BWW Reviews: Falcon's Commercially Appealing PSYCHIC Should Have Legs

In Lenny's Back, a vibrant one-person play about the late controversial comic Lenny Bruce, Sam Bobrick and wife Julie Stein penned an unpredictably exhilarating look at a man that for many fans was the king of comedy. In Bobrick's latest comedy The Psychic, he does not choose anyone famous; on the contrary, he creates a fictitious struggling writer and five ordinary people with quite extraordinary ambitions and goals. Bigger than life, not unlike cartoons, the sextet create one unforgettably entertaining evening of theatre at the Falcon.

Adam Webster (Jeffrey Cannata) is a psychic, or is he? Well, at least that's what the sign in his basement apartment window says. Look closer! He's a mystery writer moonlighting to make a few bucks, but who, with the best of luck, in his very first attempt, encounters a bevy of richly eclectic folks that one by one help him create the perfect mystery novel. A writer's dream! There's a beautiful wife (compelling Dana Green), a cheating husband (mysterious Cyrus Alexander), a frisky, feisty mistress (delicious Bridget Flanery), a comicbook mobster or self-described gangster cliche of the 40s (devilishly hilarious Richard Horvitz) and an earnest detective, who just happens to have a penchant for romantic stories (ever resilient Phil Proctor). Each enters Webster's abode with a specific recomendation on improving the comfort of the cheap dingy basement decor (appropriate set design by Jeff McLaughlin), the funniest being -"Add a skylight!" The retort? "This is a basement, not an attic!"

This is definitely Neil Simon, Woody Allen fare, like a contemporary Bullets Over Broadway that pokes fun at the mystery writing genre and gets a lot of mileage from allusions to crime films with multiple suspects, descriptions of thrilling car chases, death defying escapes and the gruesome discovery of an ungodly number of dead bodies in car trunks. At the heart, of course, there's romance; in fact, a couple that seem doomed to failure even before they begin. But, never doubt the power of the pen!

Morgenstern achieves just the right pacing throughout and judiciously allows her actors free reign to proceed with the utmost flair.

The Psychic is a laugh-filled unexpectedly entertaining ride that gratifies copiously from moment to moment. A definite must see with an electrically charged cast!

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The Psychic, a Murder Mystery of Sorts
written by Sam Bobrick
Falcon Theatre
directed by Susan Morgenstern
through April 18
for tickets and more information, visit www.falcontheatre.com

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