Who's afraid of a little good theater?

At a time like this, in which lowest-common-denominator swill like "Epic Movie" tops the box office during its opening weekend, it's alleviating and inspiring to learn that legitimate theater is still alive and well. The current run of Edward Albee's classic, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" at the Ahmanson Theater brings high-class entertainment to Los Angeles during a time when we need it more than rain.

The entirety of the play takes place in the living room of the house of George and Martha, played by Kathleen Turner and Bill Irwin. As the play opens, they have just returned from a party, and Martha informs George that they are going to have guests.

The thought of guests at such a late hour comes as a surprise to George, and this opens the floodgates for George and Martha to bicker and provoke one another, which continues for the duration of the play. Even when their guests, Kathleen Early as Honey and David Furr as Nick, arrive, George and Martha continue to take out their insecurities on each other, sometimes even involving Honey and Nick in their quarrels.

With only one set and four actors, the play is clearly focused on the interaction between the characters. Whereas the typical Broadway play attempts to get a rise out of audiences with show-stopping musical numbers and ornate set decoration, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" drops all these pretentious elements to deliver solid, character-driven drama. Director Anthony Page did a great job of keeping the focus squarely on the actors by eliminating all extraneous elements. This is fairly unusual for such a high-profile production, which makes this show even more unique.

Because the action of the play is carried out in real time, and because it is contained in a single room, the play achieves a very heightened sense of drama and tension. Despite being over three hours long with two intermissions, the play never becomes dull. The engaging performances and rising tension keep the audience involved through the entire running length.

Though all the actors in the show give great performances, it is undoubtedly Irwin who steals the show. More than anyone else, Irwin makes the line between actor and character disappear to the point that the audience fully believes that George is a real person.

As the play goes on, he suffers humiliation and berating at the hands of his obnoxious wife Martha, who carelessly mocks him one minute and then asks George to pour her another drink the next minute. The audacity of her behavior is only matched by George's submissiveness, always ready to pour the next drink with a smile on his face. One can tell that George is very angry beneath the surface, and Irwin's performance effectively keeps the thunderstorm inside until just the right time. Irwin actually won a Tony Award in 2005 for his performance as George, and he undoubtedly deserved it.

Turner is marvelously unlikable as Martha, the domineering wife. Most of the wisecracks during the play belong to her, and each one carries with it the proper balance of humor and derision. The one downside of her performance is when George begins to turn the tables and Martha has to come across as sympathetic. Unfortunately, Turner is much more effective at making Martha a target of contempt than of sympathy.

"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" has been hailed as one of the best plays of the 20th century, right up there with Samuel Beckett's "Waiting for Godot" and Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman." With great performances all around, and no gratuitous theatrical flare to speak of, the Ahmanson Theater's current run proves why this is true.

"Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" runs through March 18 at the Ahmanson Theater, with performances at 7:30 p.m. from Tues. through Thurs., 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m. Tickets are available in person at the Center Theatre Group (CTG) box office, online at www.centertheatregroup.org or by calling audience services at (213) 628-2772.