`PUMP BOYS' IS A REAL GAS : BROADWAY HIT REVUE OF RURAL SOUTHERN HIGH JINKS MAKES ITS WAY TO FORUM THEATRE.

Byline: Victoria Giraud People and Places

The Cabrillo Music Theatre has done it again. The musical revue ``Pump Boys and Dinettes,'' on the boards at the Forum Theatre through May 11, is perky, foot-tapping entertainment for the whole family.

A lighthearted slice of life in the rural South, ``Pump Boys'' has a small, six-member cast to sing, dance and play music that boasts a wide appeal, from country and pop to blues and gospel. Rockabilly, with a distinct flavor of the 1950s, would be an ideal way to describe it. The energy and fun are palpable, and the audience responds by clapping along.

The Pump Boys - Jackson, L.M., Eddie and Jim - pump gas and occasionally do repairs along Alabama's Highway 57 somewhere between the towns of Frog Level and Smyrna, while the Dinettes, sisters Prudie and Rhetta, run the Doublecupp coffee shop next door.

In one of the songs, the sentimental ``Mamaw,'' long-haired Jim, the versatile and talented guitarist Steven Boe, recollects his grandmother. Jim has an interest in Rhetta (a sassy, sexy Rende Rae Norman), but he isn't very attentive. She lets him know her feelings in the rousing torch song ``Be Good or Be Gone.''

L.M. (the droll David Coleman, with a crew cut and glasses, looking like he never got out of the '50s) plays the piano and accordion to reminisce about his exaggerated romantic encounter with the tune ``The Night Dolly Parton Was Almost Mine.'' Sweet Prudie (a spirited Andrea Walters), whose smile lights up the stage, is also looking for love in her ballad, ``The Best Man.''

Jackson, a playful and appealing Ted Kuenz, performs a rousing '50s song a la Elvis/Chuck Berry - ``Mona.'' The artistry of bass player Bruce Buckingham as Eddie rounds out the cast. And those are just a few of the highlights in this musical romp.

The cast is exceptionally talented musically. The voices of the Cupp sisters, Norman and Walters, are a lovely blend, and they add their own spice with some unique percussion - wooden spoons, a coffee can and cooking pots. Their duet, ``Tips,'' was one of the high spots.

``Pump Boys'' debuted off-off-Broadway in 1991 and was so successful it eventually moved to off-Broadway and then to Broadway for 573 performances. It's easy to see why - it puts smiles on the faces of an entire audience.

WHAT: ``Pump Boys and Dinettes'' by John Foley, Mark Hardwick, Debra Monk, Cass Morgan, John Schimmel and Jim Wann.

WHEN: Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. through May 11, with additional May 11 performance at 7:30 p.m.

COST: $25 for adults, $12.50 for children and students with ID.

INFORMATION: [phone].

CAPTION(S):

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Photo: The cast of the Broadway hit ``Pump Boys and Dinettes'' offers a rollicking dose of family fun at the Forum Theatre through May 11.