‘WASP’ could use Steve Martin’s wit> Belfast production lacks writer’s spunk

An expectation can be a dangerous thing. Take, for instance, comic performer Steve Martin. After he put a goofy arrow on his head or gigoloed around as a “wild and crazy guy,” we expected him to always be a side-splitter. Yet he never quite lives up to the promise of hilarity. His films — “Father of the Bride,” “The Jerk,” “Roxanne,” to name a few — all have tremendously funny elements that never satisfactorily coalesce into a comic whole.

Martin has also written several plays, which have met with a similar critical response. Funny bits, yes. But on the whole, they are clunky and fall short of expectations.

“WASP,” which The Assembled Players Company in Belfast opened over the weekend, is no exception. Like several of Tom Stoppard’s brilliant works, “WASP” is better to read than to see. It is an intelligent, wry and well-written meditation on the archetypal, middle-class, white American family and its malaise of emotional emptiness and familial disconnection.

In performance, however, “WASP” presents a more formal conundrum. Is there a way to capture Martin’s quirky comedy and philosophical candor without the presence of the star himself? And is it fair to expect his wit to show up in his writing career?

You can talk about expert actors and their far-reaching talents and how the good ones can pull off any theatrical challenge, but the truth is, this Martin play isn’t terribly interesting without an ace actor such as, well, Martin. It’s no secret that if he were a no-name writer breaking into the industry, his plays probably wouldn’t get the attention they’ve received.

And, really, it’s not very broad-minded to expect his plays to be identical in spunk to his early stand-up routines.

But that’s the potential disappointment in a production of “WASP.” It’s like a Woody Allen movie without Allen. You keep expecting to laugh hard in all the old familiar places, and it just never happens. Realistically and rationally, no one was expecting to see Martin in Belfast. But in the best of all possible worlds, that would make “WASP” hit every note of humor and darkness. You could, of course, be mature and shift your expectations. But that’s never as easy as just being a bad sport.

Either way, there are a few aspects of this production, directed by Gardner Howes, that can’t go unmentioned. Howes has decided to split this one-act into a two-act formula. He plays three scenes, then an intermission, then the final two scenes, which extends the show into a 90-minute evening. Really, this work should bop along quickly and be done without interruption in an hour. Too much plodding stage work asks a lot of an audience, and the bits here could be more effective if they had some snap to them. There’s an edge missing, and that steals something from the play’s themes.

The community actors, including Deb Derecktor as Mom, Emily Sproch as Sis, and Nathan Block as Son, all have dynamic moments. Sandy Piechocki and Josh Pelletier are lively in supporting roles, and make better use of comic situations than others in the cast. John Puriton has the unenviable role of Dad, whose monologues, one-liners and ponderings need a more experienced voice. You may not get as many laughs out of this production as you might hope for. But, once again, you’ll leave admiring Howes’ nerve for staging unusual scripts. And, naturally, there’s always the chance that you’ll have a wild and crazy time.

The Assembled Players Company will present “WASP” 8 p.m. Friday-Sunday through July 26 at The Playhouse on Church Street in Belfast. For tickets, call 338-3548.