A sudden and impulsive one-night stand between a man and a woman can breed tumultuous ecstasy yet burn with life-altering madness when the affair becomes an addiction. That desire and the damage it wreaks are the themes of a searing, passion-play now presented by the Huntington Theatre Company.

Lanford Wilson, a vanguard gay playwright, wrote "Burn This" in 1987, to explore the pain of a repressed homosexual's sudden death and the devastating emotional wreckage wrought upon unsuspecting families and friends.

Wilson is best known for the "Talley Trilogy"; "Talley's Folly" won him the Pulitzer Prize, and "Fifth of July," as well as "Talley and Son."

He is said to thrive in the tradition of dramatic techniques perfected by prominent playwrights like Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams; searching for compelling ethos in the examination of mundane problems of ordinary people and their families.

In 2002, Wilson decided to revise "Burn This," bringing a successful run in New York City. The play is comprised of two Acts, seven scenes, covering a short span of a little over two months during which Anna, played by Anne Torsiglieri, a dancer and choreographer in Manhattan, mourns the sudden accidental boating-death of her dancing partner, Robbie.

Her life becomes volatile, turned upside down by Robbie's brother, named Pale, played by Michael T. Weiss, who in his volcanic grief, barges into Anna's heart and life.

Anna's boyfriend, Burton, played by Brian Hutchison, sees Anna's devotion for him gradually erode, as if a delirious cupid was piercing his sweet fiancée's heart and the cocaine snorting, routinely drunk Pale's heart with the same arrow. Burton stands helpless. He watches Anna and Pale, succumbing to the sweet poison of common grief, bonding in reckless passion.

Robert T. Weiss' portrayal of Pale, the intoxicated, manic, restaurant manager shaken by the lies in his brother's life was engrossing. His performance shined with volatile vigor and extraordinary emotional resonance.

Weiss, a Chicago native, is known primarily for his acting in numerous films and television work. He starred as "Jarod" on the NBC hit, "The Pretender," a role which challenged him to play 80 different characters.

Anne Torsiglieri plays Anna, who in sorrow, wanted safe retreat but instead, found herself dragged out to sea by a dangerous stranger's undertow, drowning her in perilous passion. Torsiglieri delivered a fluid, measured performance, striking the delicate balance required, showing reluctant passion checked by a clear-headed sensibility.

Torsiglieri is a Broadway veteran seen in "Miss Saigon" and the national tour of "Les Miserables." She has also appeared in numerous off-Broadway and regional plays. She is an alumnus of Princeton University and the Julliard School. Her television work includes; "Law & Order," "All My Children," and "Another World."

Brian Hutchison plays Burton, Anna's boyfriend. Nat DeWolf plays Anna's roommate. Both actors gave enthusiastic, sustaining performances contributing significantly to the play. Lanford Wilson's script is nervy, edgy, but natural in tone. He is unafraid to work vulgarity into scenes that called for angry confrontations.

Directed by Susan Fenichell, "Burn This," is a play brimming with exhilarating raw emotion, spilling into bawdy dialogues. It is a testament that life is not perfect, and sometimes, we are drawn like a moth to flame, to flirt with disaster.

Lanford Wilson's admonition may well be that in life, conquer passion and you conquer the world.

("Burn This" is at the Huntington Theatre until Dec 12th. For ticket information call 617 266-0800)