Thought-Provoking, Timely

Toward the end of “Inherit the Wind,” the classic fictionalized account of the famous 1925 Scopes “Monkey” Trial, lawyer Henry Drummond (based on Clarence Darrow) and newspaperman E.K. Hornbeck (based on H.L. Mencken) have an argument about Matthew Harrison Brady (aka William Jennings Bryan), the bombastic prosecutor who has just died offstage.

“There was much greatness in this man,” Drummond says in praise of his erstwhile courtroom foe.

“I charge you with contempt of conscience ... sentimentality in the first degree!” Hornbeck shoots back. “Be-Kind-To-Bigots Week … God, how the world is rotten with kindness!”

In a play ripe with parallels to current events — when, and I say this without partisanship, the president-elect and many of his friends and supporters question established science — this dialogue seems the most provocative. It challenges all of us to think about how we act toward those with whom we have deep philosophical differences.

The Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck makes a compelling case for the relevance of this McCarthy-era play written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee — or rather, the second and third acts. It must be said that the first act is such a hoary set of small-town clichés and clumsy establishment of plot, ambiance and characters, it almost scuttles the whole work.

Lawrence and Lee littered their script with weak subplots, most notably the love between the defendant and a preacher’s daughter, which do nothing to advance the story. 

Things get interesting when the action shifts to the courtroom and the famous trial of a schoolteacher (based on John Scopes and played by Austin Carrothers) who dares to teach his students evolution. That has a lot to do with the acting of Monte Stone, playing Brady, and Farrell Reynolds, as Drummond.

Stone brings just the right mixture of showmanship and bluster to the role, and even suggests his declining health effectively. Farrell portrays Drummond with more reserve and contained passion, as an idealist who is ultimately interested in larger issues. In the show’s final vignette, Drummond stuffs a copy of the Bible and one of Charles Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species” into his briefcase, hinting at the idea that religion and science can reach an accommodation.

“Inherit the Wind” asks a lot of its performers, especially its leads. It runs nearly two hours and is freighted with far too many words. Hornbeck functions as a kind of Greek chorus commenting on the proceedings; he also represents the Fourth Estate as the most godless of all the earth’s heathens. There are many overwrought monologues in this situation.

On the positive side, David Laks plays one heck of a harmonica.

Overall, the production is strong, even though some parts felt under-rehearsed. Kudos to Rhinebeck for bringing back a difficult, challenging play at a time when, coincidentally or not, its message gives us a lot to think about.

“Inherit the Wind” runs through Nov. 20 at the Center for the Performing Arts at Rhinebeck. For tickets and information, call the box office at 845-876-3080 or go to www.centerforperformingarts.org.