The Clean House

The ambiance of The Clean House is awash in colors of white, black and blue. White is the blinding color of the home décor and wardrobe of Lane, a Type-A doctor whose life is a bit too tidy, but whose house is not. Black is the dress of Lane’s cleaning-woman-in-mourning Matilda, as well as the color of the sardonic humor found in this dark comedy. And blue is the mood everyone seems to be in—Lane, her sister Virginia and Matilda, though all three express their depression in wickedly witty ways.

This funky comedy comfortably resides at B Street Theatre, home of eccentric new works. Written by young playwright Sarah Ruhl—32 years old and already a Pulitzer Prize nominee—The Clean House takes a simple premise, stirs in memorable-but-flawed characters and relationships, and dusts it with a dash of magical realism.

Matilda (Maricela Ochoa) is a recent transplant from Brazil who has dreams of becoming a comedian, but has settled for a housecleaning job. Only problem is she hates to clean. Lane (Jamie Jones) is Matilda’s neat-freak employer, a doctor who wants a clean house, but doesn’t have the time to tidy. Lane’s sister Virginia (Amy Resnick) loves to clean, but has no purpose in life. So when Lane’s away from home, Matilda works on jokes while Virginia cleans the house. However, personal messes dirty up the clean arrangement when Lane’s husband, Charles (Kurt Johnson), falls in love with his patient (BW Gonzales) and wants to rearrange his marriage.

Ruhl has an ear for dialogue and a clever feel for characters, while sprinkling in memories, fantasies and a touch of telenovela. The first half of the play, with Ruhl’s weird wit and B Street’s cohesive cast, is a fun jaunt. The second half has the same entertaining elements, but is burdened by a loss of focus on the three main characters and fantasy diversions that don’t always work. In the end, however, if you don’t mind a little misplaced dust, this house shines.