By John Lyle Belden

When it comes to kids on stage, it’s easy to allow for a bit of silliness. Mud Creek Players’ ACT youth program makes full use of that license to hilarious effect with the comedy mystery “Murder at the Goon Show.”

In this farce by Douglas Winters, a very worried producer-emcee, Greg, keeps an old theater alive by hosting “The Goon Show,” a televised odd-talent revue that’s like “The Gong Show,” but without the gong or celebrity judges, and with more suspicious activity. When yet another threatening message appears in a jelly doughnut, he fears he won’t survive the night – but it’s the mentalist who should have seen it coming…

Justin Hoffer’s fun performance as Greg reminded me of Kermit in the old “Muppet Show,” constantly put upon and stressed out to organize a madcap bunch of weirdos, with even the staff not being much help. He gets some reassurance from assistant Sandra (Sarah Semon), assistance from stagehand Pop (Noah Taylor) and attitude from the shady props master Flossie (Jackie Davis). To round up the talent, he relies on agent Alf (Cameron Davis, his slapstick prowess aided by rubbery limbs).

And what talent! (Or should I say, “what talent?”) Actually, it takes a special effort to be good at being “bad,” and these young actors show they have the chutzpah to pull it off. Rylee Odle manages to be ironically awesome in two roles – the awful warm-up comic, and a comically bad dancer. We also get charming Julia Heddon making noises in a birdcage; earnest Ross Gandy trying – just trying – to put his body through a tennis racquet; Jayme Ganz as an actually-good puppeteer, just too mouthy to be a ventriloquist; Alison Quigley as a mime with a lot to say; and the regrettable “talent” of Chris Sullivan as the Amazing Ingesto. Then there’s the confident and mysterious Zorina (Jenna Rigdon), who claims to hypnotize via binoculars.

To lend some sanity to the proceedings, we also get Jackson Stollings as a police detective (y’know, to solve the murder), and Erin Keller as a psychological therapist.

All these and many more crowd the stage, yet young first-time director Carynton Howard manages to make it all flow, with many laugh-out-loud moments including a sly nod to a Broadway favorite.

One more weekend (through Sunday, July 29) for the “Goon Show” at the Mud Creek Barn, 9740 E. 86th St., between the Castleton area and Geist Reservoir. Call 317-290-5343 or visit mudcreekplayers.org.