Pizza Man, directed by and starring Pamela Arndt, has much to recommend it. Amanda Navarez's delicate house music is a welcome deviation from the usual canned stuff. The prerecorded music, when it does kick in, is apt and evocative. The show has a point of view, and its tech elements fit into a unified world. The unit set, by Arndt and Tim Samland, is well-designed, with a clear eye for '70s detail. Arndt demonstrates a wide range of theatrical skills, despite being in the show from curtain to curtain - an overload of responsibility that often screams "vanity project." She and her costars are blocked effectively. The homework has all been done. The biggest problem she misses is one you'd have to be offstage to see; unfortunately, it all but undoes the first act.

Read Christian Carvajal's full review of Pizza Man in the Weekly Volcano's Arts section.

MIDNIGHT SUN PERFORMANCE SPACE, PIZZA MAN, THROUGH FEB. 23, 8 P.M. THURSDAY-SUNDAY, THROUGH FEB. 23, $12-$18, 113 N. COLUMBIA ST., OLYMPIA, 360.250.2721