True story," the main character Darius Wheeler attests at the start of Naomi Iizuka's play "36 Views."

But it's not easy to gauge what's true and what's false, what's real and what's fake. Then again, perhaps it doesn't matter.

Questions of authenticity abound in "36 Views," as characters examine the validity of everything from artwork and artifacts, to feelings of love and friendship.

The play's title refers to the "36 Views of Mount Fuji," a set of 19th-century woodblock prints by famed Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai. But it also mirrors the duality of the characters, the multifaceted artwork they examine and the ways in which they see themselves and others.

In Quantum Theatre's outdoor production of the play at Washington's Landing, actors and director Karla Boos add their own layer of ambiguity to the mix.

"I venture to guess that all theaters that do Naomi Iizuka's play use projected images to realize some of these great works of art, but we can't from 8 til 9 p.m.," Boos said. "As the play goes further in a discussion about what makes something real, we can only show people things that are real at the top. And as the play goes on, our objects will become less and less real."

However, she insisted, this circumstance does not take away from the production.

"I choose to think that it adds an interesting layer to the discussion that is at the heart of the play," she said.

"36 Views" begins when art dealer Darius falls for Setsuko Hearn, a professor of Asian art he meets at his upscale party. But Setsuko questions his intentions and the validity of his words. Their relationship parallels questions surrounding a mysterious Japanese pillow book that, if deemed to be real, could break boundaries in the study of Asian art.

"It explores the notion of many perspectives and how you bring so much as the observer to what is observed," Boos said. "[Setsuko] just looks at this from 50 million angles riffing on this series of '36 Views.' "

Starring in her first Quantum Theatre production, New York-based actress Rebecca Hirota, who recently acquired a master's degree in fine arts from Columbia University, said playing Setsuko is "complicated."

"The play itself is extremely complicated. It's both about what you see and also what you don't see and the things that are presented and our interpretations," she said. "Finding the truth has been an interesting complicated journey and it has been fraught with a lot of ups and downs."

Through the continuous rehearsals, Boos said, the cast learns new things about the play and the characters every day, which adds more depth to the performance.

"It's better to have a character that's constantly revealing its complexities than one that is flat," Hirota said.

Matthew Gray, who plays Darius, said he has discovered many new traits about his character's personality and that "a lot of it is a compliment on how great of a director Karla is.

"She tells us to make a complete opposite set of choices. ... Trying these different choices back to back to back without discussing them leads you to discover, 'Wow, my character is capable of feeling this way,' " he said. "The play is called '36 Views,' not 'Matt Gray's One View.' "

Gray, an assistant professor of acting at Carnegie Mellon University, describes Darius as "ambitious" but also someone who can admit his flaws.

"He's fallen in love profoundly with the idea of another culture, especially a highly aestheticized culture that has a ritual for everything," Gray said. "If there's a ritual, you can perfect it and [Wheeler's] obsessed with perfecting himself."

Growing up, Gray spent several years in Asia, particularly in Singapore and Hong Kong, and said his travels have helped him relate to his character.

"I'm not convinced there's a whole lot of acting going on, on my part," he said with a laugh.

"36 Views" will be performed at Washington's Landing, marking the first time the venue has been used for a Quantum production.

"Each of Quantum's plays is made environmentally in some place that's not a theater. We've been doing one outside in the summer for some years and we love it," Boos said. "We love for people to see something that is familiar in a different way via this artistic experience."

However, there are challenges to staging an outdoor production.

"Mother nature," said scenic designer Tony Ferrieri, who has worked with Quantum Theatre for about 14 years. "There's rain, wind. It's a matter of really keeping things anchored correctly and keeping it from falling over."

But despite difficulties, being outdoors allows the actors to exercise their creativity, Hirota said.

"It's amazing being in a specifically selected place and working with the elements that we do," she said. "It's interesting integrative work."

"We really love to interact with the neighborhood," Boos said. "The site always means something to people, separate from us and long before we got there."

To show its appreciation for the neighborhood, Quantum Theatre will host a District 1 Community Night production of the play at 8 tonight, giving Washington's Landing and North Side residents a first look at "36 Views" before its opening tomorrow. The play opens tomorrow at 8 p.m. and includes a post-show champagne reception. "36 Views" will run through Aug. 30.

Directions: Near the north end of 31st Street Bridge, go left onto Waterfront Drive; park in lot at end of Waterfront Drive. Stage is a five-minute walk from lot.