Well, here we are again. Another election year, and as usual, everything is topsy-turvy.

That’s especially so in the world of “The Outsider,” now playing at Barnstormers Theatre in Grants Pass. It’s an amusing political satire production that’s occasionally rises to the level of laugh-out-loud funny. It’s sure to add a little levity this election season.

We have newly incumbent Governor Ned Newley about to run for governor, replacing former Governor Larry — who was kicked out of office for having an affair with a beauty pageant contestant he was only supposed to be judging. We also have a neurotic Chief of Staff who is anxiety-ridden and is concerned his new boss is as unfit for the job as his boss believe. Add to the mix a zany temp who can’t find her way around an answering machine, but is about to be pushed into running for Lieutenant Governor.

In other words, it’s the new normal.

Ned Newley is terrified of being governor. His poll numbers are in the sewer. He has a terrible fear of people and public speaking, but he has admirable intentions and comes off as a regular guy. Political consultant Arthur Vance is brought in to save Newley’s bacon, believing Newley is just the candidate for the job!

Actor David Vickoren is perfect in the role of Arthur Vance. He strolls around Newley’s office with confidence, convinced Americans still love an underdog, and he is out to prove it. Vance looks around the room and sees a candidate sweating bullets, a ditzy secretary whose apprehension reaches a fever pitch. At one point she exclaims, “If the public is searching for leaders who are absolutely, totally unprepared for elected office, I think we’ve found our dream team!”

In this comedy, Director Greg Franklin understands the political strategies that often drive campaigns, the insincerity lurking behind seemingly sincere claims and the generic answers conjured up to address serious issues. He has all of the characters responding in all of the absurd ways political strategists use to hold voters’ attention.

Actor David Blake is just right for the role of Governor Newly, and captures with nuance a character who believes he’s not the man for the job. Blake projects the fear, uncertainty and overall lack of confidence for which the part calls.

As Chief of Staff Dave Riley, Chief of Staff, actor Tim Coatney is a very funny, physical comic whose exasperated movements and flair for the dramatic work really well.

Cassandra Maxwell plays a young, sassy, confident pollster named Paige Caldwell who has also been brought in to get Ned Newley’s campaign off life support. She is the grounding influence in a political atmosphere thick enough to be cut with a cake knife.

Samantha Vickoren plays Rachel Parsons, a young reporter for a local TV station who takes her job and her journalistic integrity seriously. Vickoren is so competent in the role you might mistake her for one of the local reporters on the nightly news.

Jerry Lancaster is well cast as Parsons’ “just-doing-my-job” camera guy, A.C. He surprises the audience with a moving talk about what the average American wants.

And hold on to your “make theater fun again” cap as there’s a standout in this cast: Sharon Giddings as Louise Peakes, the scatterbrained assistant-turned-candidate for Lieutenant Governor. Giddings couldn’t have played the part better if she’d actually stumbled into the role. Peakes is clueless yet sincere, not politically motivated in a political world and altogether very funny.

As usual, the production staff — including stage manager Madeleine Fichera — have put a lot of work into the look and feel of the governor’s office. The lighting, staging, men’s suits and women’s attire all work. Chris Green’s set design is right there.

“Politics in the 21st century has also become a meme of sorts. A theater of the absurd… No matter if you are left, right or in the middle, we can all agree that politics has turned into a three-ring circus… ‘The Outsider’ does a grand job of exposing the comedy of politics without taking a side, and how we as a people just want a candidate that is pure of heart and competent in their position,” Director Greg Franklin writes in the program.

This writer couldn’t agree more.

Barnstormers Theatre, 112 N.E. Evelyn Ave., Grants Pass, will offer performances of “The Outsider” at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays, through March 31. Tickets begin at $20.

See barnstormersgp.org, email at barnstormersgp@gmail.com or call 541-479-3557 for showtimes, tickets and information. Group discounts are available.