FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY “LaLaLuna” a wildly immaginative show that blends circus arts, vaudeville, mime and more

And Bob said, “Let there be light.” And there wasn’t. In Biblical times, this may have been a problem, but in Wolfe Bowart’s one-man show “LaLaLuna,” darkness, and the main character Bob’s attempt to fix it, serves as the basis for rollicking comedy. The all-ages performance – which blends circus arts, physical theater, vaudeville, interactive film and a bit of mime – will be staged at 7 p.m. Friday at the Bangor Opera House as a benefit for Maine Children’s Alliance.

“It’s a really upbeat, exciting, fun kind of craziness,” said Bowart, a West Coast native whose family has summered in Midcoast Maine for generations. “It’s like a children’s book written by a surrealist or an absurdist. It’s got sort of a dark children’s book feeling, so kids love it. It’s a bit ‘Lemony Snicket.'”

It’s a story about Bob, the man in charge of the light bulb that keeps the moon illuminated. He sleeps on a floating bed between the moon and Earth, and he carries his belongings on a giant floating garden cart atop a tall unicycle. One night, he sleeps a little too long and allows the lightbulb to burn out. As he searches for its replacement, mayhem ensues.

“There’s a lot of things I’ve always wanted to do in this show,” Bowart said.

Things like juggling pingpong balls floating atop hairdryers and beach balls floating over leaf blowers. Giant balloons and tango-dancing music stands. Garden carts with wings. A symphony for ukulele and whoopie cushion. Fireflies in soap bubbles.

“It’s got all these elements – circus, acrobatics, puppetry – but it’s really a piece of theater,” Bowart said.

As a dancer uses movement, or an artist uses paint, Bowart uses juggling and mime, drama and poetry, music and magic to create a rich, visually arresting performance experience.

In July, he wrapped up a 59-show tour of Australia with The Shneedles, the vaudeville duo he founded with Bill Robison. Bowart developed “LaLaLuna” three years ago, and it has since become his signature piece.

“It’s very ‘James and the Giant Peach,'” he said. “It’s an adult show and a kids’ show. When you say ‘family entertainment,’ it usually means shows that parents can stomach with their kids … but ‘LaLaLuna’ is a lot of fun for the whole family.”

That was part of the appeal for Elinor Goldberg, a longtime friend of Bowart’s and president of Maine Children’s Alliance. In addition to providing an ombudsman for Maine’s child welfare system, the alliance works to improve child care and integrate human services to meet children’s needs more effectively.

At last fall’s Shneedles show in Rockport, one of Goldberg’s colleagues “laughed himself silly,” she said.

“What I realized was this is children’s and family entertainment,” Goldberg said. “The nice thing about this show is it has enough drama, enough of a storyline, enough mystery that adults will actually like it very well.”

Bowart’s wife, Kerryn Negus, offered to stage two benefit performances – in Bangor and next Friday in Portland.

“They’re a great group and what better group to do this for?” Bowart asked. “People are just hungry for it.”

And the multigenerational aspect of the show encourages communication between children, their parents, and even their grandparents – always a good thing.

“It’s just great to see a show people of all ages and all races and all ethnicities can talk to each other about,” Bowart said. “I feel very strongly about making theater that kids can go to. This isn’t just a kids’ show, it’s theater where adults can laugh on one level and kids can laugh on another level.”

Kristen Andresen can be reached at 990-8287 and kandresen@bangordailynews.net.

“LaLaLuna” will be staged at 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 2, at Bangor Opera House; and 7 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 10, at Portland High School theater. Admission costs $25 for reserved seating, $15 for adult general seating and $8 for children’s general seating. Tickets are available in advance by calling 623-1868, ext. 202, or online at www.mekids.org. For more information about “LaLaLuna,” visit www.lalaluna.com.