San Antonio, Texas, doesn't seem a very likely location for a first-rate production of Anton Chekhov's "Three Sisters." Then again, neither does an office park in North County (which is exactly where Carlsbad troupe New Village Arts mounted a beautiful staging just last year). Just goes to show, you never really know where you're going to encounter good theatre.

And if it's good, thought-provoking theatre you're interested in, you don't even need to know a thing about Texas nor Chekhov to appreciate Jane Martin's "Anton in Show Business," currently making its San Diego premiere at 6th & Penn.

Director Dale Morris has chosen this funny, at times even poignant, play to kick off 2008, and coupled with the top-notch cast he has assembled, it's a most auspicious beginning to the new year.

"Anton in Show Business" is a comic look at the inner workings of theatre, and what happens when you stick a fading TV star, an off-off-Broadway veteran, and a bright-eyed newbie together to perform "Three Sisters" at some far-flung regional theatre in Texas. Throw in a trio of know-it-all directors, a lesbian producer, and a hunky country singer to play Vershinin and you've got the makings of a wacky backstage comedy. Playwright Martin has even thrown in a fledgling theatre critic for good measure.

Cast members of "Anton in Show Business"

Copyright©2008 Paul Savage

It's theatre practitioners unabashedly gazing in to their own navels, the kind of thing they've been doing since Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." Underneath all the hilarity, though, Martin continually asks, "Does what we do even matter?"

It's a question worth taking a look at, as Martin's characters toy with the idea that all their hard work and struggles in the business are ultimately for naught.

The identity -- the gender, even -- of Martin herself has been a mystery since her plays started appearing at Actors Theatre of Louisville over two decades ago. Generally believed to be Jon Jory, the man who recently stepped down as the theatre's producing director, the uncertainty of the playwright's identity mirrors the constant doubt faced by these characters in the ever-precarious world of show business.

Morris' cast of ten actresses (playing both female and male roles) ably handles most of their numerous assignments. Robin Christ subtly echoes Chekhov's Olga as Casey Mulgraw, the Queen of off-off-Broadway whose claim to fame is the 200 shows she's got under her belt without ever having been paid for a single one. Aimee Janelle Nelson captures the wide-eyed enthusiasm and innocence (not to mention that Texan twang) of Lisabette Cartwright, the daffy third grade teacher making her professional debut. And while the perfectly natural-looking DeAnna Driscoll doesn't have the L.A.-fake look of someone who's spent seventeen thousand dollars "slimming" her toes, she has the vulgarity and overwhelming presence of TV star Holly Seabé down pat.

In other roles, Patricia Elmore Costa is equally strong as the lesbian producer and the pompadoured country crooner, and the imposing Kelly Lapczynski never manages to get out of trousers as a couple of pompous European directors. Though Cashae Monya is believably authoritative as stage manager T-Anne, and almost frighteningly so as Andwyneth, the Afroed Black Power director, she seems slightly less comfortable in the oversized suit and cowboy boots of a seedy tobacco exec.

Morgan Trant has the unenviable task of portraying the rookie critic (for the Bargain Mart Suburban Shoppers Guide!), but she brings a skeptical inquisitiveness appropriate to her metatheatrical character.

Valentine Viannay's murals of Manhattan and L.A. are playful, and Jamie Lloyd has fun costuming these colorful personalities.

"Anton in Show Business" has the occasional weak point (one character's struggle with cancer seems rather hastily dealt with here), but if it's a hilarious and touching insider's look at theatre you're looking for, it's definitely worth a try.

VIEW PROGRAM HERE (pages 1-4)

VIEW PROGRAM HERE (pages 5-7)