Gender Switch

Seldom does a playwright rewrite a hit, and even less often do the two versions remain in the catalog simultaneously. But that’s the case with Neil Simon, who rewrote his 1964-65 hit “The Odd Couple,” a show he says is still his most popular.

Twenty years after the first show debuted, Simon premiered the female version, starring Sally Struthers and Rita Moreno in the roles originally played by Art Carney and Walter Matthau: the fastidious Felix (or Florence) Unger and sloppy Oscar (or Olive) Madison, who become roommates. The roles have most often been identified with Tony Randall and Jack Klugman, who brought the roles to a well-liked television series.

The female version isn’t produced very often, but it’s the current production of the Marquie Dinner Theatre in Camarillo. Directed by Don Pearlman, this edition stars Gail James as Florence and Dee Anne Helsel as Olive.

It’s not a line-for-line duplication. Although the essential concept and some of the jokes remain, many have been changed to reflect (at least Simon’s) idea of the female point of view. The poker game has become a weekly round of Trivial Pursuit played by Florence, Olive and their female friends; the flighty Pigeon Sisters now are a pair of Spanish gentlemen whose grasp of English is less than perfect; and the play’s overall structure has changed somewhat. But it’s still funny--very funny--and Pearlman has assembled a cast that’s up to the challenge.

Helsel, with the showier of the two main roles, demonstrates again that she’s one of the finest actors around, and there really isn’t a weak member in the cast--which also includes Susan Burns, Theresa Secor, Lynn Sherman and Judy Weaver as the Trivial Pursuit gang; and Ron Ford and Bill Hillstrom as the Spaniards whom Olive tries to set up on a double date with herself and Florence.

* “The Odd Couple” (female version) continues Friday and Saturday evenings through Feb. 20 at the Marquie Dinner Theatre, 340 N. Mobil Ave. in Camarillo. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.; dinner is served from 7, and the performance begins about 8:15. Tickets to all performances are $35, which includes the play, a buffet dinner with choice of entree and nonalcoholic beverages, tax and tip. A full cash bar is available. Discounts for seniors and children are available. For reservations (mandatory) or further information, call 484-9909.

Comedy Group Showcases in Thousand Oaks: Tangent Comedy, a troupe that’s about 3 years old and committed enough to have custom clothing, last weekend began a two-week engagement of a program called “I’m Holding My Fat Now” at the Arts Council Center.

About the right age and attractive enough to form a road company of “Friends,” the members of the group are enthusiastic and comic enough to make many of the sketches performed Sunday night seem funnier than they really are.

The group--composed of founder Steve Connell, Liana Allday, Jeremy Resnick, Jennifer Castle, Ryan Gesell, Joe Pisani and Joe Sanfelippo--often suffers from the “Saturday Night Live” affliction of not knowing when to quit, or thinking that an amusing premise is enough to keep a piece alive.

As is the case with SNL, the shorter pieces (parodies of commercials, what else?) were often the most successful.

The initial set of written pieces was followed by about half an hour of improvisations, with elements suggested by the audience. The troupe was joined by two (of an announced three) musicians: guitarist Zack Mathers and drummer Matt Huffschmidt. Some of the material is inappropriate for anyone too young to have a driver’s license, but for the rest of us, Tangent is worth supporting and keeping an eye on.

* “I’m Holding My Fat Now” continues Friday through Sunday night at the Arts Council Center, 484 Greenmeadow Ave. (off Moorpark) in Thousand Oaks. All performances are at 8 p.m. Tickets are $5. For reservations (a good idea; this is a small space) or further information, call 496-8049.

Stars Descend on Ojai: The announcement came in literally moments before deadline, and lack of space prohibits fuller exposition, but the Ojai Playwrights Conference is holding a benefit for itself Jan. 23, with a cast said to include David Hyde Pierce, Larry Hagman, Peter Strauss, Grant Shaud, Lisa Gay Hamilton, CCH Pounder, John Diehl and Christine Estabrook in a reading of Michael Hollinger’s farce “Incorruptible” at the Nordhoff High School auditorium. Tickets are $50, and should sell out quickly. For further information, call 640-0400.