Theater review – ‘Funny Little Thing’ not trying to be high comedy

“Funny Little Thing Called Love,” a feather-light, paper-thin collection of five one-acts, opened last weekend at Brunswick Little Theatre’s charming, homey new space in a former church on N.C. 133 in Southport. Set in London, Honolulu and points in between, the short plays helmed by three directors – Shain Flow, Roberta Lerner and Jayke Pell – are tied together by romantic themes, generous mentions of moonlight, characters that are barely one-dimensional and situations that make “Mama’s Family” seem complex.

Sometimes, the humor is cornier than “Hee-Haw.” In “Lone Star Ladies’ Justice Brigade,” for example, when Corinne (Liz Cervantes) confronts the cheating A.J. (Eben Mastin) along with the other women he’s been “exclusively” dating, she says the deceived ladies have a feeling of “dj moo – we’ve heard this bull before.” The plot of “A Hono-lulu of a Honeymoon” – which reintroduces the characters from “The Hallelujah Girls,” a hit for Big Dawg in 2011 – is so unbelievable (a woman’s girlfriends travel from Georgia to barge in on her Hawaii honeymoon) as to destroy any potential for humor.

And yet, even as ridiculous as the material is, the actors are game and generate some genuine laughs. Mastin is an old pro, and his strong stage presence helps ground “Justice Brigade” and “A Little Brit of Romance,” in which he plays an English gentleman. Likewise, the steady Pete McLintock provides a believable counter to the wildly improbable events of the farcical “Upper West Side Story” and he shares some good buddy chemistry with Beau Walker. Cervantes shows range with a solid impersonation of a TV reporter while playing both a strong Texas woman and, most impressively, a teenaged Ugly American who effortlessly offends every Brit she encounters while on vacation in London.

High comedy this show ain’t, not that it’s trying to be. But even for broad, sitcom-style humor, “Funny Little Thing Called Love” is pretty low-grade stuff.

John Staton: 910-343-2343

Twitter: @JohnStatonSN