In “Florida Man” by Michael Presley Bobbitt, a young man racked with guilt digs up his dead father William Crud (the crud of a memory John Higgins) to give him the proper Viking funeral he always wanted. Billy Crud (a hapless and somewhat damaged Michael Ford) regrets not having granted his father’s last wishes about his “resting place.” Despite Billy’s less than favorable memories of his “handsome Dad” – who shot himself in the chest to avoid disfiguring his face – he makes plans to dig up his recently buried father and send him on his way aflame on a Viking burial ship. Although they collectively warn Billy against such a lawless caper, his girlfriend Gina Griffin (a spirited and longsuffering Chloe Fox), his friend Highway Patrol Officer Jorge Orlando Flores (a stoic yet amoral Jamahl Garrison-Lowe), and his longtime friend Webb Jones (a goofy yet highly devoted Justin Bennett) relent and offer to assist Billy in the graverobbing escapade.

After a few setbacks (a rainstorm that begins to fill the dug grave), Billy tackles the task on his own and retrieves his body and brings it back to his father’s workshop. Predictably, the stiff appears to Billy in a dream and the pair take the opportunity to sort out their differences, their disparate understanding of what love is, and unpack what Billy perceived as a broken childhood. Here is where things begin to unravel rapidly in playwright Bobbitt’s script. The overworked conceit that occupies the first Act continues to rival believability in the second Act “beyond the grave.” Even the respectable performances by the cast (under the capable direction by Evan Ross) cannot resolve the dissonance between the characters’ conflicts and the plot driven by those problems.

For example, in the first two scenes of the play, Billy faces a judge (also played by John Higgins) after being charged with molesting a fishing trap. Although meant to help define Billy’s character, the scenes are overlong and overwrought and do little to advance the plot. It is unfortunate that, although Mr. Bobbitt writes somewhat strong and believable characters, he does not always know what to do with them and leaves the audience wondering, “What’s the point here and what’s the point of the play?” Is it about redemption? Debauchery? Is it a memory play gone awry?

At this point in the play’s development, the script cannot sustain ninety minutes and the script itself must be tightened up: the dead body of Billy’s dad cannot be in a different configuration before and after the “dream sequence.” Too much time is spent on the excavation at the gravesite – the audience understands what is happening without the multiple visits “behind the curtain.” And why would Billy “invent” a “dong machine” for his girlfriend? One visit to New York City’s Museum of Sex confirms dildo/sex machines have a decades-long history. Mr. Bobbitt thoroughly enjoys living in Florida and “unearthing” the state’s underbelly of characters. With some effort, “Florida Man” can hopefully showcase these characters with even more authenticity. At this point, it does not.