Playhouse’s ‘First Time’ more comical than erotic

November 7, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

by Milan Paurich

Adapted by Ken Davenport (“Altar Boyz,” “The Awesome 80s Prom”) from material on the website MyFirstTime.com, “My First Time” is less a fully realized play than an opportunity for the audience to wax nostalgic over their own misbegotten youth. A series of unrelated monologues — more comical than erotic — lifted directly from the 38,000 sexual-initiation stories posted on Peter Foldy and Craig Stuart’s Internet phenomenon, which averages 12,000 hits per day, Davenport’s loosely scripted trifle delivers giggles (and wince-inducing flashbacks) with metronomic precision.

The inaugural presentation of the Youngstown Playhouse’s ambitious new Griffith-Adler series, “My First Time” also marks the Playhouse directing debut of Rust Belt/Oakland Center for the Arts wunderkind Robert Dennick Joki. If Friday’s packed-to-the-gills opening night house is any indication, both Joki and the Playhouse have another winner, and possibly a cash-cow perennial, on their hands. It’s easy to imagine as many iterations of “First Time” as, say, “How the Drag Queen Stole Christmas,” Joki’s immensely popular Yuletide fundraising potpourri. Because of its minimalist staging (six stools; a makeshift bed to lounge — and occasionally writhe — on; a PowerPoint slide presentation), “First Time” could be revived ad infinitum with an ever-changing troupe of young performers.

More than the uneven series of “how-I-lost-my-virginity” stories, it’s the actors themselves who make or break the show. And Joki really lucked out with his immensely gifted and appealing ensemble. Dan Poppke (who reminded me a bit of the young Timothy Olyphant), Meysha Harville and the always impressive Cheney Morgan are the standouts in this particular group, but that’s probably because they’ve been gifted by their director with the most amusing (and/or touching) material. Marisa Zamary, Suzanne Shorrab and Daniel McGarvey all make strong impressions, and everyone is to be commended for their, uh, thespian bravery. (The entire cast is outfitted solely in undergarments from beginning to end.)

While Davenport’s script contains a seemingly endless variety of sexual anecdotes, I’m not really certain there’s enough material to sustain a feature-length program. As a result, monotony settles in at about the half-way point. Fortunately, the occasional juicy one-liner (“A 30-second commercial lasts longer than I did;” “It was like Christmas morning — only worse”) or gut-wrenching testimonial (the inconsolable grief of a young man for not being able to shield his best friend from a particularly vicious Prom Night date rape) help maintain audience interest — and empathy — throughout.

Among the many things I learned from watching “My First Time”: the average age that most Americans lose their virginity is 15.8; some of the more unusual locations where people have “lost it” are Burger King restrooms, golf courses and subway cars; and Coke douches definitely don’t work. Chekhov it ain’t, but as a palate-cleanser for heavyweight Griffith/Adler dramas in the offing like “Pillowman” and “God of Carnage,” Joki’s randy divertissement hits the sweet spot.

“My First Time” plays through Saturday at the Youngstown Playhouse. For reservations, call 330-788-8739.