Update of Schnitzler’s ‘Anatol’ Misses Mark

“Anatol” at the Powerhouse Theatre is a mixed bag of conflicting impulses from the Buffalo Nights company, whose production of “The Apollo of Bellac” received considerable acclaim last season.

In her quasi-modernized take on Arthur Schnitzler’s 1890s drama, translated by Michael Robinson, veteran director Jessica Kubzansky seems baffled by Schnitzler’s psychologically complex portrait of a womanizing Viennese gentleman hoisted on the petard of his own romantic peccadilloes.

As in “Reigen,” Schnitzler’s best-known play, later filmed as “La Ronde,” the play consists primarily of a “round” of amatory exploits--in this case, Anatol’s adventures with a variety of women from all walks of Viennese society. In between scenes, we hear audiotapes of present-day people discussing their failed relationships--a hint that, whatever the era, men and women will suffer the same romantic travails they always have. Beyond that obvious point, Kubzansky’s failed updating never quite gels.

Lisa Wujick’s handsome costumes are strictly in period, but Kubzansky elicits anachronistic performances from many in her cast. Miscast in the title role, Kevin Weisman frequently substitutes intensity for charm. After all, Anatol is an arch-seducer and boulevardier of the most sophisticated order. Here, he more often comes across as slobberingly horny.

Interpretations alternate between the parodic and the sincere. Regardless of their social stations, Anatol’s conquests are most often portrayed as pouting sexpots. That stagy sexuality sometimes serves the play well, particularly in Renee Ridgeley’s droll turn as a fickle ballerina more concerned with her plate of oysters than her alienation from Anatol. More often, it is misplaced.

Apparently heedless of the presence of Anatol’s best friend, Max (Ron Garcia), Anatol’s “suburban lass” lover Cora (Alanna Flanagan) sucks Anatol’s fingers with the abandon of a Playboy Channel day player. And although Merrin Dungey may look stunning as Anatol’s married mistress, hers is more a sustained pose than a performance. Exceptions to the general artificiality are Laurel Moglen, who plays a jealous actress-turned-stalker, and Kara Zediker as a “fallen woman” who foolishly speaks the truth to Anatol when only lies will serve. And despite the fact that his homoerotic attraction to Anatol is almost comically blatant, Garcia’s dapper Max, a worldly fellow with a sharp crease in his pants and a properly elegant air, is the most subtle characterization of the evening, and the truest to Schnitzler’s period.

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“Anatol,” Powerhouse Theatre, 3116 2nd St., Santa Monica. Fridays-Sundays, 8 p.m. Ends May 27. $15. (310) 289-2999. Running time: 2 hours, 30 minutes.