I feel it’s a good sign when, about thirty seconds into the start of the play, I react to some comic business on stage with a whoop of laughter that could have come from a deranged seal. But will Once Upon a Time in Homowood live up to its early promise? – I wonder in my jaded theatre-reviewer fashion. Sixty minutes and many similar outbursts later, the answer is in: yes, it does. Judging by audience response (not just mine), Homowood is a very funny play, in concept, treatment and delivery.

The concept is that Homowood stages the original scripts of three iconic Hollywood movies. The originals differ from the final versions by being, as the publicity material puts it, gay gay gay. Now, the Film Arts Guild (acronym FAG) has rescued them from the heteronormative rubbish bin.

In order of appearance, Homowood gives us: Sunset Boulevard (writer Jamie Cain), with a transgender Norma Desmond; Titanic: In the Bosom of the Ocean (Cassandra Tse), like Titanic “with lesbians;” and The Social Network (Matt Loveranes), with kissing.

All three get much the same treatment, which is camp, fast and furious. Gags at all levels, from the erudite and esoteric to broad slapstick, crowd on each other’s heels. If it moves, Homowood will ridicule, satirise and/or send it up. Wordplay, contemporary references, musical gags, sight gags, prop gags. Plus, of course, lots of impressions of the rich and famous.

This is all delivered in a spirit of cheerful disrespect and with a lot of elan. There’s a real sense of fun in the writing and acting, plus just enough respect to make the object of satire worth the effort. Plenty of gags don’t hit the target, but no matter, if one misses, there’s another ten already on the way.

If this sounds a bit chaotic, Homowood is built on good firm foundations. There’s a consistently strong cast with plenty of skills, including enough flexibility to improvise if a gap needs filling.

My favourite performance on the night is Jamie Cain’s gloriously Gothic Norma Desmond, with Zachary Klein’s Caledon Hockley, Mark Zuckerberg and Cecil B. DeMille’s corpse a close second-equal. I can’t resist mentioning Ruby Carter’s subversively appealing Rose DeWitt-Bukater. Or anyone else for that matter, so here for the record is the rest of Homowood’s meritorious cast, most of whom play multiple roles: Cassandra Tse, Matt Loveranes, Lincoln Swinerd, Mike Bryant, Rachel McLean and Julia Bon-McDonald.

Sound – composed by Oliver Devlin – delivered on time, effective, lots of inspired improvisation (couldn’t find a name for the operator). Lighting: credit to Jacob Banks, designer, operator Ruby Kemp. An exceptionally ingenious and versatile set (designer Lucas Neal).

And if that isn’t all enough, the best hard-copy program I think I’ve ever seen; looks great and does the job with economical ingenuity.

Congratulations to director Jamie Cain and assistant directors Cassandra Tse and Matt Loveranes for their part in channelling all this exuberant creativity onto the stage.

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