Oscar Wilde himself couldn't have picked a better setting this side of the Atlantic than Silverton's Grand Imperial Hotel for a staging of his Victorian spoof "The Importance of Being Earnest." I also have to believe he would've thought the cast of A Theatre Group did the tricky script justice, which, for such a convoluted story reliant on verbal and not physical comedy, is no easy task.

If left in the hands of amateurs, it's likely Wilde's play would be lost on modern audiences. But because of the great legacy of Marianne Fearn, who passed away in September after founding A Theatre Group 21 years earlier, Silverton's theater scene is one of surprisingly high quality and well worth an hour drive for Durangoans hungry for a night of excellent entertainment.

Part of Fearn's mission in founding the company was to merge professional actors and directors with Silverton community members to allow the locals to learn the craft of acting without jeopardizing the quality of the production for its audience. "Earnest" presents a stiff test to that mission, and the cast passes with flying colors.

Following in her mentor's footsteps, Artistic Director Mollie Mook brought professional actress Carol Bloom to the high country for a summer break from the University of Colorado at Denver, where she is an acting instructor. Bloom plays the haughty, social-climbing Lady Bracknell to such perfection that I can only hope it is great acting ability and not a flaw in her character that produces such a great performance. Four of the theater program's recent graduates - Amber Moffett as Gwendolen, Luke Sorge as John Worthington, Matthew Casey as Algy and Felicia Marti as Cecily - are the professional side of the cast. Silverton's own Margot Early as Miss Prism, Howard Drake as Chasuble  and Kyle Roberts in dual roles as Lane the manservant and Merriman the butler round out the cast.

To take nothing away from the locals, the play works because of the visiting Denverites' grasp of Wilde's biting sarcasm and satire of Victorian society - in short, they get it.

Sorge and Casey, in particular, carry the action with dialogue that is almost exclusively tongue-in-cheek from first line to last.

"The amount of women in London who flirt with their own husbands is perfectly scandalous. It looks so bad," Algy tells Worthington. Such text defines the characters and carries the story, but its subtlety easily could be missed by unsuspecting audiences if not for the talents of the actors who deliver it.

It's a tightrope that the cast walks sure-footedly throughout and the audience's laughter is proof of that success.

As a final note, the theater itself literally is a buried treasure. Despite numerous visits to the Grand Imperial, I was unaware that the building had a theater. It's tucked away in the basement - a long, skinny room with swaybacked armchairs, the rows of which begin just feet from the small stage. It's intimate - seating capacity is about 45 - but just about perfect for a small cast performing a Victorian play in a Victorian hotel.

Catch it while you can.

ted@durangoherald.com">ted@durangoherald.com