British theatre arrives in Earnest

National Theatre’s jubilantly wild new production of “The Importance of Being Earnest” will fill the big screen of the Newport Performing Arts Center on Wednesday, May 14.

Oscar Wilde’s timeless comedy of manners will be screened in ultra-HD in the Alice Silverman Theatre.

Being sensible can be excessively boring. At least, Jack thinks so. While assuming the role of a dutiful guardian in the country, Jack lets loose in town under a false identity. Meanwhile, his friend Algy adopts a similar facade. Hoping to impress two eligible ladies, the gentlemen find themselves caught in a web of lies they must carefully navigate.

Max Webster directs this bright, brilliant reimagining of Oscar Wilde’s most celebrated comedy. Olivier Award-winner Sharon D Clarke is joined by Ncuti Gatwa and Hugh Skinner in this hilarious story of identity, impersonation and romance told through a colorful, whimsical new lens.

“Keeping one foot in the here and now, this Earnest lands the verbal invention and wit of Wilde’s 1895 classic while incorporating contemporary music, the occasional swear word, and a decidedly queer sensibility,” wrote Matt Wolf in The New York Times. “Webster’s intention is clearly to release a time-honored comedy from the confines of period convention. Fun? The production is that, to be sure. Or, as these characters might prefer to put it, faaaabulous.”

Viewers should note that the production contains strong language, suggestive content, smoke, and haze.

The Wednesday, May 14, screening will begin at 7 pm at Newport Performing Arts Center, 777 W Olive Street.

Tickets, $16-$22, are available by calling 541-265-2787, online at www.coastarts.org/events/ntl-earnest or at the box office from 10 am-3 pm, Tuesday through Friday.