<< Back 5/29/02 HART production peers into a couple’s ‘Private Lives’ By Michael Beadle ‘Til death do us part .... Ah yes, the vows so proudly spoken often go astray in these divorce-prone times. How is it that the twinkly-eyed bride and groom so soon become generals waging war against each other over who cleans the dishes or how the toothpaste tube should be squeezed? It’s inevitable. When two people live together, sleep together, plan lives together, and share a home together, they’ll inevitably disagree and bicker over topics mundane and magnanimous. Some marriages, like that beloved Sunday cartoon pair, the Lockhorns, make a fine art out of the arguments over cooking, cleaning and neglecting one another. Ask any couple that’s been able to endure 50 years of each other and you’ll hear the mushy stuff — how they still love the little things about each other, how they remember the first time they met, but you’ll also get an ear-full about the arguments they’ve had as well. No good marriage is without them. So how do you keep a marriage together — or any relationship for that matter — by not succumbing to the fights that can threaten to tear it all apart? We get a classic case study with Noel Coward’s comic drama, “Private Lives,” which opens this weekend at the Performing Arts Center in Waynesville for a two-weekend run. HART’s latest play, directed by Jeff Bachar, provides us with a couple — Elyot and Amanda — that can’t stand living without each other but can’t seem to stay together long enough without getting into a shouting match that breaks them apart. They love each other so much, and yet they know exactly how to get under each other’s skin with just the right prickly remark. When the play opens, Elyot (played by Jeff Bachar) and Amanda (played by Allison Stinson) have been divorced for several years and have remarried. They are both celebrating their honeymoons with their new spouses when they discover that the two new couples happen to have hotel rooms right next to each other with an adjoining balcony. Elyot and Amanda both have honeymoon arguments with their respective spouses — Victor (played by John Winfield) and Sibyl (played by Amanda Clapp) who storm off — leaving Elyot and Amanda to reunite for what could only be an awkward circumstance. But perhaps the force that drew them apart is somehow tied to the force that draws them close once again and they decide to run away, leaving their new spouses behind. What ensues is a hilarious, touching, finely crafted story that examines the fine line between love and hate as the couple tries to make a thorny relationship reap a rosy outcome. “Private Lives” is the sort of show that invites all kinds of questions about how we deal with relationships. Why do we argue and how can we keep from arguing over the little things? What makes people still believe in the hope that a relationship can work despite all the arguing? What keeps people together and why do some choose to stick it out while others leave and never look back? “Private Lives” was written by Coward back in 1930, and it debuted in London featuring Gertrude Lawrence and Lawrence Olivier. A later adaptation 50 years later starred Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. Though Coward had limited schooling, he went on to become an internationally known playwright recognized for his sophistication and wit, and was even knighted by Queen Elizabeth II. “Private Lives” opens Friday, May 31, at 7:30 p.m. Other 7:30 p.m. shows include June 1, 6, 7, and 8. Two Sunday matinee shows will be at 3 p.m. on June 2 and 9. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for senior citizens, and $6 for students with half-price admission for students on Thursday and Sunday shows. For ticket reservations or for more information about any upcoming HART productions, call the HART box office at 828.456.6322 between the hours of 1-5 Monday through Saturday or stop by the Performing Arts Center located at 250 Pigeon Street on Highway 276 S. in Waynesville.