Plot sleuths will be befuddled

Things are not always what they seem, particularly when murder is involved. Theatrical murder, that is, the kind that’s masked by “Smoke and Mirrors.”

In the intriguing mystery play of that title, now on stage at the Newport Theater Arts Center, hardly anything, or anyone, is what they are purported to be, which makes for an evening of lively second guessing and some terrific entertainment.

Director Darlene Hunter-Chaffee has drawn herself a hand of five aces for this circuitous exercise in plotting and counterplotting from playwrights Will Osborne and Anthony Herrera. Superior performances and craftsman-like direction elevate this rather improbable script about off-screen conniving by some rather devious members of the motion picture industry.

Equally divided between dark deception and nervous comedy, “Smoke and Mirrors” places a high-powered producer-director (Jack Messenger), his sultry wife (Christi Sweeney), an oversensitive screenwriter (Howard Patterson) and an egocentric actor (Geoffrey Varga) in the summer home of a Mississippi governor on an island off the Gulf Coast.

Ostensibly, the purpose for the gathering is to formulate a sequel to a hit movie in which all were involved. But it soon becomes apparent that one of that number is marked for elimination, under the guise of a rehearsal accident.

Messenger dominates the stage as the overarching architect of the murderous scheme, from the moment the lights come up and he’s seen pointing a gun toward the audience. An exceptionally strong actor in a role that demands such authority, Messenger sells his character, and his deadly scheme, with clarity and conviction.

It’s not an easy sell, however. Writer Patterson is skittish to the point he could be overcome by Don Knotts’ Barney Fife. His probably is the best performance in a quintet loaded with excellent acting, and his shaking chagrin after the deed is done is especially effective.

Sweeney charms as a willing co-conspirator, then truly blossoms later in the play when her hidden agenda is revealed. In a welcome return to the stage after a lengthy absence, Sweeney balances the conflicting demands of her character beautifully.

Varga’s self-engulfed actor is a caricature from the outset, a swell-headed egocentric channeling the young Marlon Brando or James Dean. It’s easy enough to see why the writer and director believe they’d be better off without him in the picture, figuratively and literally.

In the second act, the long arm of the law appears in the person of Eldon Callaway, a sort of Southern-fried Columbo with a disarming folksy manner of ferreting out the truth. Callaway enriches the show with his laid-back attitude, which can dissolve to reveal a dead-serious sheriff at any moment.

Bill Cole’s immaculate setting provides an ideal backdrop for the onstage intrigue. This atmosphere is splendidly augmented by Suji Brewer’s costumes and Mitch Atkins’ lighting design, along with Ron Wyand’s musical selections.

“Smoke and Mirrors” is a tasty challenge for audiences who delight in second-guessing the playwright as to what’s really going on and who’s actually doing what to whom.

Lots of luck in sleuthing out this one.

IF YOU GO

* WHAT: “Smoke and Mirrors”

* WHERE: Newport Theater Arts Center, 2501 Cliff Drive, Newport Beach

* WHEN: Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2:30 until Dec. 11

* COST: $15

* CALL: (949) 631-0288

* TOM TITUS reviews local theater for the Daily Pilot. His reviews appear Fridays.

20051118iq4k2tkn(LA)Jack Messenger and Christi Sweeney engage in a little marital disagreement in the mystery-comedy “Smoke and Mirrors” at the Newport Theater Arts Center.20051118h3hei2kf(LA)