By John Quinn

Posted: Jan. 31, 2015 at 12:33 p.m.

When I last saw actor/playwright Margaret Edwartowski, she was on stage at the Berman Center for the Performing Arts, accepting our 2013 Wilde Award for best new script for her delightful play, “Hamtown Races.” That nomination was made by my colleague, Donald V. Calamia; I was prepared to nominate her light comedy, “The Do Over” that season. If you’re a local theater buff, you might also know that her sweet comic one-act, “Mom is so GLAAD” was voted favorite play of The Ringwald Theatre’s 2014 Gay Play Series. That’s not a bad track record for only five years of playwriting.

Ah, but Margaret Edwartowski has 15 years’ experience in improvisational theater and sketch comedy, experience that has gifted her with an observant eye for the human condition in all its folly and a sharp ear for witty yet convincing dialogue. Edwardtowski is back at Planet Ant Theatre, where her first play, “Snowbound,” debuted about this time in 2010, and where “The Do Over” and “Hamtown Races” caught the eyes of the Wilde Awards committee. This time she offers an original romantic comedy, “Armchair Dating,” just ahead of Super Bowl Sunday.

Yes, indeed, 6:30 p.m. EST will mark the start of the 49th annual exercise in the all-American sport, armchair quarterbacking. Millions of sports fans will be screaming at unresponsive flat-screens, each fan sure that he or she could do better than any coach, player, or referee. But what happens if a close friend applies the same know-it-all attitude to your love life? “Armchair Dating” is the case study.

Struggling actress Liz (Lauren Bickers) meets Chuck (Andy Burt) when she gets in his shorts – his short-subject films, that is. Chuck feels Liz is the perfect match for his awkward best friend, Peter (Andy Reid). Andy is an aspiring painter (of canvases, not houses) but he’s also a trust-fund baby whose family’s wealth falls somewhere “between Oprah’s and the Sultan of Brunei’s.” Chuck becomes Cyrano to Peter’s Christian and begins coaching him on how to win the fair lady.

But Liz has a BFF, too – realtor Anita (Cara Trautman), who thinks all artist are “weird.” Chuck is ensconced in a recliner stage right and Anita on a love seat stage left, leaving the center as sort of a battleground for the potential partners. The “quarterbacks” call plays, comment on the success of their protégés and, ultimately, make their charges feel pretty inadequate. Will the pair smooth over their early rough patches, or is this budding relationship heading for the mother of all potholes?

“Armchair Dating” is a mere 45 minutes; it’s reminiscent of an extended sketch comedy. Yet there is no sense of padding or anything missing – it efficiently tells its story. I can even see a time when Planet Ant can host “An Evening with Margaret Edwartowski,” pairing or even tripling one acts of complementary themes. There is an aesthetic to “Armchair” that reminds one of “The Do Over.”

There is rarely a dull moment in the production; since the characters don’t move very much, the rapid-fire dialogue sets both pace and tone. Note, though, the dim-light scene changes are a comedy all in their own, thanks to director Tara Rase and Shawn Handlon’s capable hand at the lighting board.

Opening night found some line readings still a little rough around the edges, not surprising in light of the whip-lash speed of the delivery. I rarely quibble about interpretation, but one bit sent me out of my suspension of disbelief. Peter sketches Liz – unlike a similar scene in “Titanic,” she’s still clothed – when a senseless spat has her running from Peter’s bohemian apartment. Peter follows; almost a token of resignation, he gives her the drawing – folded in eighths. I’m not much of an artist, but if I had a piece of art that I or someone else will keep, my first instinct would be to roll it. I understand that a roll would not be as unobtrusive until the reveal.

Festivities on Sunday will also include the second-most popular sport – betting on the game. I wager that Margaret Edwartowski and her talent for creating thoroughly realistic, developed characters will be back at The Ant before Super Bowl 50.

SHOW DETAILS:
“Armchair Dating”
Planet Ant Theatre
2357 Caniff in Hamtramck, MI 48212
9 p.m. Friday & Saturday, Jan. 30, 31, Feb. 6, 7, 13, 14
Running time: 45 minutes, no intermission
$10
313-365-4948
www.planetant.com