THEATER REVIEW:Campy satire comes to H.B.

Take 10 of the most famous movie divas of all timeinvolve them in a plot borrowed liberally from Agatha Christie and smear the entire project with layers of camp and you have the latest production from the Huntington Beach Playhouse.

” … And Then There Was Nun” is a murder mystery played strictly for laughs, one which will appeal most fervently to the unreconstructed movie buff who will instantly pick up on the pungent but ancient references in the dialogue. And the evening is full of them.

Imagine all these luminaries gathered under one roof. Then imagine they’re all nuns, and a deranged mother superior is knocking them. That’s the concept writers Bruce W. Gilray and Richard T. Witter bring into play, and it’s riotously, if not always sharply, executed (literally) by director Robert Rotenberry’s enthusiastic cast.

Even the most casual movie fan will recognize the inspiration for these characters. There are Sisters Hattie (McDaniel), Vivien (Leigh), Joan (Crawford), Bette (David), Tallulah (Bankhead), Gloria (Swanson), Mae (West), Katharine (Hepburn), Marilyn (Monroe) and Judy (Garland, with Toto, as well).

Presiding over the murderous shenanigans is an ominous Sister Alfred (Michael Ross), who drops a plethora of Hitchcockian references into his brief introduction. This sets the stage for the creative carnage based freely on Christie’s “Ten Little Indians.”

All the semi-stars gleefully channel the personas and mannerisms of their respective legends, but the actress accomplishing this most impressively is Karen Merrill, who captures the vocal patterns — tremors and all — of Katharine Hepburn. Her repeated attempts to relate her “Philadelphia story” are soundly rebuffed by her peers.

Kip Hogan, white-faced as a Bette Davis clone, illustrates whatever happened to Baby Jane as she pushes a snippy and demanding Sister Joan (Dawn Vasco) around in a wheelchair. These two also come perilously close to their inspirations, as does Laura Kreyche, whose Sister Judy is still treading that yellow brick road, Toto in tow.

The most “dramatic” enactment comes from Oriana Nicole Tavoularis as a fervent Sister Vivien, particularly appealing in her Scarlett O’Hara “I’ll never go hungry again” moment. Krysta Mayo keeps her in line as the tough-talking Sister Hattie.

Making her stage debut, the voluptuous Sandy Lindenberg shines as Sister Marilyn, occasionally recreating her “Seven Year Itch” subway grate scene. Cory Watkins is a hoot as the raunchy Sister Mae, while Julie Ellis portrays a booze-fueled Sister Tallulah with an edgy relish.

The most outrageous of the reincarnated characters is Michael Latsch’s Sister Gloria, a campy lunatic who’s constantly ready for his/her close-up. Latsch is a true devotee of this play, appearing in his seventh production of it, although his first in this assignment.

Andrew Otero’s intricate setting — a mansion on “Grauman’s Chinese Island” — and the costumes, also by Otero, enrich this spoof-laden show immensely. Timing remains a slight problem, especially in the early going, as the cast attempts to judge when the heavy laughs will come, resulting in a few “dead spots.”

If you enjoyed the skits on the old Carol Burnett Show, you’ll appreciate “ … And Then There Was Nun.”

IF YOU GO:

WHAT: ”...And Then There Was Nun”

WHO: Huntington Beach Playhouse

WHERE: Library Theater, 7111 Talbert Ave., Huntington Beach

WHEN: Thursdays & Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 3 & 8, Sundays at 2 & 7 through July 15

COST: $18 - $20

INFO: (714) 375-0696