.

This pair lifts up the remainder of an ensemble cast that occasionally flashes signs of life but is largely unremarkable.

Perhaps the most satisfying performance here is that of local musician George Barton. Delivering several wonderfully comic folk numbers between scene changes and greatly accompanying a couple of the scenes (the funniest road rage song you can imagine, just before a sketch about a DMV red-tape nightmare), Barton is worth the price of admission alone.

But you'll also find seriously disturbed laughs in "Woman Stand Up," which offers Masters in a superb portrayal of a comedienne who's too insecure to go anywhere -- including the comedy club -- without her personal laugh track.

"My mother says I'm not funny. I wish my mother would die," Masters' character plainly tells the audience. "I'd invite people over for Bloody Marys -- made with her blood."

The woman is a fairly pathetic creature -- a theme Masters revived more than once for Thursday's opening night -- who bids the crowd goodbye with, "You've been a great audience. OK, not great. But not totally worthless like me."

Also not to be missed is Sweeney's intensely comic portrayal of a gym teacher who must be the most politically incorrect ("Boys, you're shirts; girls, you're skins") educator to be found. Parents, let's hope so.

There's many other laughs (the perfect family in "Entertaining Mr. [Jesse] Helms") among the decidedly adult subject matter, but there's also those with few laughs to be found and a couple that drag on far too long.

You might think of this as something like your average edition of "Saturday Night Live" -- several comic sketches, a couple of which are very funny, a couple that aren't and some excellent music intermissions.

But at 150 minutes, it's about one hour longer.

Heller Theater's production of "Durang-O-Rama," which is this season's fund-raising effort, will be staged at 8 p.m. Saturday and continues with 8 p.m. performances Aug. 21-23. All performances are at Heller Theater, 5328 S. Wheeling Ave. Tickets are $7 and may be reserved by calling 746-5065. NOTE: This production contains mature language and subject matter.