The Brandeis Ensemble Theater last Saturday night presented The Belle's Nightmare, a double feature of one-acts by famed oddball playwright Christopher Durang. Originally produced in 1994 by the Manhattan Theater Club in New York City under the title Durang/Durang, the two plays parodied numerous works by luminaries such as Samuel Beckett.The first, "For Whom the Southern Belle Tolls," told the story of a presumably single mother (Adra Horn '09) and her two poorly functioning sons. The younger of the two, Lawrence (David Mandel '11), is a complete social invalid suffering from numerous ailments, including an imaginary limp, asthma and a prodding mother determined to get him out of the house and into the real world. Drawing from Tennessee Williams' classic tale of familial dysfunction, The Glass Menagerie, Lawrence's embittered, pornography-addicted brother, Tom (Anthony Rios '09), at the request of his mother, brings home a woman from the warehouse where he works, hoping that she will prove a suitable mate for his brother. Unfortunately, the female suitor, Ginny (Michelle Miller '11), is a mostly-deaf, overbearing lesbian. Hilarity ensues.

It's meant to anyway. Blame it on the faux-southern accents, but a significant portion of the deliveries seemed flat and poorly timed at the outset. Also, the minimalist set, consisting of a couch and a coffee table, did little to create an engaging environment for the audience. Fortunately, as the act progressed, the actors seemed to get their bearings and were able to squeeze more than a few chuckles out of the crowd. Mandel's obsession with his collection of glass cocktail stirrers (much like Laura Wingfield's glass animals in "Menagerie") was particularly smirk-inducing.

The second play, "The Actor's Nightmare," started out on a much more positive note. In this re-enactment of every actor's least favorite scenario, a clueless accountant named George (Mandel '11) is suddenly thrust onto a stage with no idea how he got there. Completely bewildered, George is told he must fill in for the ailing lead actor. From there on out, George hastily improvises with his fellow actors, reciting lines from every play he can bring to memory with occasional help from the frustrated stage manager (Dana Padget '08). Yet just as George feels he is getting a handle on a given situation, the scene will shift from a romantic cruise to a medieval beheading ceremony. Bouncing between classic works such as Noel Coward's Private Lives and Robert Bolt's A Man For All Seasons, the cast humorously play off each other in a whirlwind of confusion and mistaken identity.

Though a little shaky, the cast of The Belle's Nightmare put on an enjoyable show. The production could have been better served with a more extensive and elaborate production, but the actors made the best of their situation and kept the audience's rapt attention.