Earnest Yet Troubled ‘Oscar Wilde’s Wife’

You might not figure Oscar Wilde for the marrying kind, but “Oscar Wilde’s Wife� begs to differ. Ronda Spinak’s ironically titled historical drama at the Odyssey Theatre attempts to rescue from obscurity the woman who not only married the scandal-plagued homosexual aesthete but also bore him two children and remained loyal through his disgrace--at the cost of her own identity.

Why? Stacie Chaiken’s anguished portrayal of Constance Wilde reveals a woman masterfully adept at denial and truth-twisting--abilities she acquired at an early age through protecting her father against exhibitionist charges she knew to be true. Her belief that Wilde loved her was unshakable. Toss in the repressive Victorian social climate and you have a recipe for a failed life.

Unfortunately, Spinak’s dramaturgy isn’t on par with her zeal for historical research. The presentation, saddled with a cliched chorus and Constance’s own pedantic narrative exposition, often lurches between shopworn melodrama and sociological polemics. A notable bright spot is a poignantly honest exchange of feelings between Constance and her shy, adoring publisher (David George).

As Wilde, John Michael Morgan is a sympathetic figure, despite the character’s tendency to speak in quotes from his own plays. Though Oscar marries Constance for money, he treats her with clear affection, and Morgan exudes the flamboyant wit and charm that endeared the author to his friends and public alike.

But that’s the problem--even Spinak can’t help getting seduced by Oscar’s magnetism. The second act mostly rehashes the public revelation of Wilde’s love affair with smarmy Lord Alfred Douglas (Norman Victor) that led to his imprisonment on sodomy charges, adding nothing new to numerous other dramatizations. Even in her own play, Constance gets relegated to the spectator stands.

* “Oscar Wilde’s Wife,� Odyssey Theatre, 2055 S. Sepulveda Blvd., West L.A. Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 7 p.m. Ends June 15. $18.50-$22.50. (310) 477-2055. Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes.