LADIES OF THE HOUSE MAMET'S FEMININE SIDE EXPLORED BY WOMEN OF 'BOSTON MARRIAGE'.

Byline: Evan Henerson Theater Writer

The couture is haute, the setting is a turn-of-the-century drawing room, and there's not a covetous, sleazy male in sight.

All that notwithstanding, you've only to listen to the language and the actorly admiration of the playwright's words, characters and construction to recognize a David Mamet landscape.

Assembled in a Geffen Playhouse reception room are Rebecca Pidgeon, Mary Steenburgen and Alicia Silverstone: the three stars - and only cast members - of Mamet's ``Boston Marriage,'' which opens Wednesday at the Geffen in its L.A. premiere.

In ``Boston Marriage,'' Claire (Pidgeon) and Anna (Steenburgen), a pair of upper-class, financially independent women, live together in a lesbian relationship euphemistically referred to as a Boston marriage. Their domestic tranquillity is roiled by Claire's desire to have a fling with a younger woman, and by some intrigue over the possession of an emerald necklace worn by Anna. The house's maid, Catherine (Silverstone), observes the various machinations.

Mamet, whose previous plays include ``American Buffalo,'' ``Glengarry Glen Ross'' and ``Oleanna,'' is directing the work, and he's in familiar company. Steenburgen is a member of the Mamet-founded Atlantic Theater Company, as is Pidgeon, who also happens to be Mamet's wife and the star of many of his films. Silverstone, the onetime star of ``Clueless'' and TV's ``Miss Match,'' is the non-Atlantic-ite, every bit the ``delighted to be here'' newbie to Mamet-town.

For Pidgeon, ``Boston Marriage'' is another type of homecoming. The actress played Claire in the work's world premiere at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Mass., in 1999 - the last time she appeared in a fully staged play. Playing Anna in that production was Oscar nominee and fellow Mamet stablemate Felicity Huffman.

Q: Six and a half years ago, you were present at the creation of this play. What's different this time around?

PIDGEON: The first time we did this production, Dave was actually still writing it while we were in rehearsal. He literally changed it even into performances, and then he even changed it more with the production in London and New York. But I was thrilled and delighted to do this play. I think it's so delicious.

Q: Mary and Alicia, what brought you to ``Boston''?

STEENBURGEN: When I did a play at Atlantic, I worked with Mary McCann, who had originated Alicia's part, and we were always telling funny stories about this play. We shared a dressing room and all the best stories were about ``Boston Marriage,'' and how much she had loved working with two women. When it was offered to me, I was like, ``Oh, my God. This is that play that Mary had so much fun on!'' So I knew I wanted to do it before I even read it.

SILVERSTONE: My agent has been a fan of David Mamet's since she was, like, 12 years old. When this came up, she was hysterical, she was so excited she couldn't stand it. I was freaked out because the character is Scottish, and I had two days before the audition. I went in, and I was quite blown away that they called me very shortly afterward. It was the quickest response I had ever had.

Q: Given that this play centers so closely around the relationship between Anna and Claire, how are the dynamics different with Mary than they were with Felicity?

PIDGEON: It's just so different, but it's equally wonderful. Mary and Alicia and Felicity and Mary McCann are just sort of all on this high level of great actresses. So it's just a joy to sort of mix it up and make it different. When you do a play once, I don't know if you've had this feeling, then you get to do it again, you feel it's gone a stage deeper in yourself.

STEENBURGEN: You've also got those extra years to pull from. I think you do get better as you get older just because you learn from life. David and I both studied with Sandy Meisner, and he'd say it takes 20 years to become an actor. (To Silverstone) Well, you've been at it for 20 years because you started so young, but we all used to look at each other and privately in our minds say, ``Oh, it's not going to take me that long.'' Having now done this for a long time, I can tell the difference in what I draw from now than in what I used to draw from. Also I like to think my courage has increased. I hope it has.

SILVERSTONE: (To Steenburgen) Do you ever look at the work? In your earlier work, can you see a difference in your work and say, ``Wow, I feel so much better about my work now than when I first started''?

STEENBURGEN:: I don't really go back and look at work, to be honest with you, very much at all, but when I do, I'm mostly saying, ``Oh, my God, I was such a baby!'' or ``Oh, my God, I remember that guy or that beautiful place, that beautiful building.'' It's more like lavish home movies.

Q: Alicia, how long do you think it takes a person to really become an actor?

SILVERSTONE: That's what I was asking. I had the unfortunate pleasure of watching something that came on TV that I had done a long time ago. I was like ``Ooh!'' I was only little, that's why I was kind of excusing myself. I remember getting really good reviews for these things. But I was little. I started professionally when I was 15, so some of those things along the way, I was being so melodramatic. It was like, ``So much is going on with me!'' Hopefully I've improved since then.

STEENBURGEN: If people had cameras on their fricking lives when they were 15 years old, who wouldn't have something to cringe about? It's not fair. People watch you be a fool, and learn, and grow slightly wiser and be a fool all over again, and watch that.

SILVERSTONE: Dave said this the other day: ``In order to do this, we don't need anything. Forget preparation. Forget anything. All we need is conviction and 15 years of training, of experience.'' And I thought, ``I think I'm up to that.''

Q: Each of the three of you is married. What's the key to arriving at a place where Claire and Anna are. Or, if you prefer, to avoiding it?

PIDGEON: Dave was talking during the rehearsal process about the fact that this was a happy marriage. They are entirely illogical with each other. They're just jumping all over the board in terms of their arguments and times with each other, but they have a strong love for each other. I don't think they are in trouble. (To Steenburgen) Do you?

STEENBURGEN: This is such a sad, pathetic, unworthy analogy. There's this show on TV called ``The Amazing Race.'' And in the family edition, there was a family that could not say a kind word to each other. They were fighting the entire time. My family, by the way, was exactly the opposite. The feeling in my family was that if anybody said an unkind word, everyone would die. So this family was fighting, calling each other every name in the book, but as time went on, you watched them and you realized that there was an amazing connection and vulnerability and love. It would be very hard to be around, for me, to listen to it. I think there was also a cost but there was a kind of love there. Someone who came from a very different family is watching someone else love in a way that's totally foreign to me.

In a way, this has been like that. I think (Anna and Claire) don't necessarily love the way I love, but I don't judge their love at all. They are who they are, and hopefully it's fun.

Evan Henerson, [phone]

evan.henerson(at)dailynews.com

BOSTON MARRIAGEWhere: Geffen Playhouse, 10886 Le Conte Ave., Westwood.

When: Opens Wednesday. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 4 and 8:30 p.m. Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday; through March 12.

Tickets: $35 to $69. Call [phone].

CAPTION(S):

photo

Photo:

Rebecca Pidgeon, left, Mary Steenburgen and Alicia Silverstone are the sole cast members of David Mamet's ``Boston Marriage,'' opening Wednesday at the Geffen Playhouse.

Gus Ruelas/Staff Photographer