Review: BEYOND THERAPY DELIGHTS DESERT ENSEMBLE AUDIENCES

When laughter heals, Christopher Durang’s 1981 comedy BEYOND THERAPY is just what the doctor ordered. Jerome Elliott’s lively, creative direction enhances the adventures of two love-hungry thirty-somethings, Bruce and Prudence, who consult their eccentric therapists for guidance as they search for stable relationships.  Running through April 27 at Palm Springs Cultural Center, the production boasts a celebrated cast.  The quirky characters are portrayed by Melanie Blue, Isaac-Gaeta Tollette, J. Claire Merritt, Raul Valenzuela, Anthony Nannini, and acting intern David Flores.

The imaginative set by Thomas Valach with lighting by Jason Smith and David Atkisson creates four distinct areas.  The play opens in a restaurant where Bruce and Prudence have arranged their initial encounter on an online dating site.  Tollette's Bruce is totally believable as a friendly, neurotic bisexual who lives with his lover but wants a woman in his life.  Merritt is a convincing Prudence, the insecure perfectionist who mistakes Bruce's sensitivity for weakness and who doesn't understand bisexuality.  After their unsuccessful meeting, we see them in the offices of their respective therapists.

In the role of Prudence's therapiset Stuart, Valenzuela hilariously devolves from the macho, lecher who sleeps with his patients into the overeager lover who can't satisfy them.  Bruce's therapist Charlotte (Melanie Blue) dominates the scene, dispensing a combination of colorful, aggressive, sweet, and well-meaning advice, followed by an embrace from her stuffed Snoopy dog. 

A fourth area is the apartment of Bruce and Bob.  Nannini presents a clear portrait of the very jealous lover who can't cope with Bruce's desire to date and eventually marry a woman while keeping him as a lover on the side.  He has mastered the timing and delivery of sharp-witted dialogue.