By Rob and Gayle Suggs

For The Crier

Tough times may be here, but with Dunwoody’s Stage Door Players, the show must go on. These are actually heady days for the theater, hosting the national premier of a hot new comedy, “Spreading It Around.” Judging by the audience response on opening night—a laughter tsunami and a standing ovation—tickets will be scarce. Grab them now.

Created by veteran comedy writer Londos D’Arrigo, “Spreading It Around” is a story of financial and family tensions in a Florida retirement community. Widow Angela Drayton is sick of paying bills for consumer-addicted and unappreciative adult children. Working with her cantankerous neighbor Martin, she devises a plan whereby the young and the restless will get what’s coming to them—or not get it, as the case may be.

Comedy ensues through geriatric guerilla warfare, as the energized retirees burn gleefully through their investment portfolios. Since the cash is funneled to the truly needy, the audience loves it. The Spending It Now Foundation (S.I.N.: “Helping Older People Do It While They Still Can”) soon attracts the anxious attention of Angela’s son and shopaholic wife, who devise a counterplot.

The play’s ingenious central idea is timely during a season of financial panic, but don’t worry—the laughs come too quickly for this to be anything but good medicine. Besides, the playwright’s true intent—to make us consider the value of our aging parents—is as good as gold. The plot arc is risky business for a comedy, banking off the corners of gentle character-driven fare, outright farce, and family dramatics. But the writer pulls it off through deft dialogue and the occasional killer one-liner. As veteran theatergoers, we’ve rarely seen such a powerfully charged audience response. Interestingly, both generations loved what they saw.

Holly Stevenson is a commanding presence as the widow Angela, tender and tough. The show rises or falls on her handling of the play’s sharp turns, and she pulls it off with warmth and brilliance, particularly in the tenser second act. Brink Miller is terrific as always, as the gruff neighbor and senior conspirator Martin. Miller has the lion’s share of the one-liners, and his delivery channels Walter Matthau. Jacob York and Amanda Cucher, as the relative youngsters, add a dash of physical comedy to an already rich stew. Rounding out the cast is Larry Davis as Dr. Krapinsky, the psychiatrist. As always, the sets at Stage Door are miraculously textured, down to working kitchen appliances.

D’Arrigo, the playwright, attended opening night and seemed pleased. With a solid career of writing for the likes of Lily Tomlin and Joan Rivers, D’Arrigo said he enjoyed moving from standup zingers to theater. “In a play,” he said, “I can write with a little more sophistication.” The idea arose from his own experiences visiting his mother and her friends in Florida. Troubled by common neglect of a worthy generation, D’Arrigo wove his observations into a barbed tapestry that somehow goes down easy.

“Spreading It Around” is playing through February 15, 2009. Performances are Friday and Saturday at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $24 for adults and $22 for seniors and students. For reservations and more information, call 770-396-1726 or email [email protected]. Stage Door Players is located at 5339 Chamblee-Dunwoody Road, Dunwoody.