Burn This

What I like about Burn This is it's mystery. There were many instances when I wasn't clear what people were talking about or why they were saying it. That ambiguity fuels the whirlwind nature of what ends up being a kind of hard luck love story. Anna is a dancer, and the focal point of the story. She is surrounded by three men, Burton, a born-wealthy and successful writer, who may or may not be her boyfriend, Larry, her gay roommate and confidant, and Pale, the volatile brother of Robbie, whose death inspires the action. As Anna struggles with the death of her best friend and dancing partner, all three men, who were also connected to Robbie must deal too with where they are in life, and why. Eventually though, it comes to Anna and Pale.... And there the heart of Burn This lies. In the mystery of attraction. Good play. Good characters. It goes into the ether areas, and made me wonder about passion, life's work, the force of personality, and tactics to winning and overwhelming hearts.

This was the first Lanford Wilson play I had read, so I didn't quite know what to expect. Though in the end I certainly wasn't disappointed. Without over-simplifying, "Burn This" is the story of the emotional turmoil associated with the death of a friend and an unlikely romantic pairing."Burn This" is a well-written play with both fleshed-out and believable characters. Wilson is able to convey meaning in subtle ways and does not bog-down the play with overly-verbose dialogue or obvious statements. He wonderfully weaves a story centered around a character we never even meet. Moreover, Wilson deals with the issues and themes in the play appropriately -- not over- or under-playing their importance. For example, the entire focus of the play is not on homosexuality, nor should it be. But it is still a key part of the play, and receives the attention and focus it deserves without becoming overly-inflated.I was lucky enough to see a production of this in New York in the fall of 2002, which was absolutely phenomenal. There was even a post-performance Q & A session with Lanford Wilson and the cast, which while brief, was very interesting. Nonetheless, seeing a live performance made the play even more powerful. (Of course, this was helped by having an excellent cast.) Even so, if you get the chance to see a production of "Burn This", don't hesitate to.

Every play Lanford Wilson writes is intelligent as well as passionate and dramatic. It is almost beyond belief how hard it is to combine all of these qualities in the same play. In "Burn This", Wilson is in top form. Pale (the male lead) is such a clearly written and deeply felt part that an actor does not have to fill in any gaps; if an actor can read well, he is assured of at least an above average performance. The dialogue is spicy, funny, sad, bitter and more. In movie terms, it is a Nicholas Cage part (although Malkovich originated it).Pale's love interest and foil (the Joan Allen part) is not secondary to Pale because she has the power to heal him. A magnificent love story.

This play is a meaningful, and yet almost simple, masterpiece. The story unfolds with the death of a gay man, which ultimately brings an unlikely match closer together. Wilson's use of homosexual issues is the perfect sprinkling: it is not the main focus of the play, but gives it just the extra touch. This is how homosexuality should be written about in the theatre (or any form of entertainment). It isn't over-played or under-played, but just right.