If the U.S.State Department were to ask me to list the theatrical productions it should send abroad to give a true picture of American life and thought, l'd quickly append ""The Book of Liz,"" now in its Chicago premiere by Roadworks Productions.

"Sure, this latest lunatic satire by the Talent Family is vaguely subversive. But in order to fully comprehend its humor, international audiences would have to learn some crucial things about American democracy and culture (both high and very, very low). And a canny teacher could use the comedy as the basis for introducing a study of everything from Christian fundamentalism and classic American authors (see Cotton Mather, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mark Twain and Arthur Mil!er's "The Crucible"), to marketing (see the Planters Peanut logo, theme restaurants, Alcoholics Anonymous' 12-step program and, above all, mail-order-savvy religious orders), immigration (green cards, if you please), and the notion of the ever-morphing self. Just how deliciously rich "The Book of Liz" actually is does not become apparent right off the bat.Once the 90-minute odyssey of Sister- Elizabeth Donderstock (played by that incomparable down, Maggie Carney) gets going-and she heads off on a uniquely zany road trip of self-discovery after a lifetime spent within the secluded, patriarchal confines of Squeamish, a strictly religious community that is one part Amish and one part Old World Puritan-the inspired lunacy knows no bounds. And it escalates neatly into something just this side of crazy, as well as just this side of true." Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times May 13, 2003