"Art" by French playwright Yasmina Reza is a neurotic and comical depiction of three men, their friendship and a white painting.  The Tony award-winning comedy debuted in 1995 in Paris and moved west with Christopher Hampton's English translation, finding a spot amid Steppenwolf's 2008-2009 season.  Shown in the Upstairs Theater, the venue is the ideal counterpart for the intimate performance.

The play explores the relationship of Marc, Yvan and Serge, three men who experience a flurry of emotions when a contemporary painting enters into their bourgeois existence.  Questions of theory, humor and taste arise within the group when Serge, the haughty dermatologist purchases a painting much beyond his means.  This impulsive act is to the chagrin of the incensed Marc, the theorist and counsel for the dysfunctional trio.  Yvan, an eternal victim of his own neurosis adds comic relief to the ruminations of Marc and Serge.

All elements of the performance work to reveal the personal lives of these characters.  From Reza's use of monologue to the amusing set changes in the characters' homes, to the skillful choreography of director Rick Snyder, the play on "deconstruction" is thematic throughout "Art."  A must see for anyone with any emotion toward the visual medium whether it be passionate or putrid.

(Through June 7, 2009)

-Robyn Farrell Roulo