HAPPY NEW CLIVE: An uncommonly euphoric Clive Barnes, the New York Post aisleman, arrived at Playwrights Horizons for Cloud Tectonics, his first play of the new year. "I haven't been to the theatre in two weeks," he offered by way of an explanation, "and that's never happened in 50 years!" Clearly, a man glad to get back in the saddle. . . . Gilda Radner is remembered in an Off-Broadway offering which Alan Zweibel based on his book, Bunny Bunny. Paula Cale stars with Bruno Kirby and Alan Tudyk, under the direction of Christopher (Jeffrey) Ashley. The play, premiering this month at the Lucille Lortel, spans a 14-year-old relationship that started on the first day of rehearsal for a new TV show called "Saturday Night Live". . . . Starring this month at The Public are two Oscar-winning Best Supporting Actresses: Dianne Wiest in the New York premiere of Naomi Wallace's One Flea Spare, and Vanessa Redgrave in Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra; the latter is marking her New York directing debut. . . . The latest revival of George S. Kaufman and Ring Lardner's June Moon (by the excellent Drama Dept.) opened the night of the season's first snowbut the play was still warming and winning, thanks to A Few Good Men's Mark Nelson (the actor debuting as director) and Geoffrey Nauffts (in the lead of the rube lyricist). Splendid work, to boot, from Robert Joy, Cynthia Nixon, Albert Macklin, Stacy Highsmith and Robert Ari. The critical raves earned it some extra innings, and it may return for an open-ended engagement.
CHEK (IT) HOV: This will go down as the season of three Three Sisters. In addition to the starry Roundabout edition and the naturalistic Russian-language version that have played The Great White Way, Off-Broadway got in some telling licks too via the era-jumping avant-garde rendering which director Richard Schechner and his East Coast Artists brought to packed houses at La Mama. . . . Canadian playwright David Rubinoff, whose Stuck struck some critical sparks at its HERE engagement, was spotted treating a down-on-his-luck man to a hot dog at Gray's Papaya at Broadway and 72nd. His sympathy for life's downtrodden is likewise apparent in this "hit of the 1996 Toronto Fringe Festival," a one-person exploration of an unemployed gay actor. . . . Neat, Charlayne Woodard's recent one-woman show at Manhattan Theatre Club, brought out her old Ain't Misbehavin' sparring-partner, Ken Page, in previews. . . . Nicky Silver Quote of the Month: "I'll be making my Broadway acting debut this spring. I AM The Young Man From Atlanta. I play him. Luckily, the character does not appear onstage. I don't get along with the other actors. They are constantly yelling at me because I don't know my lines. I have no lines, but I still don't know themthat's the scandal of it. It's a crime. Eight shows a week. I am exhausted."
