Monday, 8/11/97 ‘Steve’ makes move from TV to stage with ‘What
is Art?’ THEATER: Star of ‘90210’ takes role as wanderer in comedy
production
By Nerissa Pacio Daily Bruin Senior Staff He is just about the
only character on "Beverly Hills 90210" who hasn’t been carjacked,
blown up in a bombing, addicted to crack or traumatically
transplanted from Minnesota to So Cal (sigh, the Brenda years). No,
"Steve Sanders," played by Ian Ziering, has basically remained the
same old conniving, spoiled Hollywood brat with all the energy and
sparkling pearly whites of a talk-show host. And in WMS
Leavengood’s "What Is Art?" showing through Sept. 7 at the Court
Theater, "Steve" even manages to weasel his way onto stage during
his hiatus from "90210’s" Wednesday TV slot. The premise, animated
characters and funky set design of the comedy create a confusing
cross between the high-society world of theater and the
lowest-common-denominator world of the TV-sitcom taping. Frequent
sights include Ziering’s half-naked Art Angeley zipping by in a
toga, or Veronique (Marcy Kaplan), the object of Art’s affection,
flitting by with an oriental dagger in hand and dressed in a skimpy
leopard-print chemise. An asymmetrical purple velour couch and
other steel furnishings complete the off-balance ambiance. Making
its West Coast premiere, "What is Art?" has the potential to
successfully mix silly slapstick with a big silver platter of
theater. Potential, however, is the key word. The catastrophic
storyline grows tiresome as the characters make faux pas after
predictable faux pas. Topped off by an
"I’m-blatantly-going-to-reveal-the-moral-lesson-of-this-play"
ending, where they ponder what society considers "art," the play
mirrors an extended After-School Special. Art, similar to Ziering’s
character on "90210," is an underhanded young wanderer with a
romantic side. Unfortunately, he goes about his plan to woo in all
the wrong ways. Art poses as a world-renowned artist, Akril
L’Atexio, in an effort to win the affections of the sexy French art
dealer Veronique. In other words, Art wants to "get laid." Little
does he know that Veronique and Middle Eastern terrorist Ferdinand
Bhrundi (Joseph Della Sorte) are assassins, seeking to kill Art,
whom they think is the real L’Atexio. In the midst of this
confusion, Art’s mother Dot (Joy Claussen), his sister Meg (Rhonda
Aldrich), the real L’Atexio (Adam Paul) and L’Atexio’s
hermaphrodite-esque girlfriend Dee Wraith (Helen Cates) get tied up
in the lies and misperceptions. Thanks in part to an undynamic
script filled with trite jokes, Ian Ziering does not leave his
teeny-bopper television character behind. With Steve’s
furrow-browed expressions, exaggerated nods and bright smiles,
Ziering falls short of any sort of riveting character portrayal. In
fact, caring for any of these characters is nearly impossible,
which may not be so bad for this intentionally bawdy comedy.
There’s the sniveling art manager Sid Stole (Thomas Tofel), the
socially-inept apartment-building super, Fred Spawn (Greer
Coursey), the love-struck sister Meg and the flighty Veronique (who
ends up loving Art for the passionate, obsessive nature that caused
him to lie in the first place). They add up to a cast of
over-the-top and, at times, annoyingly-exaggerated cartoon-like
characters. However, energy is one thing this show never lacks. Art
remains enthusiastically determined to win Veronique, from the
opener where he trips over a sculpture in the dark, yelling, "Oh,
my god! I think I’m holding a penis!" to his closing swoon.
Kaplan’s silly French accent remains constantly cute throughout,
while her ritual chants in preparation to kill Art stir a big laugh
each time. The most pleasant surprise of all is Cates as Dee
Wraith, who utters guttural clucking noises more than any real
lines. As if her ridiculous Hell’s Angels leather get-up, boy-cut
hair and deep voice weren’t enough, Cates (who spends a good deal
of her stage time in the coat closet and is probably seen less than
any of the cast) continues in bull-froggish groans. Unfortunately,
energy alone fails to hold the audience’s attention. Seeing person
after person thrown over a couch, jump up on a coffee table, or
spray an extremely loud fire extinguisher makes you just wonder:
Couldn’t this all have been done in a simple half-hour like all the
"Home Improvement," "Fresh Prince" and "Saved by the Bell"
episodes? THEATER: "What Is Art?" runs through Sept. 7 at the Court
Theater in West Hollywood. Tickets are $25 Fridays and Saturdays,
$22 Thursdays and Sundays. For more information, call (818)
789-8499. PATRICK LAM/Daily Bruin Greer Coursey (left) and Ian
Ziering star in "What is Art?"