It’s really that simple.  And, delightfully, it also is not.

On Wednesday night, we were fortunate enough to get tickets to the opening night of Becky Shaw at the Wilma Theater in Philadelphia.  The comedy has an extremely sharp wit and the audience rewarded the performers with numerous outbursts of laughter.

But there are a few points that are worth noting, a few items that elevate this over an episode of Friends or Seinfeld.

• The play runs for ten to fifteen minutes without any mention of the title character.  That was the perfect set-up because Becky is all about absence.  She is fleeting.  Brooke Bloom, with the help of pitch-perfect hair, makeup, lighting and costume, presents a gauzy Becky Shaw who is like tissue paper or a threadbare fringe.  It is a hard role, intentionally difficult to pin down, and we were treated to a first-rate rendering.
• The play has numerou floating points and, for the most part, avoids definitive statements and rigid narrative.  For example, there are events in the past (and even current events that occur offstage) about which the audience never learns the truth.  This created a soft space where the emotions of these characters floated out to the audience.  I could not help but see beyond the terrific wise-cracks and enjoy the emotional drama that unfolded before my eyes and ears.

So, we give special thanks to Anne for getting us in on the first night.  If you are around, I urge you to check in at the Wilma.  I am sure you will not be disappointed.  Becky Shaw runs through February 7, 2010.