"Here Lies Jeremy Troy" at Glendale Theatre

--- Theater Review

With all the bad news around these days, what LA needs is a good dose of belly-busting, stress-releasing laughter. And that´s what theatergoers will get in "Here Lies Jeremy Troy," the hilarious new comedy playing at the Glendale Centre Theatre. It´s the perfect antidote to whatever ails you.

With a delightfully funny scrip by Jack Sharkey, and a cast of top-notch veteran and professional actors who play off one another in a rapid succession of quips, comebacks and one-liners, the audience hardly has time to catch their breath.

TV personality Dan Roebuck stars as Jeremy Troy, a big-city lawyer who has it all – a beautiful wife, a posh apartment, a successful career… and a possible partnership offer, if the dinner he´s planned with his boss turns out well.

But on the eve of the big night, the proverbial "monkey-wrench" arrives in the form of an old college buddy, now a wannabe artist, who´s short on cash and looking for a "temporary" place to stay.

Kelly Flynn (of Brigadoon fame) plays Charlie Bickle, whose memories of their college days differ substantially from Jeremy´s. And it´s not just about a few football stats. It´s a super-colossal discrepancy that if discovered will ruin Jeremy´s marriage and career. Jeremy will do "anything" to keep it under wraps – at least until after the dinner party – and ole Charlie takes advantage.

He hires a model to pose for him, but when the gorgeous and slightly ditzy blond (JJ Rodgers) arrives, Jeremy´s wife (Megan Blakeley) mistakes her for a call girl and confronts her husband about his "dirty little secret." Jeremy thinks Charlie has spilled the beans about college, and admits to keeping "the truth" from her for years. Appalled, she storms out, leaving Jeremy without a wife to cook the crucial dinner.

A series of zany improvisations and hysterical misunderstandings follow as the hoots and howls of audience laughter nearly drown out the dialogue. Finally the dinner party reaches its disastrous climax when Mr. Ivorsen (GCT favorite, Mario DiGregorio) makes his announcement and Jeremy learns what all his "lies" have cost him.

A well-known adage and an amusing plot twist will send the audience away chuckling, ready to greet the actors in the lobby and congratulate them on their flawless performances, energy, and comic timing. Kudos go to Director Tim Dietlein for giving LA such an enjoyable means of escape.

"Here Lies Jeremy Troy" plays Thursday – Saturday evenings at 8 pm, with Saturday & Sunday matinees at 3 pm.

Call (818) 244-8481 for reservations. (Admission ranges from $18 - $23, but be sure to ask for the $15 special.)

Glendale Centre Theatre is located at 324 N. Orange Street, Glendale, CA 91203.