Axis Theatre show at MCA hilarious ride

ORONO – Take the choreography of those blue dudes in the Intel commercial, throw in a little Monty Python, add a half-cup of vaudeville and a soupcon of “Je ne sais quoi,” mix in some mime, top off with the mask work of commedia dell’arte, and there you have it – Axis Theatre Company.

I know, that doesn’t begin to convey the flavor of the six brilliant actors in “The Number 14,” the production that originated in Vancouver nine years ago and now plays around the world.

OK, take half a bus, a few seats and some overhead racks to hang onto, and see how the six magically become 60 characters, from exuberant kindergartners to addled bingo players to a know-it-all construction worker.

The handful of hams more than filled the stage Tuesday at the Maine Center for the Arts, to the delight of audience members who nearly fell out of their seats laughing.

For the most part, you never knew who played what, but the truth is that Brian Anderson, Scott Bellis, Darlene Brookes, Marjorie Malpass, Mike Stack and Gordon White functioned as a well-oiled machine.

That was especially evident during the skit where five of them boarded the bus as eager, elderly bingo players, sitting neatly in a row.

Then entered the raucous kindergarten teacher, more than 7 feet tall with footed stilts extending below her long skirt.

One by one, undetected, each bingo player slipped out the door behind the teacher and returned as one of the wild-and-woolly kids with nary a break in the action.

There were several standout individual performances as well – the rap singer, the ranting street creature, the Shakespearean thespians, the bodybuilder, the male actor who made a convincing older woman tumbling and swinging through the aisle, seats and overhead racks as the bus surged and slowed.

Then there was Darlene Brookes, who furtively jumped on the bus in a raincoat as a real estate agent who didn’t exactly have time to finish dressing before she left the house.

Thanks to the wonders of cell phones, the character was able to hold conversations with colleagues and clients even as she combed her hair, brushed her teeth and put on pantyhose – feet inching up the bus window as she inched into the skintight nylons.

The bit was hilarious, prompting conversations during the intermission among women who had their own tales of dressing in moving cars.

Just as much fun was the kid who irritated the heck out of five grouchy passengers by singing “Don’t Worry, Be Happy,” until he got to his stop.

Once he was gone, a serious case of the sillies overtook the remaining five, one by one, until they were whistling, singing, doodle-dooing and jazzing along to the song.

Then they got totally punchy and moved on to singing reworded bits of “Scarborough Fair,” “Get a Job,” “Ticket to Ride,” “Hang On, Sloopy,” “Time Is on My Side,” “Feelings,” “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “Stop in the Name of Love,” “On Broadway,” and, of course, “I’m a Little Teapot.”

This is a group that does its research, updating the show with references to “a free presidential pardon” with every fast-food meal, and making in-jokes about local spots where some of the characters work.

Here’s hoping the next time Axis Theatre comes to the University of Maine, school is in session so that more students join the happy audience.