The Glendale Centre Theatre opened its 2008 season with one of the funniest shows it's ever produced.

"The Foreigner," written by Larry Shue and directed by George Strattan (who also reprises the title role for a third time), is full of laughs, tender moments and a few good lessons to learn.

Strattan plays Charlie Baker, a bashful and "bor-r-ring" Englishman whose British Army sergeant friend, "Froggy" plops him down in a fishing lodge in backwoods Georgia for a few days while he's on a training mission.

The sergeant (played with droll humor by Irish native Austin Grehan), promises the introverted Charlie that he needn't talk to anyone. He then convinces Aunt Betty (played by Frances Newman, who has been with Strattan in all three productions and knows the role well) that her new guest is a "foreigner" who can't speak English.

What Charlie accidentally hears, forces him to come out of his shell and, (gasp) become a hero.

Making a top-notch debut at GCT is Patrick T. Rogers as the simple, but endearing Ellard Simms. Charlie's interactions with the boy are some of the funniest (and most tender) in the show.

Pretty Brittney Kalmbach plays Ellard's older, stressed-out sister, Catherine. She finds the silent Charlie easy to confide in.

But her smooth-talking fiancé, Rev. David Marshall Lee (played by Kyle Moore) has "plans" for her and for her aunt's lodge that are not charitable.

The play's few dark scenes emanate from the bigoted "red-neck" Owen Musser (played convincingly by Marty Hrejsa). He's the disgusting villain you love to hate, but he has a superstition that Charlie discovers and exploits - much to the delight and approval of the audience.

Strattan's talent for communicating absurdity in both mannerism and facial expression is unsurpassed, in this reviewer's opinion. Give him the comic lines in Shue's play and this actor will always have the audience "rolling in the aisles."

"The Foreigner" is bound to tickle your funny bone and bring tears of mirth to your eyes. It's a feel-good play where the characters grow and change before your eyes. Why not start the New Year with a belly laugh or two, or ... 23?

Playing Wednesday through Saturday evenings at 8 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3 p.m., now through Feb. 9, with special performances and entertainment on New Year's Eve.

For reservations, call 818-244-8481.

Regular admission ranges from $20 to $22.50 for adults, and $17.50 for students and seniors.

The theater is located at 324 N. Orange St. in Glendale.