THE FOREIGNER, through Sept. 27, Rodgers Memorial Theatre, Centerville (298-1302 or www.rodgerstheatre.com), running time: 130 minutes (one intermission)

CENTERVILLE — A pathetically bashful British man's three-day visit to a rural, rustic Georgia fishing lodge starts out as a somewhat peaceful retreat, then quickly turns into an explosively hilarious disaster.

But the late Larry Shue's "The Foreigner" does much more than deliver laughs, there are also strong messages about bigotry and greed.

The reviewed performance included six from the Saturday night cast and one switch-over from the Friday cast. About half of the ensemble, well-directed by Leslie Giles-Smith, is making its Rodgers Memorial Theatre debut.

The central character, around whom virtually all of the action swirls, is Charlie Baker, whose perplexed persona is captured by Mike Brown. His best friend, former military buddy Sgt. "Froggy" LeSueur, fixes things so that Charlie won't have to mingle socially with others at the lodge when he goes off on a military exercise. He informs lodge owner Betty Meeks (Robin M. Edwards) that Charlie is a foreigner who neither speaks nor understands English.

Charlie quickly comes in contact — albeit at arm's length — with others at the lodge. Among them are Catherine Simms (played by Katie Silva), the pregnant fiance of Rev. David Marsh Lee, a minister with a short-fuse and a dangerously dark side (a finely honed performance by Jansen Davis, an actor best known for lighter comedy).

The best scenes are those involving "foreigner" Baker and Catherine's younger, allegedly slow-witted, brother Ellard (Patrick Sates), who takes it upon himself to attempt to teach Baker how to speak English.

Meanwhile, all of the others spill their innermost secrets and grudges, because they've come to believe that Baker doesn't have a clue as to what they're saying. Helping "Reverend" Lee in his underhanded plot to condemn the lodge (as a way of obtaining the prime piece of property and turn it into a headquarters for the Ku Klux Klan) is menacing county proper inspector Owen Musser, played to the hilt by W. Mitchell James.

The comedy is both clever and insightful as the plot builds toward an explosive (as in TNT) finale.

Scott Van Dyke's authentically rustic set design, featuring rough-hewn logs from a Heber Valley sawmill, provides the perfect setting.

Sensitivity rating: Nothing especially offensive but younger children may be frightened by some of the villainy and a Klan attempt to take over the lodge.

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