`Private Lives’ a cynical and hilarious look at marital foibles

Theater review

Something wonderfully naughty and pungently cynical lurks behind the elegant smiles of Noel Coward’s characters in “Private Lives,” playing through July 14 at Acadia Repertory Theatre in Somesville. Set at a ritzy French resort in the late 1920s, the English comedy follows the hilariously unlucky honeymoons of Elyot and Sibyl Chase, and Victor and Amanda Prynne. The adjoining terrace of their suites is the scene for a fateful reunion between Elyot and Amanda, whose former marriage to each other was a painfully wise statement about the vitalness and impossibility of love. The whole business of marriage gets a bit brambly when their love is rekindled, and they run off to Paris, leaving their newly wedded partners behind.

Mostly about the unreliability and impracticality of “normalcy” and “happiness” in marriage, the play captures both the frank disillusionment and sparkling invincibility of a postwar generation, the lost one that threw champagne glasses to the fire and morals to the wind. “Let’s be superficial and pity the poor philosophers,” says Elyot. “Let’s blow trumpets and squeakers and enjoy the party as much as we can.”

Although the play is somewhat dated, such sentiments make it a timely reminder that the exhilaration of living fully comes not from blind idealism but an impenitent acceptance of our capricious humanity. For Elyot and Amanda, this means acknowledging that the promise of everlasting happiness and ease in marriage is a very poor joke. There’s work to be done, arguments to be had, furniture to be thrown, and a whole lot of love to be made.

In general, ART does a fine job at presenting an entertaining version of “Private Lives.” The pace might clip along more rapidly, and the ending scene lacks the provocation of the script, but director John Erickson captures so much of the finery of the play that it is possible to overlook these shortcomings.

It’s not possible, however, to overlook the disappointing characterization of Amanda. Actor Julie Sheehan simply falls short of portraying Amanda with dynamism and grace. Amanda is a rousingly mercurial woman, filled with borax and brains. Sheehan is stunningly statuesque and poised, but lacks Amanda’s unflinching “feminine determination.”

Sheehan’s characterization becomes more interesting, however, during a slapstick fight scene with co-star Ken Stack, who competently plays Elyot. It certainly would have been delicious to see variations of this unleashed passion in other moments of the play, particularly with Coward’s barbed-wire word play.

Kathleen McInerney, as Elyot’s discarded young wife Sibyl, offers an excellently animated and pithy performance. Her chirpy excitement and fidgety confusion are splendidly crafted. Alan Gallant as Victor is less compelling, as he relies on stilted manners, and apprentice actor Lydia Frances Maier, as the maid Louise, maintains admirable composure in some otherwise dreadfully bland scenes.

Costume designer Audrey Swanton attires the women in chic gowns and classy dresses, but unfortunately doesn’t costume the men as smartly or as authentically.

“Private Lives” will be performed at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday through July 13, and at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 14, at Acadia Repertory Theatre in Somesville. For reservations, call 244-7260.