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Wilde ... and Wonderful

 ((Zephyr Theatre, Hollywood; 85 seats; $ 12 top))

By HOYT HILSMAN

Playwright Maurice Keller creates a straightforward, chronological sojourn through the work and personal travails of the Victorian playwright, poet and novelist, from his years at Oxford and his successes on the British stage to his trial and imprisonment for sodomy.
 

Applearts Prods. presents a drama in one act by Maurice Keller; director, Paul Linke; lighting, sound design, Gary Guidinger; music, Keller; costumes, Would You Believe? Opened Oct. 29, 1995; reviewed Oct. 30; runs through Nov. 19. Running time: 1 hour, 10 min. Oscar Wilde ... Peter Van Norden One-man show with Peter Van Norden as Oscar Wilde is a gentle excursion into Wilde's life -- part educational outing, part theatrical event. Van Norden, under the solid direction of Paul Linke, is skillful and low-key in his portrayal of Wilde, firmly grounded in the character but never really soaring emotionally. He does manage to convey some of the seductiveness of Wilde's personality, without much of his edgier charisma.

The piece is full of Wildean tidbits, from bon mots to juicy stories about Sarah Bernhardt and Lily Langtree. But for Wilde, the ultimate narcissist, his most fascinating subject was himself. Denouncing his critics, Wilde considered himself the only truly great artist and intellect of his age. This was typical of the scribe, who believed "nothing is good in moderation."

A forerunner to media-personality artists such as Andy Warhol, Wilde was wildly caricatured both in Britain and the U.S., which he toured. He never seemed to mind any form of public attention, and called caricature "the tribute mediocrity pays to genius."

In 1895, Wilde's world collapsed when he was arrested for violating the morals of, among others, young Lord Alfred Douglas, the son of the eighth Marquis of Queensbury. His trial was a scandal, and Wilde spent two years in prison, then died exiled in Paris in 1900.

In detailing his descent into disgrace, the play touches on several important issues that Wilde himself raised during his trial. The most significant was the freedom of the artist to express himself. As the prosecutor read from his work to indict Wilde's moral standing, the writer declared that "there is no such thing as a moral or immoral book," only well or poorly written ones.

While Wilde did try to defend his actions, he was never able to overcome the scorn of the general public for homosexuality --"the love that dare not speak its name."

Playwright Keller, however, treads lightly on any messages, and is content to retell the events in an understated way. What is missing is some of the immediacy of Wilde's life, always a complex but important ingredient in historical drama.

Keller does not seem to have a strong or passionate point of view about his subject, and as a result, the piece lacks emotional punch.