'LA RONDE' PROVIDES ROUNDS OF LAUGHTER.

Byline: Julio Martinez Correspondent

Austrian playwright Arthur Schnitzler (1862-1931) created an intriguing format for his play ``La Ronde'' (1897), a series of interlocking two- person scenes that focused on the ravages inflicted by love.

In the first scene Character A is dominated in a relationship by Character B, who then moves on to scene two and is dominated by Character C. This circle of romantic angst eventually works its way back around to Character A, who finally gets his or her opportunity to emerge triumphant.

Emmy Award-winning playwright/television writer Peter Lefcourt has chosen to take Schnitzler's concept and update it to the ``let's do lunch'' world of Tinseltown dealmaking.

Set in a Melrose Avenue bistro and staged with keen comedic insight by Actors Alley artistic director Jeremiah Morris, Lefcourt's playlets are enhanced immensely by a 10-member ensemble that gleefully romps its way through 10 farcical showbiz encounters, aided by a ``Greek chorus'' quintet of waiters who are all named ``Bruce.''

Not all the scenes hit their intended mark and the overly-long choreographed segue from scene to scene gets stale, but at its best moments the work is truly hilarious. Lefcourt, executive producer/co-creator of Showtime's ``Beggars and Choosers,'' certainly knows the territory. As 10 agenda-driven Hollywood types maneuver around each other, it soon becomes obvious they are all small participants in a grand ``movie deal'' that might or might not happen. They are desperately angling for some position of leverage because each is too insignificant to control the results on his or her own. The only thing each knows for sure is, ``If Leonardo is involved, he gets $22.5 million or no deal.''

Some of the scenes are simply delicious. A very pregnant, down-to-earth studio executive (Karen Reed) calmly informs a near-ranting producer (David Mingrino) that his pet film project, ``Incident in Pittsburgh,'' is dead in the water because studio head Bill doesn't like Pittsburgh.

The highlights of the evening are the tandem of playlets featuring a smarter-than-she-looks bimbo (Sydney Bennett), who toys mercilessly with an in-way-over-his-head lawyer (John Edward Shaw), followed by the bimbo's luncheon date with the much-discussed Leonardo (Jonathan Mallen). Bennett exhibits a wonderfully comedic sense of disbelieving awe as Mallen's monumentally selnvolved Leonard explains his next film project, ``Ecclesiastes,'' which he informs her ``is in public domain.''

Adding considerable texture to the two-person encounters are the farcical comings and goings of the Bruces (Tony Edwards, Alan Altshuld, Whitey Broughton, Ron Reynolds, Joe Ochman) who also sum up the results of each scene in song. Gymme Breavsheaux's bistro setting and James Moddy's lighting, respectively provide perfect environments for Lefcourt's Hollywood shenanigans.

The facts

--The play: ``La Ronde de Lunch 2000.''

--Where: El Portal Center's Circle Theatre, 5269 Lankershim Blvd., North Hollywood.

--When: 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; 2, 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays, through Sept. 17.

--Tickets: $20. Call [phone].

--Our rating: Three stars