BY KAREN BOSSICK

Oscar Wilde’s play, “The Importance of Being Earnest,” debuted in 1895. But it’s both of its time and ahead of its time, says Drew Barr, who has directed plays around the world.

And, with a subtitle like “A Trivial Comedy for Serious People,” it lives up to its reputation as being seriously funny, in addition to containing some of the most memorable lines in theater history.

“This play is such a classic. And Oscar Wilde and the text is so witty and so fantastic and has so many layers that bringing that to life is really exciting,” said Emily Meister, artistic director of The Liberty Theater Company.

The Liberty Theater Company is staging “The Importance of Being Earnest Wednesday, Feb. 4, through Saturday, Feb. 21, at The Liberty Theater in Hailey. It kicks off with a discounted sneak peek on Wednesday at 7 p.m. and runs at 7 p.m. every night thereafter.

“It’s so relevant to today and any time, which is incredible,” said Meister. “So much of it is about love and the many aspects of love and relationships and various identities. For instance, it looks at the private versus public persona—the face you put on in the world versus what your heart truly desires. And that’s something I think almost everyone can identify with.”

Oscar Wilde’s romantic comedy revolves around two men—Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff who each invent an alter ego named Ernest to escape social obligations and pursue romance. But their deceptions entangle them in escalating lies, mistaken identities and rigid social rules they can no longer control.

And the two young women of their affection are indignant to learn that the Ernest they think they’re engaged to has proposed to the other.

Hannah Nye plays one of those two women. She’s had to do a deep dive into Victorian England where her character Cecily lives in a country estate. She’s learned how to hold herself in a very straight, narrow, aligned posture. And, since the costume designer is staying true to the period, Nye and her female colleagues will be—ugh--wearing corsets.

“Cecily is funny and witty and she kind of lives in a dream world, writing down her version of reality in a diary.  She’s 18 and has a teacher named Miss Prism, who is played by Melodie Taylor-Mauldin. But she doesn’t care much for her studies--she’d much rather write in her diary and tend to her garden,” said Nye.

Nye spent a semester working on scenes from “The Importance of Being Earnest” at her for musical theater school at Montclair State University in New Jersey. But this is the first time she’s ever taken part in a fully staged play of the classic.

“I adore the play,” she said. “Oscar Wilde is absolutely brilliant—the language is so layered. It’s very extravagant and each line is there on purpose. There’s really nothing that is said in a nonchalant way. Every line is deliberate and important.”

The play feels very grounded and real sometimes, Nye said. Other times, it has more of an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ quality to it where it becomes more dreamy and imaginative.

“Oscar Wilde, was imprisoned for being gay at the time of the show’s opening, but he was an incredibly respected playwright, who was known for making fun of the upper classes and ridiculous societal expectations. It’s a comedy. It’s really clever. And I think it’s going to be such a lovely way to spend an evening out, a way to laugh for a couple hours, get out of the house and be with community, which I think that’s more important than ever right now.”

Andrew Alburger, who plays the Rev. Canon Chasuble, says the play is a very fun story about mistaken identity and unrequited love and how merry mix-ups can lead to wonderful coupling—in the vein of Shakespeare.

It debuted on Valentine’s Day during an insane snowstorm and, Alburger noted, The Liberty Theater cast will perform the show on Valentine’s Day, although there’s no guarantee it will be in the middle of a snowstorm.

“It’s perfect we’re doing this around Valentine’s Day because there’s a lot of love involved. It’s a feel good romantic comedy that we need more than ever in these troubled times,” he said, noting that his character has a thing for Miss Prism. “And there are always cases of misunderstanding and trying to get people to believe you’re something you’re not.”

“It’s very interesting because we’re all British in the play and we have to tone down our anger. American people just start yelling and screaming, but the British are much more refined and much more insulting without being overtly loud and angry. While our initial impulse is to stomp around, we have to be very refined.”

The play stars Ross Cowan as Jack Worthing, Orion Bradshaw as Algernon Moncrieff, Julie Fishell as Lady Bracknell, Naomi McDougall Jones as Gwendolen Fairfax, Hannah Nye as Cecily Cardew, Melodie Taylor-Mauldin as Miss Prism, Andrew Alburger as the Rev. Canon Chasuble and Kristofer di Grande as Lane and Merriman.

Drew Barr, the director, has directed plays and musicals around the world. Among them, the Dutch-language premiere of the National Theatre of London’s “War Horse,” the Australian premiere of “War Horse” and “War Horse on Broadway” at the Lincoln Center Theater.

He also served as associate director for Simon McBurney’s revival of “Arthur Miller’s “All My Songs,” which starred John Lithgow and Dianne Wiest, and has directed for Idaho Shakespeare Festival and Boise Contemporary Theater.

“My hope is to create a world that showcases the wit and elegance of Wilde’s language, while also allowing space for our amazing cast to express themselves through these gorgeously funny words and characters,” he said.

Over the course of his life, Oscar Wilde personified a celebration of the rights of the individual in society, Barr said.

“It seems he dared us all to live our lives as works of art. He was ultimately imprisoned and defeated by the fearful morality of his Victorian world. Each of the characters in The Importance of Being Earnest can be seen, I think, as an exploration of the collaboration between society and personality. It’s simultaneously ridiculous and profound. We are all ‘works-in-progress,’ and this play reminds us of the importance of seeing what’s possible in each other.”

IF YOU GO…

“The Importance of Being Earnest “ kicks off with a sneak preview as technicians and actors put the final polish on the performance at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 4, at The Liberty Theater in Hailey.

After that, the show runs from Thursday, Feb. 5, through Saturday, Feb. 21. Tickets are available at https://www.libertytheatrecompany.org/.