LEWISTON — It’s a wonderful night of theater when an entertaining first act flies by and intermission arrives before you know it. It’s even better when the second act brings some unexpected and powerful turns of plot.

That’s what you get with “Visiting Mr. Green,” the current production at The Public Theatre. It’s a thoroughly enjoyable show with plenty of wit and warm-hearted humor, and there are some important life lessons for audience members to take away.

Kenny Morris and Paul Melendy make up the two-man cast, and they work beautifully together through a full range of humorous to highly dramatic encounters. Both actors are newcomers to the TPT stage.

Morris plays Mr. Green, an elderly Jewish man who has fallen into a reclusive life in his Manhattan apartment. Melendy portrays Ross, a young man with corporate ambitions who must make court-enforced weekly visits to the old man because of a reckless driving incident.

Neither one wants to go through with the visits, but the show’s nine scenes move their relationship from a reluctant beginning to a solid friendship.

Ross and Mr. Green are the only characters onstage, but their lives have been shaped by conflicts and bonds with others about whom they talk. Ross reveals an uneasy relationship with his father. Mr. Green (we never learn his first name) reluctantly talks about his recently deceased wife, Yetta. It’s the things that are revealed about these people that forge the links between the men.

The first act of “Visiting Mr. Green” sets up their unusual relationship. Right from the start, Ross deals with continual exasperation over Mr. Green’s illogical arguments and inflexible habits.

As Act I ends, a couple of surprising details have been revealed, and the second act takes on a much more serious tone. The weekly visits bring the men together as the audience learns how each of them is dealing with exceptional personal challenges.

Janet Mitchko, TPT associate artistic director, has directed “Visiting Mr. Green” with her usual attention to details that enhance the performance. The set is a living room and kitchen that hasn’t changed much through Mr. Green’s life. The rooms are cluttered since his wife’s death and his unfamiliar solitary existence, and the gradual changes of the room reflect the growth of the relationship and Ross’ efforts to bring Mr. Green out of his shell.

This show shines on both the comedic level of the repartee between the young man and the irascible elderly gentleman and the intensely dramatic level of the second act. It all leads to a very satisfying ending.

Audiences are likely to be looking forward to future TPT performances by Morris and Melendy.

Morris, an honored New York actor, has performed in the Broadway and First National Company of “Hairspray,” as well as the Broadway and San Francisco companies of “Les Miserables.”

TV appearances by Morris include “Third Watch” and “Law and Order-Criminal Intent.”

Melendy, who is Boston-based, won the Best Actor Award from the New Hampshire Theatre Awards for his role in “The Complete Wrks of Wllm Shakespeare (abridged),” as well as Best Comedic Actor from the New England Theatre Conference at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. He has appeared in numerous productions in the Boston area and portrayed the Italian waiter in the recent film “The Pink Panther Deux.”

Remaining shows
WHAT: “Visiting Mr. Green”
WHEN: at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 4; at 8 p.m. Feb. 5-6; and at 2 p.m. Feb. 7
WHERE: The Public Theatre, 31 Maple St., Lewiston
TICKETS: $18/$16. Call 782-3200.