“When is the phone gonna ring? When is someone gonna call us of their own free will and volition?” came a cry from the California Stage complex at 1723 25th Street.

This and other antics brought small thunders of laughter and amused chuckles in the Short Center Repertory’s Saturday night performance of “Extensions.”

“‘Extensions’ is a short absurdist piece,” the reportory’s Jim Anderson said. “It was written by Murray Schisgal, who was a writer around the ’70s, and while Beckett, Ionesco were doing their thing, Schisgal was the sort of American representative.”

Starring Brian Hillebert and Regina Brink as Bob and Betsy Abbott, “Extensions” is a one-act, one-scene full-length piece. It’s a place where nothing really happens, but the two aging vaudevillians entertain themselves. That’s the sublime of this dark comedy, two show people living out their own theatrics and jokes for themselves.

What stands out the most is what the Short Center Repertory represents. Founded in 1988, the intimate space was created with a mission of training and featuring actors with disabilities.

“We wanted to showcase unique talents, not disabilities,” assistant director Caverly Morgan said. “But we also wanted to teach the audience about disabilities.”

Though The Short Center Repertory seats a meager 28 people, so much happens in that space. There seemed to be a silent energy and understanding, with the actors’ presence filling the room to make it more real, more lively.

Anderson and Morgan both spoke of the repertory’s efforts to stay afloat for 23 years. Anderson, as founder and director, noted one of the struggles being, “How do we get the word out?”

Despite this, Anderson Morgan and its small batch of actors and volunteers refuse to give up. Their next project, to begin after “Extensions,” is one collaborating with the homeless population, supported by a grant the repertory received.

“Extensions” is a performance piece full of charisma, ridiculousness and hilarity.

“It has a resonance with both the characters and in other dimensions with what we do here,” Anderson concluded at the reception after the performance. “And the play — that is why I chose it — it kind of speaks to me.”

for information and running times check the California stage Website.