Infidelity Not Spicy Enough to Save Dull ‘Constant Wife’

The Newport Theatre Arts Center got a little lucky, relevance-wise, with all the tawdry news surrounding President Clinton and Monica S. Lewinsky. It’s almost impossible to watch “The Constant Wife” without dwelling on the allegations of sexual shenanigans in high places.

Once this amusing jolt of recognition fades, however, there’s only the play with which to deal. That’s when the yawns commence. W. Somerset Maugham’s comedy about infidelity, first staged in 1926, is as dull as a congressional filibuster over the capital gains tax.

Maugham may have provoked embarrassed throat-clearing back then, but the notion of an affair--at least one outside the White House--seems like no big deal these days. Factor in stodgy, uninviting dialogue and “The Constant Wife” makes for a long night.

Director Darlene Hunter-Chaffee and her cast work with a pretty basic plot. John (Michael Flaherty) is rumpling the bed sheets with Marie-Louise (Leanna Rene Rodgers), the pretty, vapid best friend of Constance (Christi Sweeney), who just happens to be married to John.

Everybody frets for poor Constance, wondering when she’ll discover the dastardly truth and go mental, but she already knows. The thing is, Constance is so liberated she doesn’t really care. When she starts something up with an old suitor (James Seymour Green), it’s her declaration (and Maugham’s) of forward-thinking and equality between the sexes.

Back in the ‘20s, Maugham undoubtedly reasoned that such risque stuff would be enough to carry the day, and it may well have. But modern audiences will notice only how stereotypical all these blue-blooded, self-involved people are.

The adequate performances don’t add much to the characters, though everyone maintains exceptionally nice British accents throughout the nearly 2 1/2-hour production.

Sweeney’s Constance is at the center of almost every scene and her acting fares the best. She brings a calm pragmatism to every little thing Constance does. But even Sweeney seems to get weary as the show winds down.

BE THERE

“The Constant Wife,” Newport Theatre Arts Center, 2501 Cliff Drive, Newport Beach. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 2:30 p.m. Ends March 1. (714) 631-0288. $13. Running time: 2 hours, 25 minutes.