IF, like me, you suffer from post-traumatic mime syndrome, you’ll probably get nervous before you even sit down at “Cut to the Chase.”
A perky usherette will follow you to your seat, waving a flashlight in a manner that recalls those annoying, white-faced creatures who mimic your every move.
Fortunately, things get better from there in this new fast-paced family vaudeville devised by Parallel Exit, which brought us the acclaimed “This Way That Way” a couple of seasons ago.
Featuring enough slamming doors, pratfalls, songs, magic tricks, tap-dancing and slapstick to fuel a dozen shows, it provides hilarious fun for small-fry without boring the adults with them.
It’s clear that the ragtag troupe of performers attempting to put on their show have their problems. The ringleader, a juggler and musician (Joel Jeske, who conceived and wrote the piece), is perpetually aggrieved. The exotic diva (Juliet Jeske) has the hots for the nerdy stage manager (Ryan Kasprzak), much to the distress of the lovestruck ingénue (Laura Dillman). And the stone-faced drummer (Mike Dobson) takes a break whenever he feels like it.
It’s all great wordless fun, punctuated by hilarious renditions of songs such as “Shine On, Harvest Moon” and “Temptation,” in which the lovely harmonizing quickly turns awry.
Under the direction of Mark Lonergan, the performers deliver their non-stop antics with the physical precision necessary for this seemingly spontaneous mayhem.
CUT TO THE CHASE59E59 Theaters, 59 E. 59th St.; (212) 279-4200.