A young, smartly dressed newlywed named Sibyl (Emily Renee Bennett), and her slightly older, but no less debonair husband, Elyot (Brian Dykstra) absorb the soothing seascape from their cheery hotel terrace in the opening scene of Noël Coward’s Private Lives, now playing at Ithaca’s newly-renovated Kitchen Theatre. Sibyl energetically conveys her satisfaction with the setting, as well as the company of her beloved spouse, while Elyot acts by and large blasé, for he is at this point a seasoned honeymooner, with one marriage already under his belt. His new wife is eager to stamp out pleasant thoughts of his former spouse, imploring him, “You do hate her, don’t you?” but Elyot will not concede on this point. Sibyl is determined to secure conjugal bliss though, and Elyot ultimately appeases her in the deadpan English way, pledging that he is “tremendously, magnificently” pleased with the present scenario.

Meanwhile, on a terrace not too far away, veteran bride Amanda (Carol Halstead), and her new, much younger husband, Victor (Tobias Burns), settle in to enjoy a similar view. Amanda displays a comparable sense of restraint in her interactions with Victor, a poised English gentleman devoted to chivalry and propriety. As such, he shudders at the thought that his new wife’s former spouse struck her in the heat of an argument. When Victor inquires after this former flame, Amanda offers, “I love you much more calmly.”

While these discrete scenarios sound subdued, the heat in this play gets generated once we realize that Elyot and Amanda were, in fact, formerly married, and are presently renting adjacent hotel rooms in the same remote French port town. Once this realization is made, Amanda reacts in a fashion perfectly fitting for this comedy of manners; she unceremoniously declares, “I can’t help feeling this is a little unfortunate.”

Throughout the show, directed by Margarett Perry, the players successfully conjure the subtle sense of humor that is vital for this English period piece. Though the play takes place in the 1930s, many of its themes have contemporary meaning.

“It’s a play about renewed love,” explained Kitchen Theatre Artistic Director Rachel Lampert.

This notion becomes evident as the two lovers, Amanda and Elyot, fall back into the familiar motions of their failed relationship. Shunning their forged affections for the unexciting Victor and Sybil, the pair flees to Amanda’s Parisian flat to rekindle their former flame, but not before Amanda insists “Let’s try to get the best out of it this time, rather than the worst.”

In the lush Parisian salon, the mutual comfort between Amanda and Elyot is palpable, but we get the feeling that it will not last long. Sure enough, by the time Victor and Sibyl arrive to settle their differences, Amanda and Elyot break into a full-fledged physical skirmish, over a petty domestic dispute.

Though the decidedly ordinary Victor and Sibyl have no appreciation for this manner of conflict, it becomes evident that this impassioned fighting gratifies the fiery personalities of Amanda and Elyot. The play calls into question the merit of this evidently dysfunctional or “abnormal” relationship. And, at the same time, it explores conventional gender roles. The two female characters expect the males to fawn, and fight, over them, and when they diverge from these tasks, it gives rise to much confusion. We can also see custom being questioned when the two pairs dutifully adhere to the English tradition of tea time in the midst of their decisive dispute. One of the funniest scenes in the play arises as the players sit around a table, shoulder to shoulder, quietly stirring their coffee in attempt to preserve order in a decidedly indecent situation. The audience can perceive the uncomfortable tension as the players pass one another the necessary accoutrements for coffee.

Ultimately, the play overturns notions of normalcy as the two initially “proper” characters, Victor and Sibyl, get into an impassioned argument that culminates in an unconventional embrace as the curtain closes. Amanda and Elyot sneak off as they quarrel, to engage in their similarly imperfect romance. While we start the play with two respectable relationships, the peculiar affairs that result are much more appealing.

Private Lives is playing at the Kitchen Theatre through September 19th. For tickets: call (607)-273-4497.