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ON STAGE: Writers at odds in timeless comedy set to play Surrey (with video)

SURREY — Most people know Neil Simon's classic story of a pair of polar-opposite friends who, thrown together through life circumstances, unwittingly become roommates.

The 1960s period piece The Odd Couple, perhaps best known as the 1968 film starring Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon, is "ultimately a comedy about...the powerful bond of male friendship," and it's stopping by Surrey Arts Centre as part of the Arts Club on Tour series this month.

"It's timeless, really, because everyone can relate to friendships," Robert Moloney, who plays the uptight, neat-freak news writer Felix Ungar, told the Now.

Performing opposite to Moloney is Mike Wasko, who plays a slovenly sports writer Oscar Madison. Both characters are recent divorcees whose habits seem to clash in a hapless series of comedic events.

So how does Moloney identify with such polarizing characters? It's all part of the human experience, he says.

"I can identify with both characters, to be honest," the actor revealed. "I really like my kitchen to be clean, and if things are left in the kitchen not by me, in the sink, or the counters aren't wiped, there's a part of me inside that goes, 'ugggghhhh.' My room is a different story. It's not a total pigsty but I'm happy to have things out of place and it doesn't really bother me that much. I like to smoke cigars when I play poker with my friends on Tuesday nights so, yeah, I think I can relate to both characters. I think everybody can."

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Moloney, whose acting credits include being on television's Motive, Bates Motel and Hell on Wheels, is performing in The Odd Couple for the second year in a row. It's the human element that keeps calling him back to live theatre.

"The thing about theatre that pulls me back is the relationship with the audience," he said. "Getting that immediate feedback of laughter or of a collective gasp from the audience or just when we're doing our jobs right and we can bring an entire group of strangers into a moment and everybody inhales a collective breath or sighs, it's powerful. It brings people together."

As for The Odd Couple in particular, Moloney said he wants to keep coming back for its vivacity and its heart.

"The Odd Couple has a lot of heart at the centre of it, and it's about friendship — a deep, long-lasting friendship that people ask the question, 'Is it going to weather the storm?'"

The latter is still up in the air, and those keen to find out might just have to see for themselves when the play makes a stop in Surrey next week. The Odd Couple runs from Wednesday, Jan. 14 to Saturday, Jan. 24 at Surrey Arts Centre's main stage. Tickets range from $28.81 to $41.15, and can be purchased at Tickets.Surrey.ca or by calling 604-501-5566.

kalexandra@thenownewspaper.com