In the small dark theater on the first floor of Walsh, a pristine, white couch sits on a pristine, white rug in sharp contrast to the black walls that surround it. Everything is in order; everything is in its proper place. Two hours later, this same room is cluttered and in complete disarray, its clean state long gone.

The first of Nomadic Theatre’s three annual main-stage plays, “The Clean House” is a compelling production, executed with an attentive eye to detail and character interaction. The scenery, which becomes part of the story itself, is just one example of how the small details make this performance a memorable one.

Although the play is set in white-bread Connecticut, the characters are universal enough to apply anywhere. Lane (Marjory Collado, COL ’09), an accomplished doctor, operates her life with businesslike brusqueness. She hires a live-in maid, Matilde (Allie Villarreal
COL ’12), who hates cleaning and has dreams of being a comedian; her parents were allegedly “the funniest people in Brazil,” and she inherited their sense of humor. Lane’s sister Virginia (Joelle Thomas, SFS ’10) provides essential comic relief, but also represents a familiar character: the dissatisfied housewife who feels her life was meant for greater things. Finally, the last two versatile roles were written into the script by Sarah Ruhl to be played by the same actors. Erik Mortensen (SFS ’12) doubles as Lane’s husband Charles and Matilde’s father, while Nikoo Massoud-Moghaddam (COL ’11) plays both Charles’ mastectomy patient (whom he later takes as his wife) and Matilde’s mother. The way this couple doubles up — as both perfectly matched parents and then head-over-heels lovers — creates a parallel that is comfortable rather than confusing.

With such a small cast, each character becomes significant, and their responses to each other are crucial to creating a believable scene. These five actors do so skillfully; Villarreal’s facial expressions and body language are especially nuanced and add another dimension to the role of Matilde. Likewise, Thomas takes a role that could be potentially irritating or fake and instead uses excellent comedic timing to flesh out Virginia.

“We have young actors playing much older roles,” director Laura Brienza (COL ’10) said. “I think this means there is something inherently true about [these themes].”

“The Clean House” is not afraid to manipulate the audience’s emotions; at times it is unclear whether you should be laughing or crying. Because the comedy scenes are so strong, the somber moments drag slightly, especially at the very end. But the majority of the second act is hilarious, a result of the actors’ flawless delivery.

In her first time directing a Nomadic Theatre production, Brienza chose “The Clean House” for two reasons. “The writing style is so beautiful,” she said. “Sarah Ruhl creates a beautiful synthesis between poetry and drama, which is so appealing to me. And thematically, I feel that so many parts of my life have been a mess that it is nice to see a play that celebrates it — it’s compelling.”

Producer Jamie Scott (COL ’10) agreed. “The language in this play is beautiful,” he said. “It’s one of the best written plays I’ve read. [Ruhl] has a fantastic command of language.”

Rehearsal for the production was compressed into only five weeks, a much shorter period than usual for major plays staged by Nomadic Theatre. “I think this shows what student theater is capable of doing, even with limited time,” Scott said.

“Our goal was to have the actors off the books in two weeks,” Brienza said, referring to the short time the actors had to memorize lines. “They rose to the occasion.”

“The Clean House” is ultimately a play about human relationships, and the flaws of each character seem familiar to us as archetypes that we see in our own lives. Strong character interactions and the actors’ expressive faces contribute to the larger message about the intricacies of love, and the production’s ceaseless attention to detail makes the show worth seeing. And, of course, it’s funny. After all, it’s a play about humor, jokes and a wannabe comedian.

“People always imagine that people in love are happy,” says Matilde at one point in the play. “Love isn’t clean like that; it’s dirty. Like a good joke.”

“The Clean House” will be performed Wednesday through Saturday nights in Walsh Black Box Theatre. Tickets are $9.