"Bunbury," Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre, Long Beach, CA

Playwright Tom Jacobson bases his wonderful comedy Bunbury on a fascinating premise.

Directed by Robert Craig for the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre, the story features Bunbury (Stephen Peirick), an off-stage character in Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, and Rosaline (Daina Baker), an off-stage character in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

After they inadvertently turn Shakespeare’s tragedy of star-crossed lovers into a feel-good, happy-ever-after, they realize that they can – and so do - alter the outcomes of classics like A Streetcar Named Desire, Waiting For Godot, The Three Sisters, Waiting for Godot, and The Raven.

Exquisite moments abound. You can’t help but giggle at Poe’s new refrain when he recites his Raven and snicker the appearance of the eponymous character in the company of the two men who would have otherwise spent eternity Waiting for Godot.

The play romps without a seam through history, culture, and fashion. The costumes present an eclectic mix of Renaissance, mid-19th century French, and mid-20th century hobo. Ditto for the tone, register, and diction of the language. It’s like watching Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump cut and pasted into shaking hands with LBJ.

The dialogue sizzles. The language is brash and sassy, appropriate for the mischievous enterprise on which the two main characters embark.

The backdrop consists of a billowing sheet that changes color depending on the story’s tone and gives the impression of sailing through literary history on a spinnaker.

It’s an intelligent script. One of the themes that Mr. Jacobson examines is whether cultural literacy is a prerequisite to enjoying stories like this. The answer is a resounding no, though, of course, it does enhance the experience.

Though the production makes us laugh, Craig strives for more than comedy. He wants us to acknowledge the significance of the lives of everyone (for all the world’s a stage), fictional or in-the-flesh, be they in starring, secondary, or off-stage roles. Cultural elitism may be the sound byte of the primary campaign but it has no place in this comedy.

From top to bottom the acting is top-notch.

Baker’s Rosaline brought wit, humor, and panache to her adorable Rosaline. She was perfect as the spurned-by-Romeo Valley Girl, made all the funnier when she initially appeared in Renaissance garb speaking in iambic pentameter (“...but we are speaking Italian”).

And Peirick’s Bunbury was the production’s wick, flame, and, heck, the whole ball of wax. His timing, especially his Jack Benny pauses, was perfect. The squeal and lilt of his voice had as many facets as a diamond. And he had great physically comic presence.

Enjoy this show for it’s blatant humor and subtle historical references but relish it because it makes a great case for the unheralded he or she, fictional or not, in a starring or subordinate role, be they Don Quixote or Sancho Panza.

Performances are 8pm, Fri, & Sat., 2pm, Sun. The show runs until May 31. Tickets are $20-22. The Playhouse is located at 5021 E. Anaheim St. For more info call 494-1014 or visit www.lbph.com.