A departed wife returns to haunt a neurotic British writer in Noël Coward’s classic comedy “Blithe Spirit.” The uproarious show runs at Ross Valley Players through Dec. 15.

Coward is enjoying quite a robust local revival. His “Private Lives” ran recently at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, and his “Fallen Angels” is in production at Berkeley’s Aurora Theatre. Marin’s own Ross Valley Players completes the comedic trifecta with this tale, performed on an ornate set by Tom O’Brien.

Malcolm Rodgers and Jessica Powell star as married couple Charles and Ruth Condomine, whose prickly relationship is fully established in the first act. The Condomines invite a pair of friends, Dr. and Mrs. Bradman (Robert Molossi and Amy Dietz, respectively), to a little gathering at which the guest of honor will be a spiritual medium named Madame Arcati (Tori Truss), who in the right circumstances — such as no indigestion — can conjure spectres from beyond the grave.

And conjure she does — in particular, Charles’ first wife Elvira (Ashley Garlick), who’s visible to him but no one else. The enabling seance is a laugh riot in its own regard. Clad in a flowing lavender gown, gray makeup and bathed in pale white light that follows her all over the stage — Frank Sarubbi, lighting designer — the spookily alluring Elvira is at first a surprise but welcome visitor for Charles, and then proves to be his nemesis. Be careful what you ask for, the old advice has it.

Garlick, an Equity performer, dominates the stage, her character disrupting both the Condomines’ domestic tranquility and, ultimately, the structural integrity of their home. O’Brien’s set design becomes a sort of madhouse of otherworldly intrusions, made explicit by special effects designer Nathan Abrams. It would be unfair to mention everything that takes place onstage, but suffice to say that whatever can go wrong does go wrong. Impish ghosts have a way of doing that.

A former Sonoma State drama instructor and prolific North Bay performer, Truss is outstanding as the flamboyant Madame Arcati, who arrives on her bicycle at each appointment with the Condomines. Truss is dynamic and uninhibited as the pivotal character and a real joy to watch. Garlick is more subdued but superbly confident as Elvira works her dark magic on her former husband and his household. Lizzy Bies is hilarious as goofy housemaid Edith.

Rodgers and Powell wind their way with aplomb through Coward’s maze of complex dialog, delivered in plausible upper-middle-class British accents. The three comedies mentioned here poke a lot of good-natured fun at the idle rich in Coward’s milieu. They’re all immensely engaging and satisfying. Directed by David Abrams, arguably one of the best young actors and directors in the North Bay, Ross Valley Players’ “Blithe Spirit” meets and exceeds the work of other more high-profile theater companies.

This beautifully paced three-hour show is a showcase of complex dialog, masterful acting and comedic hijinks. Ross Valley Players’ pre-show publicity states that Coward wrote it “in less than a week as Britain suffered World War II blitz bombings” and was “onstage in London six weeks later with hardly a line changed … a tonic for turbulent times.” What was balm for beleaguered Londoners in 1941 works equally well for us today.

Barry Willis is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association and president of the San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle. Contact him at barry.m.willis@gmail.com