STORY BY KAREN BOSSICK

PHOTO BY KIRSTEN SHULTZ

Actor Nick Cearley says right up front that the premise of the 90-minute play "Buyer & Cellar" is “preposterous.”

“What I’m going to tell you could not possibly have happened with a person as famous, talented and litigious as Barbra Streisand,” he says to open the play, which runs through Sunday, May 20, at Whiskey Jacques

Real or not, it’s a good thing that that admission has kept Barbra and her lawyers at bay over the years, because Jonathan Tolin’s play is simply too funny to store away on the shelves. If you feel like a good laugh, run don't walk to Whiskey's as you may not get a chance to see something this funny for a long time.

Cearley, a outrageously energetic and endearing New York actor, plays an out-of-work actor named Alex who has been hired to mind the women’s cave that Streisand has built on her Malibu estate after he’s lost his job as Mayor of Disneyland’s Toon Town over an incident involving a churro.

Of course, this is no run of the mill basement but one resembling an underground shopping mall, which Barbra built to display her estimable “stuff,” as she calls it.

"Remember, this is the part that is real," Cearley tells the audience.

"A Star is Born" as Cearley dons a Donna Karan outfit and dusts and sorts as he waits for Barbra to show up to peruse the antique dolls and prized bibelots in her mall. And he argues the merits of a girl who grew up with nothing nice to become a woman nothing could ever be nice enough for.

The play based on Streisand’s self-photographed coffee table book, “My Passion for Design,” won a 2013 Drama Desk Award, and it's easy to see how, as it is as captivating as her cloned dog.

The audience turns to putty in the hands of Cearley--he's instantly likeable with an enthusiasm on steroids. And multimedia takes the audience right into the estate where chamber pots are meticulously arranged to look as they just landed there.

"Not just a customer but THE customer," he says, as he gushes in his enthusiasm for Simply Streisand. "And, man, can this lady hum."

Cearley portrays Barbra just as convincingly as Alex.

"I have a nose for everything. Always have, wouldn't get it fixed," she says at one point.

The play is lively and spry and it pokes fun without being mean.

“My daughter Coco who just turned 18 this week laughed non-stop,” said Kirsten Shultz.

The play is being presented by Sawtooth Productions, a year-old theater production company started by Jonathan Kane, who has worked in theater in New York. It is directed by New York’s Colton Pometta.

“Sawtooth Productions is a collaboration of theater artists in New York City and Sun Valley, and tis is just another step forward in our mission to present the best in contemporary theater to both communities,” said Kane.

This particular play is being presented in conjunction with Ketchum's age-old Laughing Stock Theatre. The late Keith Moore presented it in a play reading and was planning to do a one-man production when he took ill.

"We're doing this in his memory," said Kathy Wygle.

IF  YOU GO:

“Buyer & Cellar “ will start at 7:30 p.m. through Sunday, May 20, at Whiskey Jacques. Doors open at 6 p.m. for those wishing to purchase food and drinks beforehand.

Tickets are $30, available at the door or by calling 208-726-9124. There will be no late admittance.