Even though the windows of his mother's apartment look out on a wall, Barney closes the curtains before he opens his briefcase to pull out Scotch and two glasses. He's preparing, of course, to have an affair. When his sophisticated co-worker Elaine shows up, he's as on-edge as she is. But in her case it's because she's forgotten her cigarettes and would like to move on as quickly as possible to another form of gratification -- the kind she's used to, and family man, fish restaurateur Barney is not. After a barrage of typical Neil Simon one-liners, it's obvious Elaine is not the forbidden fruit Barney will taste this afternoon.
In the next two acts, pretty much the same results occur after Barney's somewhat different interactions with two much different other temptations. They're Bobbi, a love-beaded, goofy "aspiring actress" who hippily gets Barney potted, and his wife's hung-up friend Jeanette, who's depressed because she thinks her husband's having an affair. The comedy is gentle and, despite some references being updated, quaint. In Venice's typical older audiences it finds its mark.
The most laughs come from couch potatoes Barney and Bobbi getting mashed and his being able to wrestle away from Jeanette a purse she keeps clutching like a life preserver. Barney's attempts to quench the fish odor from his hands constitute a running joke that Joseph Parra handles well, just as he does the sweating his character undergoes.
It's traditional to have each of his almost-lovers played by different actresses, but director Turoff effectively breaks with custom and has talented Elizabeth Palmer play all three. Costume and wig changes help her, but she herself shines with differentiating tones of voice and body movement. Her performance changes the same-old to a pretty nice-new comedy.
