IT MAY REQUIRE A CERTAIN LEVEL OF TOLERANCE on the part of the audience to accept the unlikely circumstances behind the action in “My Three Angels,” Sam and Bella Spewack’s oddball comedy set at the infamous Devil’s Island penal colony in northeast Africa, but the play does contain plenty of funny lines and they are delivered with aplomb by a capable cast in the current production at the Masquers Playhouse in Point Richmond.

Prisoners roam freely on the isolated island alongside shop owners, police and other residents, allowing for strange interactions by the hour. At one home business, Felix (Christopher Martin) has hired a trio of cons to repair his roof, much to the dismay of his wife Emilie (Karen Caronna) and their adult daughter Marie Louise (Jennifer Rastegar).

Ben Ortega gets the lion’s share of laughs as Joseph, the lone nonviolent offender among the crew of three toiling in the smothering heat atop the family’s roof. When he and his pals overhear some of the personal conflicts that have been weighing on the family below, they decide to charm their way inside. They then determine to help the family out in their own, unconventional ways — by stealing, cheating and otherwise deviating from the moral standards that they see as glaring impediments to the family’s well-being.

That all sounds like the perfect setup for humor — until people actually start getting killed.

While Joseph (Ortega) was convicted for cooking books, Jules (Tom Bleecker) and Alfred (Michael O’Brien) are both serving time for more violent crimes. They all reassure the lady of the house that she needn’t worry about her safety, yet they don’t think twice about resorting to violence when they perceive that the newly arrived relatives are getting in the way of the family’s happiness. And the cons don’t conduct their shady business in private, no: they carry out their plans in the thinnest of disguises, hoping their patrons will go along – until, of course, they decide that truly drastic measures are called for.

Mark Shepard is Felix’s bullyish financier Uncle Henri, who arrives on the island on Christmas Eve to audit the store’s financial records, and Sean Aten is Paul, Henri’s spineless, shallow son and reluctant protégé. The two are wonderfully detestable, especially up against meek bundle of nerves Felix and his romantic basketcase daughter Marie. Still, it comes as a discomforting surprise when the roofers ultimately decide to take violent action against them.

It’s nothing new for a playwright, or any author or artist for that matter, to ask an audience to laugh at traumatic events. It is, however, something that takes vision and deftness, and in the case of a live performance it requires artistry on the part of the writer as well as the executing company.

The Masquers production is well-acted and elicited enthusiastic laughter and applause at last Friday’s performance. The troupe’s comedic timing is smooth, and thoughtfully constructed sets and costumes make it easy to accept the setting. On the down side, the story is hard to swallow, and because of the dry style of the humor it feels like we’re supposed to accept the circumstances as well.

Sometimes it is a treat just watching great actors perform, regardless of the story they are presenting, and this is the case with the current Masquers production. All of the characters in “Angels” are funny, though Ortega shines brightest as the amiable con artist desperate to save this foundering family from its own stifling moral standards. Go and enjoy a bundle of laughs with the “Angels” in the cozy comfort of the Masquers Playhouse. Just be prepared to accept a little poetic license.

Elizabeth Warnimont is a freelance writer specializing in the performing arts. She is also a substitute teacher for the Benicia Unified School District.

If You Go
“My Three Angels” continues at the Masquers Playhouse, 105 Park Place, Point Richmond (across from the Hotel Mac) through Dec. 13. Tickets are $22 and are available online at masquers.org or by caling 510-232-4031.