Raising Big Questions

David Lindsay-Abaire’s “Good People” is about being down and out in Boston and why some people get out of the ghetto, and others do not. In the opening scene, with some of the best writing in the play, Margie Walsh (Frances McDormand) tries hard to avoid being fired for chronic lateness by her supervisor/friend, Stevie (Patrick Carroll). She bobs and weaves around the complaints (she says she has a daughter who is retarded), all to no avail. Stevie says he has orders to fire her or be out of a job himself. Margie, facing eviction by her landlady (Estelle Parsons, not able to show much of her considerable talent in a minor role), decides to contact an old flame, Mike (Tate Donovan), a man she hasn’t seen in many years. Mike is a fertility doctor. The awkwardness of two lovers meeting after such a long time is beautifully written and well played. Hanging over the action is that the retarded daughter “was born prematurely,” so, like the gun that is dropped into the action ready to explode in Act III, you know right away that there is going to be an announcement about the father. Margie and Mike talk about the old days, how Mike almost killed a black kid who wandered into the neighborhood, and probably would have, but for Mike’s father who just happened to look out the window and then ran out to stop the battery. Mike says he has no job to offer but then gets talked into inviting Marge to a party that he and his wife are giving the next night. There will be lots of doctors there and maybe, Marge says, a chance for a job. Marge later is told that the party has been canceled but she thinks this is a lie and shows up at Mike’s house anyway. Marge meets Kate (Renee Elise Goldsberry), Mike’s African-American wife, and indeed the party was canceled due to the illness of the couples’ daughter. There then follows a very long scene, the center of the play, in which Kate learns of the long-ago affair between her husband and Marge. This, along with, of course, that announcement about who is, or is not, the father of Marge’s daughter. The action owes a lot to Edward Albee’s “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” It’s too bad that “Good People” is brought down by some of these plot shenanigans because there are many interesting issues raised in the play, such as why does Mike escape his lower-class roots? Because his father looked out the window? And why is Marge incapable of taking any action to help her daughter? How do the poor get by in these crueltimes? Does Marge’s equivocation about the paternity make her a good person? What does it mean to be a good person? Is Stevie one because he lends Marge money though he fired her? What about Mike? He helps people become parents, but he sleeps around. One very compelling reason to see the play is McDormand’s performance. She is shifty, manipulative, angry, bitchy, funny and more. It’s a treat that will stay with you. The rest of the cast is good; John Lee Beatty’s set and Dan Sullivan’s direction are first-rate. So, it seems this is a play with ambitions that is humbled by some cliches. “Good People” runs at the Samuel J. Friedman Theater in New York City through May 8.For tickets, telephone 212-239-6200.

Latest News

A scenic 32-mile loop through Litchfield County

Whenever I need to get a quick but scenic bicycle ride but don’t have time to organize a group ride that involves driving to a meeting point, I just turn right out of my driveway. That begins a 32-mile loop through some of the prettiest scenery in northern Litchfield County.

I ride south on Undermountain Road (Route 41 South) into Salisbury and turn right on Main Street (Route 44 West). If I’m meeting friends, we gather at the parking area on the west side of Salisbury Town Hall where parking is never a problem.

Keep ReadingShow less
Biking Ancramdale to Copake

This is a lovely ride that loops from Ancramdale north to Copake and back. At just over 23 miles and about 1,300 feet of elevation gain, it’s a perfect route for intermediate recreational riders and takes about two hours to complete. It’s entirely on quiet roads with little traffic, winding through rolling hills, open countryside, picturesque farms and several lakes.

Along the way, you’ll pass a couple of farmstands that are worth a quick visit. There is only one hill that might be described as steep, but it is quite short — probably less than a quarter-mile.

Keep ReadingShow less
Taking on Tanglewood

Aerial view of The Shed at Tanglewood in Lenox, Mass.

Provided

Now is the perfect time to plan ahead for symphonic music this summer at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts. Here are a few highlights from the classical programming.

Saturday, July 5: Shed Opening Night at 8 p.m. Andris Nelsons conducts the Boston Symphony Orchestra as Daniil Trifonov plays piano in an All-Rachmaninoff program. The Piano Concerto No. 3 was completed in 1909 and was written specifically to be debuted in the composer’s American tour, at another time of unrest and upheaval in Russia. Trifonev is well-equipped to take on what is considered among the most technically difficult piano pieces. This program also includes Symphonic Dances, a work encapsulating many ideas and much nostalgia.

Keep ReadingShow less
James H. Fox

SHARON — James H. Fox, resident of Sharon, passed away on May 30, 2025, at Vassar Brothers Hospital.

Born in New York, New York, to Herbert Fox and Margaret Moser, James grew up in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York. He spent his summers in Gaylordsville, Connecticut, where he developed a deep connection to the community.

Keep ReadingShow less