THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST ABOUT ART (AND FRIENDSHIP)

The three male leads in Yasmina Reza's play Art, under the direction of Victor Lirio for REP, are first seen capering about onstage, chasing each other in a sitting room, clearly evoking jovial times back in college together.

- Catch Yasmina Reza's Art at REP Eastwood Theater until June 29.

But soon, their movements slow down; they grow more serious; they put on suit jackets and we realize that these friends—Serge (Martin Sarreal), Yvan (Bryan Sy) and Marc (Freddy Sawyer)—are still in touch, but their bonds are no longer carefree. There's an edge of rivalry and critical distance that has surfaced.

Particularly from Marc, who is deeply "offended" to learn that his dermatologist friend Serge has spent 200,000 French francs on a monochromatic white painting. And his friend actually seems to (gasp!) like the thing!

Lirio, coming from the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School in London, once again finds British and Filipino-British actors to square off with rapid-fire dialogue (as he did with last year's take on Harold Pinter's Betrayal), in this case with Filipino actor Sy as a mediator of sorts.