Rudnick Revisited

A month of Paul Rudnick carries on in Kansas City theater with yet another chance to relish the playwright’s gift for the barb. This time the show is Valhalla, a historical comedy that contrasts the gay experience of 1940s Texas against that of opulent royal Bavaria. It’s the second show of Eubank Productions’ new Egads Theatre Company, and it joins the ongoing Actors Against AIDS production of Rudnick one-acts, Pride and Joy and Other Plays, reviewed in this issue. Besides a steady flow of Rudnick one-liners, expect some seriousness at the core — Valhalla both considers and lampoons the stereotype of gay men’s fabulousness. Also expect superior performances, with rowdy beanpole Doogin Brown, a serious comic talent, starring as mad King Ludwig II. Matt Weiss, who has the true clown’s gift of investing character-based comedy with larger truths, plays the Lone Star boy who doesn’t fit in back home. Steven Eubank directs. The bons mots start at 8 tonight at Crown Center’s Off Center Theatre (2450 Grand). For tickets, call 816-842-9999.

Fridays, Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sat., April 17, 11 p.m.; Mon., April 19, 8 p.m.; Fri., April 23, 11 p.m.; Sun., April 25, 7 p.m.; Fri., April 30, 11 p.m. Starts: April 9. Continues through May 1, 2010