‘Wilde’ Times at The Frick for PICT Theatre; ‘The Humans’ Continues at The Public (Thurs., 12/7/17)

The very model of a public intellectual: Oscar Wilde in 1882, photographed during the U.S. speaking tour that made him an intercontinental celebrity.

1) “To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” These words are from an essay published in England in 1891, calling for a new socioeconomic order that would end poverty and liberate human potential. The author was Oscar Wilde—best known as the high-society wit who wrote such comedies as The Importance of Being Earnest—and a complex man, fascinating and provocative on many fronts. PICT Classic Theatre is staging a mini-festival that consists not of Wilde’s plays, but rather three unique pieces that offer an up-close-with-Oscar experience. In the Company of Oscar Wilde (Dec. 6-10) is the U.S. premiere of a show portraying Wilde’s life, work, and personality with words drawn from his many writings. Oscar Wilde Fairy Tales (Dec. 9) is a reading of two children’s fantasies he wrote for his sons, Cyril and Vyvyan.

Closing the series the night of Dec. 10 is The Trial of Oscar Wilde, scripted from historical records by Merlin Holland, the writer’s grandson. This re-creates a crucial part of the court trial that wrecked Wilde’s career. Outside his marriage, Wilde lived a parallel life as a gay man—at a time when anti-gay laws were on the books. Wilde’s eloquence could not prevail in court: He served two years in prison, emerged in failing health and died, at age 46, in 1900. The Trial, the Fairy Tales, and In the Company are presented by PICT under the omnibus title Wilde at the Frick. All performances are in The Frick Art Museum theater. 7:30 p.m. Continues through December  7227 Reynolds St., Point Breeze. (MV)

2) Here is a chance to see the 2016 Tony Award Winner for Best Play. The Humans begins with Deirdre and Erik Blake visiting their daughter, Brigid, and her boyfriend, Richard, for Thanksgiving. Brigid and Richard are unmarried and live in an apartment in New York City’s Chinatown; Brigid’s parents are married Catholics from Scranton. Add a demented grandma and Brigid’s lesbian sister, Aimee, and you can imagine the familial conflict and hilarity. The stakes get higher when freakish events, like loud noises and turned-off lights, occur during dinner. The play premiered in Chicago in 2014, opened Off-Broadway in 2015, and moved to Broadway in 2016, before nabbing the Tony. 2 and 8 p.m. Performances through December 10. O’Reilly Theater, 621 Penn Ave., Cultural District. (CM)

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