“The Perfect Party” is two-thirds of a perfect play.
I was a happy party guest as A.R. Gurney (“Sylvia”) introduced us to a fallen literature professor who has succumbed to the WASP ambition of throwing the perfect black-tie soiree. It gets even better with the arrival of an ambitious New York Times critic, whose presence as uncompromising judge makes a perfect metaphor for the cross purposes between a theater company and a critic.
The brilliance of Gurney’s premise is, of course, that there is no such thing as the perfect party, or the perfect play, because beauty lies in the eye of each separate beholder. You may be having a perfect time at a party; the woman across the room may be cornered by a boor. I love a play, you hate a play – readers respond more vehemently to a rave than a pan. Perfection by consensus is an unattainable goal. The nobility of theater is that every troupe sets out with that goal each night, regardless.
But Gurney’s just piling on by making all of this an additional metaphor for the failure of American idealism – an eye-rolling reach that turns this enjoyable, smart and witty comedy into a specious political commentary.
The Playwright Theatre is dusting off Gurney’s 1986 comedy with a superb cast led by Trina Magness as the hottest critic in the history of criticism. My personal thanks to costumer Bonnie MacLachlan for putting her in a cocktail dress that can only be described as fierce (and the woman who accompanied me insisted I say so). For Lois, the perfect party affords the opportunity to write the perfect review, which calls her objectivity and impartiality into grave (yet hysterical) question.
What follows is a shindig with all the elements that make for a good stage comedy: farce, witty repartee, physical comedy, mistaken identity. Lois’ banter with Verl Hite’s Tony is a throwback to Hepburn and Tracy. It helps that Magness – who has won awards for her speaking voice (seriously) – could melt an igloo just by uttering the line, “Hello, Wes and Wilma!”
Lois is a hoot from the start. She begins as the epitome of journalism ethics, vowing to observe coolly and dispassionately. “I can’t be bought!” she says. But in truth, she’s just a wreck waiting for impact. This critic is a sexually frustrated boozer (hey!) and Tony soon deduces just what must be done to entice a positive review from her.
Tony is the more potentially complex character, but Hite and Magness are mismatched in terms of comic tone. Hite’s too desperate from the start, lacking nuance and suavity. He’s meant to be part Wilde’s John Worthing, part Gurney himself. Instead he comes across as a stock Neil Simon character in a mid-life crisis. He’s actually much better when he assumes the persona of Tony’s outrageous twin brother Todd.
As hostess Sally, Pam Clifton delivers an emphatic, acerbic reminder why she’s been one of Denver’s most reliable comedians for decades. David Russell and Amy Rome, the party (and the play’s) support characters, are neighbors initially intimidated by the challenge to perform “at the perfect party,” then reveal themselves to be self-absorbed actors who bitterly (and funnily) evaluate one another’s performances (Wilma: “You’re phoning it in!”)
It’s uncanny how well Gurney knows critics. Guests demand Lois’ opinion a mere hour into the party – just as critics are hounded for star ratings at every intermission. Lois, of course, can’t yet say. “That would be the violation of some meaningless taboo!” she says, making me snort out loud. Replace every word “party” with “play,” and this is an original and incisive commentary on the American theater.
But director Brenda Cook’s staging is not yet firing on all comic cylinders. This is an unforgiving script that doesn’t allow an actor to stumble on a single syllable. Still it’s fun – until Tony starts prattling on about how he’s recreating “the multiplicity of America under one roof.” When he went on about how this fete reveals the American Dream as a dark and destructive pursuit, I grabbed for my coat.
What a way to kill a party.
Theater critic John Moore can be reached at 303-954-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com.
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“The Perfect Party”
COMEDY|Playwright Theatre, 2119 E. 17th Ave.|Written by A.R. Gurney|Directed by Brenda Cook|Starring Trina Magness, Pam Clifton, Amy Rome and David Russell|THROUGH MARCH 17|7:30 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays|1 hour, 55 minutes|$15-$20|303-499-0383; playwrighttheatre.com
