As the title suggests, there’s more than one Josh Cohen in “The Other Josh Cohen.” The good news is that both are very funny.
Longtime collaborators and friends David Rossmer and Steve Rosen wrote and star in this slight but charming diversion, a supposedly true tale of a down-on-his-luck schlub who comes home to find his apartment burgled, the thief leaving nothing behind but the empty case of a porn DVD.
Oh, and a Neil Diamond CD — but not a good one.
The shaggy-dog story is narrated by the older Josh (Rossmer), who frequently interacts with his younger, heavier counterpart (Rosen), both clad identically in plaid shirts and jeans.
“I was eating a lot back then,” explains Josh, to which his younger self replies, “Screw you.”
It seems his luck has changed when a few days later he receives a check for $56,000 in the mail, made out to his name, from what may be a distant relative. But it doesn’t come without farcical complications involving yet another Josh Cohen.
Featuring a catchy pop/rock score satirically heavy on Diamond’s musical stylings — one number’s even called “Neil Life” — the show packs plenty of gags into its 85-minute running time.
The mere sight of a Darth Vader’s head that doubles as a phone is enough to get big laughs, as is Rossmer’s hilarious demonstration of his prowess on a violin after a single lesson.
Onstage band members Vadim Feichtner, Hannah Elless and Ken Triwush often abandon their instruments to play, respectively, “A Bunch of People,” “A Bunch of Other People” and “The Rest of the People.” And Kate Wetherhead portrays “A Lot of People.”
There’s an engaging looseness to the proceedings that’s typified by a very funny opening scene depicting Josh the narrator’s unfortunate encounter with a woman in a deafeningly loud nightclub. It turns out to have absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the plot.
“That’s a true story,” he tells the audience. “It’s not the one we’re telling tonight, but it’s true.”
Sprightly directed by Tony-winning orchestrator Ted Sperling (“The Light in the Piazza”), “The Other Josh Cohen” is funny enough to make us wish there were even more of them.