Writing a pan is never easy. It’s not easy when the target is an up-and-coming author, and it’s not easy when it’s an established one. Going after somebody like Edward Albee, as I did today, feels especially daunting. But in good conscience I cannot recommend his latest piece, “Me, Myself & I,” which just opened at Playwrights Horizons. Newcomers to the playwright may be turned off his work forever; longtime fans will feel let down because they know how much better he can be.

Fun fact: Co-lead Elizabeth Ashley hosted “Saturday Night Live” in February 1982 (musical guests: Hall & Oates). I wonder what she was plugging. She started previews for “Agnes of God” — costarring Geraldine Page and Amanda Plummer — on Broadway about a month later, in March ’82. That year she also played Jane Addams and Dorothea Dix in the miniseries “Freedom to Speak,” but I’m not sure when that aired; Ted Kotcheff’s movie “Split Image,” in which she appeared, only came out in October.

IMDB mentions that Joseph Papp also appeared in that “SNL” (not sure if it was the real one or a comedian playing him), leading me to think Ashley’s stint was theater-related. Oh, for the days when a stage appearance could get you on “SNL”!