In essence a spoof on Victorian society, Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest has been treated to a number of revivals and adaptations, the most recent being a 2002 film directed by Oliver Parker. In the comedy of manners, Jack Worthing dreams up a high-maintenance London-based brother named Ernest as an excuse to periodically disappear from his life in Hertfordshire. In London, Jack masquerades as Ernest and falls for a woman who finds the name Ernest to inspire “absolute confidence.” Although leading a double life works out fine for Worthington, it didn’t go so well for Wilde, whose clandestine life as a homosexual led to his imprisonment for gross indecency not long after the play premiered in 1895. Allan S. Ross directs the Classic Theatre’s production. $10-$25; 8pm Sat, Aug 11; The Sterling Houston Theater at Jump-Start, 108 Blue Star, (210) 589-8450, classictheatre.org. Check out our full online calendar of upcoming events here: calendar.sacurrent.com.
