[Review of musical]

The hardest part of writing a review is the beginning -- what we call the lede.

Good, now that's done.

Actually, I take that back. The hardest part of writing a review is showing the reader you have something to say. You can't just write sentences full of words that jumble together meaninglessly until you have a paragraph -- and then another paragraph and another until you're finished.

Or can you?

"[title of show]" is a ditzy, clever little musical about four theater nerds sitting around trying to write a ditzy, clever little musical. Go ahead, say something, Hunter tells Jeff near the show's beginning. "Wonder Woman for President." There you go, that's a line. What did you do today? "Worked on a website for a client." That's a scene! Jeff leafs through his box full of Playbills and recites the show titles. Do I hear a song coming on?

You get the picture. Urban Samurai Productions is giving "[title of show]" its Twin Cities premiere at the JCC Sabes Community Center in St. Louis Park. The bare-bones staging -- four chairs and a piano -- fits the metatheatrical spirit of writer Hunter Bell (Max Wojtanowicz) and composer Jeff Bowen (Adam Qualls). With friends Susan (Emily Jabas) and Heidi (Kecia Rehkamp), they rifle through Broadway arcana, sing songs about the creative process and elevate inane patter to dialogue. Remember George telling Jerry that their TV show should be about nothing -- just two guys bantering in a coffeeshop? That's the stuff.

Familiar trick

When it works, it's great fun -- even if it's gimmicky. And it works in "[title of show]." The name, by the way, is what Bell and Bowen wrote in the [title of show] line on their submission to the New York Musical Theatre Festival in 2004. It caught fire there and landed off-Broadway two years later, winning an Obie and the adoration of show folk from Bernadette Peters to Sutton Foster. It advanced to the Great White Way in 2008.

Like diarists, Bowen and Bell continued to add material based on the machinations of each production. This actually backfires as the jape loses its flavor and energy in the second act.

Urban Samurai's director, Ryan Grimes, has chosen a cast of pleasant personalities and talents. Wojtanowicz muscles his way to the top with exuberance and a charming sense of humor. His character, Hunter, wrote the piece, so it stands he should get all the best lines. Qualls has more of the deadpan stuff, his Jeff telling Hunter that saying "ATM machine" is redundant, as is "PIN number."

Jabas' head microphone sounded muffled at Monday's show. It's unfortunate because I've liked her playful edge in previous productions ("Zombie Prom"). She does manage the perfect sassy edge as Susan. Rehkamp, too, has a strong singing voice and chipper willingness as Heidi. Matthew Goinz keeps the songs lively at the piano.

New direction

"It was hard to sell theater in the best of circumstances," said artistic director Matthew Greseth. "We've shifted the focus to comedies or recognizable dramas to solidify our viewer base. Our mission is still to produce new work, and '[title of show]' was right off Broadway."

Greseth admitted he was surprised to get the rights for "[title of show]." R&H Theatricals, however, has few restrictions on granting licenses in a market. In fact, Yellow Tree Theatre in Osseo is opening the same show this weekend.

Greseth was less confident in explaining the Simon play next fall. He did say that Christopher has stepped away from the company to concentrate on his family and career.

And now, this is the end of the story. It's that simple. You just stop typing.