Theater review: 'Man With the Pointed Toes' at Glendale Centre

Written by husband-and-wife team Lynn and Helen Root, “Man With the Pointed Toes” first saw light as a 1958 television production before premiering as a stage play at Glendale Centre Theatre in the mid-1960s. Now the play returns to the scene of its theatrical debut.

Historically speaking, that’s certainly heartwarming. Dramatically, it’s another story. Perhaps “Toes” was a rip-roarer back in its day, but it’s now a dusty velvet painting of a comedy with a paint-by-numbers plot that holds few surprises.

The story, in a chestnut shell, concerns Texas rancher Tom Coterel (Tommy Kearney), a new oil billionaire smitten by the purposefully seductive Pamela (Kelley Hurley). Out of his depth with Pamela, Tom hires bookwormish tutor Florence (Megan Blakeley)  to smooth off his rough edges. Of course, as Florence successfully transforms Tom from a rube to a slicker, she falls in love with him. Will Tom realize just what a gem Florence is, or will he marry Pamela, a cubic zirconia in a gold-digger setting?

Fortunately, although the play sometimes falls short, the engaging cast, which includes Richard Large, Nick Mizrahi, Eric Orman, Shawn Cahill and Paul Nieman, garners its fair share of laughs. Under the tutelage of director Allan Dietlein, the actors all play to their stereotypes — a plus in this most obvious of plays. Nieman is particularly attractive as Tom’s matchmaking foreman, while Kearney and Blakeley develop a sweet romantic chemistry that compensates for a passel of triteness.

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“Man With the Pointed Toes,” Glendale Centre Theatre, 324 N. Orange St., Glendale. 8 p.m. Thursdays-Fridays; 3 and 8 p.m. Saturdays. Ends May 5. $20-$25.  (818) 244-8481. www.glendalecentretheatre.com.  Running time:  2 hours, 15 minutes.

 Photo: Megan Blakeley, Kelley Hurley and Tommy Kearney. Credit: Nathan Milisavljevich.