“No Place To Go” creator and performer Ethan Lipton has places to go, even if those place don’t include Mars or a job.  His whimsically, universal-but-not-specific show about an artist facing unemployment is charming, relatable and genuinely enjoyable. It’s musical without being a musical and is a play without having a “cast.”

Backed by his band of three musicians, Lipton tells a first person account of what happens when he learns that his satisfying part-time employment is coming to an end… unless he wants to move to Mars with the company.  It sounds far fetched, but is far too recognizable as we hear him sing about office life, how to make ends meet when unemployed, being a less-than-crucial member of the company soccer team, and even what it’s like to be the last sandwich left in the conference room. I enjoyed his new twist on what I’ve come to find is the requisite yuppie-hippie-yuppie (“yipster”?) reference in modern theatre. It most often shows up as a mention of Starbucks or Whole Foods.  But Lipton pulled it off with “Huffington Post.”  Another favorite moment was his acknowledgement of what being a sports fan really is, followed by a similar breakdown of politics. I’m wary of saying too much more for fear of giving anything away (if it’s heading to a venue near you, you should definitely check it out — I believe it’s next stops are Red Bank, NJ and the UK.  The man of the hour-and-a-half can also be followed @EthanLipton.) That being said, his witty one-liners include such gems as, “Anxiety is excitement in disguise.”  So, too, it seems, is the reverse true, as after all, this show captures Lipton’s anxieties and turns it into something worth getting excited about.

Grand Performances at California Plaza in Downtown LA.

GRAND PERFORMANCES

Also not to be overlooked is the venue, near Grand, as the name suggests.  Smack in the middle of what appears to be nothing more than an office building courtyard – a charming one with a fountain, but a simple courtyard nonetheless – is an outdoor theater with raked stadium-style seating and a lovely stage.  Sound and lights were spot on, and the fountain backdrop, with twinkle-light encircled islands of greenery, doesn’t hurt at all.  In summer, after dark, the temperature out there is perfect. But what’s really amazing is that the show was free.  FREE great theater, outdoors in downtown LA — who knew?!  Not me. I ate lunch in that courtyard when I had jury duty in the fall and didn’t suspect a thing.  It’s worth checking out (Grand Performances has more shows this summer) and as if everything I’ve mentioned isn’t enough of a draw, for $0.50 you can ride a charming wooden railway car that happens to be “The Shortest Railway in the World.”

Angels Flight: The Shortest Railway in the World.