Director's cut: Inside 'The House of Blue Leaves'

Director Marge Uhlarik-Boller reflects on the Village Theater Guild's production of "The House of Blue Leaves."

What do you do with a play that defies definition? That wants, at once, to be a farcical piece of silliness, a realistic take on middle-class life, a black tragic-comedy or a scathing social commentary on the underside of the American dream?

You close your eyes, tread carefully and jump in. And, on the other side you find - life in all its messiness.

I first read "Blue Leaves" in the mid-1970s and its genre-defying story of a Queens zookeeper, his mentally ill wife and the odd assortment of guests they entertain on Oct. 4, 1965 - the day Pope Paul VI visited New York - stayed with me for these many years.

I leapt at the chance to work with a script by John Guare, best known as the author of the play (and screenplay) "Six Degrees of Separation" and the film "Atlantic City." Guare doesn't pull any punches with this, his most controversial script: religious sanctimony, fame and its merits, and the shallow nature of America's values are all fodder in this show.

At heart though, we find a man whose optimism outweighs the reality of his life, whose life is battered down by illness and irony and in him, perhaps, we get a glimpse of ourselves. We laugh and we cry because underneath the comedy is truth.

I'm privileged to have shared my vision with a band of brave and bold artists who've brought their talents to the project. Every actor, designer and technical person has brought their creativity to the forefront in this production, and it shows.

The galvanizing thing about community theater is that it brings folks together for a common cause; despite socio-economic, political or cultural differences, the play is the thing. Our house does have blue leaves and our theater has a welcome mat for all who would like to enter into this magical world.

Come on along.