LOS ANGELES—"Oingo Boingo," a musical comedy which has played Southern California theatres sporadically (and in various stages of development) over the past few years, was a smashing success in its latest five-day run (June 6 through June 10) at the 500-seat Westwood Playhouse.

Not only was this elegant house soldout on [sic] night caught (9) but the audience was enthralled and expressed it by way [sic] inordinate applause and two standing ovations.

A super-sophisticated farce, the play's premise purports to trace the entire history of mankind from prehistoric times straight through to the year 2365 A.D. in one fell 32-song, 2¼-hour musical swoop.

This modest undertaking was the brainchild of a carrot-topped young man named Danny Elfman, who wrote all of the original songs, co-orchestrated the score and alternately served as lead singer, played rhythm guitar, congas, electric violin and trombone—and with great adeptness in each role.

The show opens with the entire cast of nine getting onstage by way of a march down the aisles, appropriately attired in "Planet Of The Apes"-style monkey suits, all the while beating, strumming or tooting their instruments.

It wasn't till the members doffed their costumes that the audience discovered there was one female among them—Miriam Cutler, who capably served as Elfman's counterpart as lead singer, and played clarinet and alto sax as well.

What there was of a storyline was cleverly told during scene changes, when two-minute film clips (created by Marty Brest, Denis Michelson and Brian McDougall) were flashed upon a roll-down screen at centerstage. The satirical content of the film narration was consistently funny.

There wasn't a weak link in the musical chain, either. Outstanding performances were turned in by drummer Danny Boatman in a solo performance in the Elfman original "He Is Always There;" by Leon Schneiderman in the evergreen "Body And Soul" when he put forth a moving solo on tenor sax; and by Dale Turner, whose trumpet work in "Can't Get Started" would have pleased the late Bunny Berigan for its authenticity.

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After the earth was demolished in a 23rd or 24th century war with space people, the rest of the tale was told from Hell—"because so few qualified for Heaven."

Following two encore numbers (one of which spotlighted Cutler in a femme fatale rendering of "Johnny," where she went into the audience to enlist the services of a spectator's lap and used it to sing sexily and humorously into his ear). The cast made its exit in the same manner as it made its entry by way of the aisle, all the while playing and singing. It drew a second standing ovation.

Steve Bartek was excellent on lead guitar, electric bass and flute, as were Joe Berland on keyboards, accordion and clarinet, Nill Folwell on bass, second trumpet and baritone horn and Sam Phipps on reeds.

But the real star of the show was the young, elf-like Elfman, whose work as singer-performer-writer-musician-you-name-it puts him in a league all to himself.