Hedda Gabler, a play by Ibsen, adapted by Christopher Shinn, directed by Ian Rickson, starring Mary Louise Parker. The Roundabout Theatre Company. When Hedda Gabler was a brand new play, it was daring and controversial. Over the years it became a fossilized classic only resuscitated by the individual brilliance of the Hedda. In this outstanding new adaptation by Christopher Shinn, the play suddenly seems new again, sizzling and contemporary, and the slate-like texture of Ibsen's landscape is heightened. But even so, it still requires a great Hedda, and in Mary Louise Parker, the Roundabout gives us a Hedda that will be talked about for years. Looking absolutely beautiful in the superb traditional period costumes, Parker is sexy and sizzling, she prowls the stage like a lioness and her physicality and grace are riveting. The eroticism she brings to the part is stunning, shocking, dazzling; it is impossible to take one's eye off of her. More than any other Hedda I've seen, even including the great Fiona Shaw, whom I was privileged to see in London, Parker brings out the merciless sociopathic qualities of Hedda. As Tesman, Michael Cerveris is quite good and while the Judge of Peter Stromare is a mustache twirling scene chewing villain, he works well in forming his "triangle" with Parker and Cerveris. Unfortunately, the production falls short in the weak performances of Paul Sparks as the doomed writer Ejlert, and most especially in the utterly unbelievable Anna Reeder as Thea. Reeder, who was very good in "Top Girls," is not credible as a rival to Mary Louise Parker's Hedda. The set is superb, and the lighting designer Natasha Katz deserves to take a bow all her own. Despite the uneven quality of the cast, this is a can't miss because of Parker's special genius. I predict that one day, Parker's Hedda will be spoken of the way Alla Nazimova's was in the first third of the 20th Century. This was a sold out preview performance - it opens in one week and it's sure to be a very hot ticket. Broadway Bridge and Tunnel Test Grade A-