"Wally's Cafe" serves up cheap comedy fare at Bluewater Playhouse

"Wally's Cafe" is funny but it falls short of hilarious.

The second show in the Bluewater Summer Playhouse season, opened Tuesday night to a small crowd and a tepid response at the Kincardine Arts Centre in downtown Kincardine.

It's a tale of woe, interspersed with a few good one-liners. The play tells the story of Wally Murdock who buys a diner on the wrong side of the road that goes to Las Vegas. He drags his wife, Louise, to the middle of nowhere, and then a would-be Hollywood starlet arrives and becomes their waitress. Over a 40-year time span, they watch Wally's hopes and dreams bite the dust.

Despite the fine acting of Rob Tymec as Wally, Michelle Mainwaring as Louise, and Christine Chemello as Janet, this play starts out sad and miserable and ends the same way, with a few hijinks along the way. Seriously, who would try to make a convincing story in which cheating on your spouse becomes a scorecard in a long-term relationship?

Wally sounds like Lou Costello opposite Laverne DeFazio from "Laverne and Shirley," and Janet just comes across as a wide-eyed goofy space cadet.

Fortunately, "Wally's Cafe" is served up only until Friday.

Tickets are available in person at the Bluewater Summer Playhouse Box Office located in the Kincardine Arts Centre at 707 Queen Street, Kincardine, or by calling 519-396-5722. Select tables are also available for purchase on-line at www.bluewatersummerplayhouse.com