WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS, LET 'THE EGOS' DO THE TALKING.

Byline: Julio Martinez Correspondent

ONE WOULD NEED a sharp knife to cut through the sexual tension radiating between office co-workers Carol (played by Adrianne Avey) and William (Jeremy Kent Jackson) in Joseph De Rosa's lightweight but disarming romantic comedy, ``An Evening With the Egos,'' having its world premiere at the Victory Theatre Center in Burbank.

Actors Avey and Jackson exude such a sensuous rapport, it is easy to believe the inner anguish Carol and William are suffering as they each struggle to bridge the rigid neutrality of the workplace.

De Rosa doesn't delve too deeply into the complex nature of romantic love, but our two protagonists accomplish more with their hot-eyed glances over the office water cooler than can ever be put into words. Director Maria Gobetti correctly allows the body language of these two insecure, would-be lovers to dictate the pace of the action.

Set primarily in a sterile, contemporary office space, Carol and William share the same mindless work as customer service reps. Their jobs require them to be glued either to the phone or the computer, giving them no reason to actually relate to one another. That doesn't stop the pair from projecting tangible passion for one another from across the room. Unfortunately, both Carol and William are weighed down by emotional baggage that makes it impossible for either one to make the first move.

De Rosa instills added pizazz to this office water-cooler saga by personifying the inner being of each character. Carol's perky ego C.C. (Juliette Miller) and William's sensible inner voice Billy (Dominic Catrambone) provide the sounding board for the insecurities of their outer selves.

Thanks to the cleverly wrought modular set of Grant Gorrell, the action progresses smoothly to a number of environments as the combined efforts of C.C. and Billy finally push Carol and William into each other's arms. Of course, overly self-protective Carol and wishy-washy William almost destroy their relationship before it begins. As justification for this self-destructive lack of confidence, the playwright relies on awkward, heavy-handed back-story fodder regarding their mutually dysfunctional upbringings. Since Avey and Jackson are so compelling together, the path of the Carol/William romance would have been better served by providing more insightful thematic complications to their current situations.

The egos, C.C. and Billy, provide little clarification to the personalities of Carol and William, respectively, but they certainly are fun to watch. Twinkle-toed Miller literally dances her way in and out of Carol's psyche, constantly prodding her to break out of her emotional cocoon. Catrambone's Billy projects a wonderfully comical incredulity as William stumbles his way into romance.

Adding an evocative undercurrent to this well-paced romantic comedy is the sound design of Catrambone and Justin Miller, especially the use of the Dave Brubeck Quartet's ``Take Five'' as segue music to the many scene changes.

AN EVENING WITH THE EGOS - Three stars

Where: Victory Theatre Center, 3324 W. Victory Blvd., Burbank.

When: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 7 p.m. Sunday; through Feb. 22.

Tickets: $20 to $22. Call [phone].

In a nutshell: Thanks to an attractive and effervescent four-member ensemble, this lightweight office romance comedy exudes a quirky but compelling charm.