THE BOHEMIANS, A New Comedy, Comes to Theater For The New City

Do you remember your first apartment? There's a good chance you loved it - and that it had its share of flaws. A new play tells a story about a young couple moving into their first place - and what happens when well-intentioned parents create chaos, by trying to get them to move.

Theater for the New City, at 151 First Ave., is presenting the Textile Company's production of The Bohemians, a new comedy, December 6-22.

Tickets are available for $18 and $15 for students and seniors by clicking Tix. The theater is at 212-254-1109.

The show, written by Claude Solnik and directed by Hamza Zaman, follows a young couple who move into an apartment in a building known as Waldorf Towers (well, it sounds fancy...) that has seen better days.

Their parents visit, see an apartment whose only connection to the Wal-dorf is that it has walls, and decide to do whatever they can to get them to move - including extreme measures.

The result is a Neil Simon-esque romp with some of the charm of "Last Stop Greenwich Village," endearing characters and a comic plot that shows how events affect a couple, families, a building, a neighborhood and, of course, the audience.

The show, with a touch of Barefoot in the Park and Prisoner of Second Avenue, tells a story in which love truly does have to conquer all - including two sets of parents' efforts to do what's best.

"Why a comedy?" Zaman, the director, asked. "In today's world of heightened tensions and hardening perspectives, it's vital to bring back some merriment."

Zaman believes that comedy has a crucial role, as important as drama, in today's theater.

And no time is it more important than the end of the year, the heart of winter, and the holiday season. Smiling is as important as being serious and, maybe, even more important to our own enjoyment and health.

"No one needs anyone to remind them of loss. It's a burden for all except a few children who have yet to learn that lesson," he said. "But to slip past the claws of regret? That's sublime. That's a worthy pursuit."

The Bohemians follows Becka (Melissa Roth) and Scott (Jarred Harper) as they arrive in the elegant-sounding Waldorf Towers.

Becka (a doctor working as a resident at a local hospital) and Scott (a carpenter and musician) are thrilled to have their own place in a neighborhood they love.

Becka's parents - Jerry (Scott Zimmerman) and Ida (Patricia Magno) - help the couple move in, but quickly try to get them to leave what Ida calls "Franken-apartment," a place so small it's half an apartment, an "apart..."

Scott's parents, Ted (Mark Lobene) and Vivian (Lucy McMichael) arrive from Connecticut and join the others at a house (well, apartment) warming.

The only problem is all four parents are very cold to the idea of this apartment in an area where security is an issue more than a deposit.

"Their parents help them move in and - after seeing a drug deal or two, collecting crime statistics and noticing cars tend not to have hubcaps - promptly vow to get them to leave," Solnik said. "They go further than most, creating comic consequences that engulf the building - and the neighborhood."

John Carhart plays he superintendent who tries to maintain order, while Mark Montalbano plays Officer Costa and Adam Chisnall plays Marshal.

The show, Solnik said, is based on a real apartment where his wife lived, when they met and before they married.

"It was a great neighborhood and not a great neighborhood," he said. "I thought the apartment itself could be an interesting character and here it is."

The Bohemians, billed as a comedy that "proves that, sometimes, love really does have to conquer all," looks at what happens when someone goes too far to protect someone else. The result is a problem not a solution.

Chelsea Roth is doing costumes and Joanna Newman is the director's assistant in this production, presented in TNC's Cabaret theater.

"I invite everyone to put aside the heaviness of life for a few moments and meet the Bohemians," Zaman said.

The show, also described as "a comedy about love, trust and letting go" is the latest script by the author of "A Walk on the Beach," "Grace is Good," "The Fare," "Butterfly Hour," "Victoria Woodhull," "The Kiss" and other works.

The Bohemians - A comedy "about love, life and letting go" follows a couple who move into an apartment - only to have their parents go to extreme lengths to get them to move. Dec. 6-22, Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. and Sun. at 3 p.m. Tix. $18, $15 students and seniors available by clicking Tix. Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave. (9th-10th Sts.), New York, NY 212-254-1109.