‘Chess’ outlives its Cold War setting

The 20th century phenomenon of concept album-turned-pop opera (or “popera”) arguably peaked at “Chess.” Conceived by lyricist Tim Rice with ABBA tunesmiths Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, the 1984 recording was a worldwide sensation, producing chart-toppers in “One Night in Bangkok” and “I Know Him So Well.”

Yet, the 1986 London stage extravaganza, inherited by Trevor Nunn from an ailing Michael Bennett, ended its three-year run in the red. The 1988 Broadway mounting introduced Richard Nelson’s book, starred Judy Kuhn and the late, great David James Carroll and lasted 68 performances.

Stripping back the spectacle unveiled unexpected possibilities. A Carnegie Hall concert version triumphed, and the Blank Theatre’s spare 1995 local premiere was an Ovation-winning hit.

Tiger Reel’s shrewd Knightsbridge revival splits the aesthetic extremes. Choreographers Jennifer Copaken and Leslie Kharma, musical director Bill Newlin and Reel’s design collaborators offer apt input.

“Chess” uses the game as metaphor for the Cold War’s toll. The narrative follows Hungarian American chess whiz Florence (Harmony Goodman), the second to ex-lover and media darling Freddie (Jamil Chokachi). Challenging Freddie is Russian savant Anatoly (Joe Thomas). Freddie charges Anatoly with cheating; Florence makes a diplomatic gesture; romance, defection and international intrigue follow.

This philosophical Reagan-era soap opera scores in its febrile score. Although lean-toned, Reel’s huge ensemble reveals pealing choral zeal and real kinetic appeal.

The lyrical Goodman and soulful Thomas negotiate their emotional maneuvers with affecting honesty. Chokachi brings feral intensity to Freddie’s perilous tessitura; Don Schlossman’s KGB agent is another of his total transformations. Paul J.M. Bogh makes an amusing CIA operative, and Amanda Karr’s abandoned Svetlana is rending.

The absence of mikes is heroic but problematic, with unchecked sound levels sometimes masking solo lyrics. This mainly taxes the hieratic Arbiter (Marti Hale at the reviewed performance, subbing for Jarod Scott). And “Bangkok,” as ever, is arbitrary.

However, these distractions are sporadic. “Chess” won’t convert detractors, but cultists and newcomers may find it a touching, worthy showdown.

-- David C. Nichols

“Chess,” Knightsbridge Theatre Los Angeles, 1944 Riverside Drive, L.A. Saturdays, 5 p.m.; Sundays, 3 p.m.; dark Dec. 27-28. Ends Feb. 7. $15-$20. (626) 440-0821. Running time: 2 hours, 25 minutes.

*

‘Loose Ends’ revisits the ‘70s

During the 1970s, an unprecedented spirit of openness and experimentation in romantic relationships went hand in hand with rampant narcissism -- which made for some uniquely problematic unions. Michael Weller’s “Loose Ends” gets that opposition of idealism and selfishness recognizably (and sometimes disconcertingly) right as it traces an upwardly mobile couple’s high and low points through that emotionally turbulent decade.

With its wide swath of characters and conflicts, Weller’s drama proves a serviceable training showcase for the Ruskin Group Theatre, the performance wing of Santa Monica’s Ruskin School of Acting. However, performances teetering between professionalism and acting-class exercise inherently limit the broader appeal in John Ruskin’s staging.

Dual casting further increases the uncertainty factor. The reviewed performance featured Robert Gantzos and Taisha Thomas as Paul, a film editor who just completed a Peace Corps stint, and Susan, a talented photographer who meets him on a Bali beach awash with exotic scenery and pheromones. The physical attraction between them is well played and convincing -- during a smoldering embrace straight out of “From Here to Eternity,” all they needed was for stage hands to douse them with buckets of water.

The play’s central question is whether this sexual passion is sufficient to hold their subsequent marriage together when each partner has different life goals. Issues of feminism, fidelity and abortion are all part of the obstacle course facing Paul and Susan as they embark on their separate careers.

Unfortunately, the performances consistently punch the Big Dramatic Moments but fumble the nuances needed to sell the naturalism of the characters’ day-to-day life. Practically every moment gets milked for sentiment rather than feeling. This overstatement makes for a far longer running time than the story warrants, and since it extends to the supporting characters, it’s clearly a staging choice -- one that calls out for more restraint.

-- Philip Brandes

“Loose Ends,” Ruskin Group Theatre, 3000 Airport Ave., Santa Monica. Fridays, Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m. Dark now. Reopens Jan. 9-31. $20. (310) 397-3244. Running time: 2 hours, 40 minutes.

*

An engaging if erratic ‘Cruise’

It’s not hard to see why the loopy, low-rent shenanigans of Long Beach’s Found Theatre are popular with an indulgent local audience. This troupe of theatrical misfits is resourceful in stagecraft and shameless in performance; they’ve never heard a bad joke they didn’t love, and they’ve certainly never heard of the fourth wall. There are refreshments and audience participation, slapstick stunts and goofy slides.

In short, with a Found Theatre production you get something a little bit more -- and quite a bit less, actually -- than a play.

In “A Dysfunctional Family Cruise,” the latest installment in a series that has included two Christmas shows and a trailer-park musical, writers Virginia DeMoss and Cynthia Galles star as zaftig Brenda Bleeker and her beanpole Aunt Jolene, respectively.

Obligatory exposition is dispatched early on -- something about a disastrous family reunion at Area 51 and a deadbeat daughter -- but the main action takes place on a “floating holiday” cruise, where the rickety cabins aren’t much bigger than bathroom stalls and all on-board entertainment is apparently provided by the ship’s guests.

There’s no story, really, just a gallery of caricatures playing out a series of aimless sketches between slide-accented blackouts. Some scenes are inspired, like a synchronized swim routine performed on rolling chairs under a scrim or a platform that tips in convincingly capsized fashion.

Elsewhere production values are unabashedly impoverished: At one point audience members are invited to make wedding flowers from toilet tissue.

Ultimately this faltering “Cruise” relies too liberally on such seat-of-the-pants charm. There’s no question that the straight-faced DeMoss and the dryly witty Galles make excellent party hosts. With a little more artistic rigor, though, they might expand their audience beyond the initiated.

-- Rob Kendt

“A Dysfunctional Family Cruise,” the Found Theatre, 251 E. 7th St., Long Beach. Fridays-Saturdays, 8:30 p.m. Dark now; reopens Jan. 9-31. $10. (562) 433-3363. Running time: 1 hour, 20 minutes.