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The Long Beach Playhouse on Anaheim Street near PCH boasts two stages, an art-filled lobby, reasonably priced concessions that include wine and beer, cozy seating and an almost continuous array of shows. What more could one want from a community theater that’s been a fixture here since 1929?
Opening this weekend at the Playhouse’s downstairs Mainstage Theatre is “God’s Favorite,” by prolific and award-winning playwright Neil Simon. A loose retelling of the biblical book of Job, in which a man has everything taken away — wealth, possessions, family — in an extreme test of his faith, the play promises both amusement and something to think about.
Director James Rice said he was drawn to this play for its central question — “Why do bad things happen to good people?” — and how Simon answers it with wit and humor.
First produced on Broadway in 1974, “God’s Favorite” focuses on the wealthy yet devout Joe Benjamin of Long Island, New York, whose wife, three children and two household staff all give him grief in one way or another. When a “messenger” shows up one night to get Joe to renounce his faith, and he refuses, all hell breaks loose.
Saturated with jokes, one-liners and sarcasm typical of a Neil Simon comedy, “God’s Favorite” nonetheless offers a view of faith that may resonate with the biblical version of the story.
Artistic director Sean Gray said the play has been described as one of Simon’s “most imaginative.”
“Although most of Simon’s plays are about average people in average domestic situations, with the intervention of a messenger from God as central to the story, the notion of average is largely cast aside,” he said.
Madison Mooney, executive director of the Playhouse, noted that “God’s Favorite” is not produced as often as the playwright’s other works.
“While it has the same humor and wit as ‘The Odd Couple’ and ‘Barefoot in the Park,’ it’s not the same story our audiences are used to,” she said, referring to Simon’s more well-known plays.
But Mooney said Playhouse audiences seem to enjoy comedies, and she describes “God’s Favorite” as “funny, touching, thought-provoking and supremely entertaining.”
To stage the play, set designer David Scaglione and technical director Jesse Bosworth “faced the interesting task of figuring out the best way to incorporate a revolving stage” on the theater’s floor, Mooney said.
She added that costume designer Christina Bayer “put together a lot of fun, very over-the-top 1970s costumes” to reflect the play’s original 1974 New York setting.
Before its regular run begins Saturday, the Playhouse is offering two low-cost preview performances — pay-what-you-can on Thursday, April 3, and $10 tickets on Friday, April 4, both at 8 p.m. Saturday’s opening night ticket includes a champagne reception with the cast.
Mooney said the show’s eight volunteer actors — most of them returning to the Playhouse after performing in its previous productions — are primed for this comedy.
“Simon never fails to infuse his plays with plenty of verbal zingers that audiences enjoy,” she said. “And this cast and director are particularly good at zinger-delivery.”
“God’s Favorite” runs April 5 to May 3 at the Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E. Anaheim St., with shows Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. Free parking is available in a lot behind the theater and surrounding streets. For tickets and information, call the box office at 562-494-1014 or visit LBPlayhouse.org.