A Very Naughty Cartoonist as a Paragon of Normalcy

Correction Appended

"Busted Jesus Comix," a nicely performed 65-minute satire, belongs to a rich dramatic tradition of turning dirty-minded artists into First Amendment heroes.

Over the years, there have been many X-rated cartoonists (Shel Silverstein and R. Crumb, to name two), but only one has been tried and convicted of obscenity. In 1994, Mike Diana, a Florida teenager who wrote a comic book with more severed body parts than a zombie movie, was sentenced to three years' probation, a $3,000 fine and, unintentionally, underground fame.

David Johnston's script briskly tells his story -- and then some. It touches on the trial and fills out an invented biography that gives the play a satisfying arc. Don't worry about self-righteousness. This playwright is more interested in mocking than preaching.

The cartoonist -- renamed Marco (Vince Gatton) -- seems like the only sane one in a bizarre world of religious zealots, psychiatric quacks and spineless lawyers. The characters from his strip even make an appearance, with a dopey vaudeville act that emphasizes how harmless even the most sexual material can be.

Gary Shrader deserves credit for teasing several fine performances out of his actors, who deliver on the many scenes of high lunacy. Particularly funny is the support group of former homosexuals who have been "reprogrammed," although their enthusiasms argue otherwise.

The jokes never send the play spinning out of control because its anchored by the wonderfully moody turn by Mr. Gatton. His knee nervously bobbing, he is like a lost kid who found comic books an escape for his fertile imaginary life. Even if his naïveté can be a bit unbelievable at times, Mr. Gatton delivers a rooted, realistic portrait of a young person with an obsessive need to draw.

Defying his probation, Marco has moved to New York to start over and ends up in a Dazzle Cups coffee shop applying for a job. He's interviewed by a gruff, if ultimately sympathetic, manager (R. Jane Casserly), and their blossoming friendship forms an eloquent storyline that is, in a platonic way, almost romantic.

Why do these two actors prove so affecting together? I'm not exactly sure, but like pornography, I know it when I see it.

"Busted Jesus Comix" runs through Aug. 3 at Access Theater, 380 Broadway, TriBeCa, (212)868-4444.

THEATER REVIEW Correction: July 23, 2005, Saturday A schedule note on Tuesday with a theater review of "Busted Jesus Comix," at the Access Theater in TriBeCa, misstated the closing date. It is Aug. 7, not Aug. 3.

A version of this article appears in print on , Section E, Page 3 of the National edition with the headline: THEATER REVIEW; A Very Naughty Cartoonist As a Paragon of Normalcy. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe