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 The New York Times Theater Review TEEN-AGE FANTASY COLORS A COMIC-BOOK MUSICAL by Leah D. Frank Even as theaters like the Long Island Stage Company are closing their doors because of economic troubles and others are cutting back production costs and personnel for the same reasons, a new theater, the Victory Theater in Farmingville, has just opened. Its premier production is a rousting rendition of "Starmites," a musical comic book about a trip through inner space. Inner space? Yes. Inner space, for those who do not know is the outer region of imagination, and it is the place where an awkward, lonely teenage girl named Eleanor hides in order to avoid painful issues of adolescence like the opposite sex. Eleanor has built a fantasy world around the characters in the science fiction comic books she collects. In real life, Eleanor does not fit in with her peers. Much to the distress of her mother, she has learned to avoid the pains of growing up by reading comic books and imagining herself to be an unrecognized super-heroine. "Starmites" is an utterly charming musical that was lost on the large expanse of a Broadway stage in 1989. But here, in the small 140 seat Victory, the intimacy of the musical by Barry Keating and Stuart Ross weaves its magic. You do not need to be a science-fiction buff to enjoy "Starmites." The only prerequisite is that you be, or once were, young. Eleanor, alone in her bedroom on planet Earth, is drawn into the conflict between Shak Graa, the arch-creep of chaos and the Starmites, the guardian angels of inner space. Only Eleanor, who is really the preordained savior of the universe, can save the earth from destruction by the forces of the evil Shak Graa. She and the Starmites team up on a quest to find "the cruelty," an instrument of perfect harmony, and keep it out of Shak Graa's greedy hands. Along the way they run into a wild band of banshees led by a great queen named Diva and are forced into a series of adventures. It is not going to spoil the ending to reveal that good and justice prevail and that evil is thwarted. "Starmites" is about how people discover self-confidence and build self-esteem. It is also about individuals discovering the centers of their beings, so they can grasp what is important and what is superficial. In short, "Starmites" is a living cartoon about growing up that should appeal to children of all ages. This production of "Starmites," directed by Leonard Borovay, underscores the youthful fantasy by casting actors who are so young that they appear to be living re-creations of Archie and Veronica who have teamed up with Superboy to fight the demons of galactic destruction. Using these barely-out-of-high-school performers turns out to be inspired casting on the part of Mr. Borovay, because their earnestness and freshness keep the material from slipping over the edge into meaningless camp. Here the musical is about the anxiety of becoming a teen-ager and learning what are often painful lessons about life, love and sex. When Eleanor meets the Starmites, she does not notice that they are four of the cutest nerds ever to threaten intergalactic warfare. She does notice, however, that Spacepunk, their captain, is the kind of guy that every teeny-bopper dreams of dating. He is suave and debonair, or at least he tries to be; and even when he goofs up, he is charming and cool. If Eleanor is every teen-age girl, then Spacepunk is every teen-age boy, as boys wish they were. Purveyors of wisdom and saviors of the galaxy, these two are everything teen-agers know themselves to be. Just to balance out the universe, Diva queen, has a daughter named Bizarbara, who spends all day in her room reading comic books about Earthlings and their adventures of the green planet. Like Eleanor, Bizarbara fantasizes, too, about sock hops and shopping malls. Teen-agers, after all, are a separate species, no matter what planet they are from. Both Eleanor and Bizarbara are played by Suzanne Mason, who has a difficult time getting into the characters. But once she settles down, she does a creditable job singing, dancing and acting. She displays a comic bent that makes some of ther routines as Bizarbara genuinely funny, but she also has a tendency to try too hard to emote, which in this case is more of a mark of inexperience than a lack of talent. P.J. Soles plays Spacepunk as a neophyte Ricardo Montalban. He is the epitome of a young man who is going to grow up and be either a world-class leader or lover, or perhaps both. Mr. Soles is, like Luke Skywalker, the perfect hero - flawed in ways that make him very human, but not flawed enough to keep him from being the bravest, handsomest hero in the universe. Spacepunk's band of boys - Ack Ack Ackerman, Herbie Harrison and Dazzle Razzledorf - are played with innocent perfection by Matthew Anderson, Scott Lewers and James Slunder. The only quibble with the casting is in the choice of the slender elegant-looking Jill Saunders to play Diva. If ever a role demanded a large, wickedly sensual woman to belt out a song, this is it. "It's hard to be the diva, it's hard to be divine," Diva wails. Then she moans, "But it's so much harder not to be." Ms. Saunders is not able to mine the gems inherent in this part. The sets are an amalgam of bits and pieces of muscle-bound comic book characters and splashes of primary colors, bright reds, yellows, greens and blues. It is a minimal set, but it is appropriate and imaginative. The adept musical direction is by Dean Pantono, and the clever choreography is by Michael Tester. The Victory has staged an impressive opening show. It has chosen material suited to its small theater and to the available talent, which is often easier in the intention than in the practice. Although not a children's show, "Starmites" should still be fun for the whole family.
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