Guest-ing Game: “My Son Is Crazy, but Promising,” at the Richmond Hill Barn Theatre through November 24

What do you get when a Hollywood screenwriter buys a run-down hotel in Arizona? It’s either the plot for Hallmark’s latest Christmas movie or bound to be an experience chock full of zany escapades. As is the case here, in Tim Kelly’s stage comedy My Son is Crazy, but Promising at the Richmond Hill Barn Theatre, it's most certainly the latter. And while I would like to say there’s a lot more plot to the evening, there really isn’t much more to it than people continuing to arrive at the lodge.

Directed by Dana Skiles, this production boasts 15 actors, and while about half of the characters don’t especially move the plot along, there wasn’t anyone who didn’t bring their “A” game. Derek Bolme excels at his role as new Ritz Apache Lodge owner Bud Granger, who exudes quirkiness from the moment he arrives with his lucky roller skates slung over his shoulder. Bud is met by the lodge's current owner Gert Witherspoon (a brash Beth Nyland), plus a few of the eccentric guests who’ve made this lodge their permanent home.

Of particular note is Jame Simonson's Cora Ames, an eccentric rock-and-mineral aficionado who also believes aliens have abducted her before and anxiously awaits their return to Earth. While the program does not credit anyone for this production’s costumes, Cora’s outfits were handily the best: the green lamé pants made the way Cora moved across the stage with an unusual, prancing jog extra-funny. Patrons on Friday were chuckling pretty much anytime Cora was on stage.

Jim Skiles, as Dimitri Jones, also inspired frequent chuckles. Dimitri isn’t a very good spy, and Skiles has his accent coming and going. But with a play titled My Son is Crazy, but Promising, this didn’t matter much: Dimitri was also crazy but promising, and got the requisite laughs when he blew himself up. Susan Claypool (Stacy Herrick) is the FBI agent assigned to Dimitri, and while she’s a terrible federal agent, the Dimitri/Susan combination is entertaining enough … if maybe completely unnecessary in Kelly's thin plot.

Honeymooning couple June and Arthur Whitney are played by real-life married couple and RHP favorites David and Elizabeth Shaffer. They looked like they were having a grand ol' time together, thei characters' xpecting the Ritz-Carlton and ending up somewhere that couldn’t be farther from that reality. June is spoiled and whiny (Elizabeth Shaffer proves that it's always fun to add extra syllables to words while whining), while Arthur complements her well as a lovable buffoon.

Particularly impressive were the mobster couple, Oysters Rockerfeller and Chi-Chi Vazoom (played by the not-married John Simosky and Tifany Simosky), who got their bag swapped with the Whitneys at the airport. With excellent comedic timing and line deliveries, these two were particularly delightful. John Simosky also provided the best physical comedy of the evening when paired with Carol Neuleib as Bud's mom Tilly Granger, who handily earned the night’s biggest laughs. Meanwhile, reporter Fay Armstrong (Katie Orwig) shows up in Arizona because she’s chasing after Oyster, and while Orwig was adept, her character's purpose still left me scratching my head.

When Jonathan Grafft’s Sheriff Bates showed up, usually with bad news or big feelings, he was always good for a laugh; Grafft did an excellent job commanding the stage. But Samuel Carrington’s Larry Lime was also outstanding. Larry is a sleazy Hollywood producer wanting Bud to return to the West Coast and write some new straight-to-video classics. We don’t meet Lime until My Son Is Crazy's second act, but I appreciated the breath of fresh air and energy the character injects.

Skiles' show wouldn't be complete without Terri Nelson’s character Karen Russell, who delivered the biggest twist in this mostly plotless comedy. Nor would it be as sweet without Elliana Moore’s silent appearance between scenes as a little Martian complete with UFO. Admittedly, the signs that Moore was carrying were not always well lit, making them slightly difficult to read. (The patron behind me, in fact, could never figure the words out; luckily, her companion could.) This was easy enough to overlook, however, because the information on the Martian's signs was readily available in the show’s program.

I found it humorous that Kelly’s script actually referenced that the Ritz Apache could benefit from fly strips, because bugs were flying all around the barn on Friday night – not only distracting me, but also the actors as they flew into their faces. Surely, nighttime bugs are atypical for November, but they were an unfortunate reality, creating the night's only truly problematic aspect.

My fellow patrons were clearly delighted by the on-stage escapades and there were only a few open seats left, so if seeing My Son Is Crazy, but Promising is something you’re interested in, you should reserve your seat sooner than later. While there’s absolutely no meat to the show’s plot, aside from odd characters showing up, it barely mattered, and the laughs proved that the night was successful regardless.

My Son Is Crazy, but Promising runs at the Richmond Hill Barn Theatre (600 Robinson Drive, Geneseo IL) through November 24, and more information and tickets are available by calling (309)944-2244 and visiting RHPlayers.com.