Theater Review: Good People

A Better-Than-Good Performance and Play
By Lauren Yarger
Frances McDormand gives a fabulous performance as a down-on-her-luck South Boston woman trying to find a job in David Lindsay-Abaire’s new play Good People in its Broadway world premiere presented by Manhattan Theatre Club.

Margaret (McDormand) is fired from her cashier job after showing up late again because Dottie (Estelle Parsons), her landlord who babysits for her mentally-challenged daughter, didn’t show up. She pleads with her boss, Stevie (Patrick Carroll) to keep her on, even at reduced wages, but Stevie, the son of her best friend growing up in the depressed, working class “Southie” neighborhood of Boston, has his own career to think about and refuses.

At their regular bingo session, Dottie says she might have to give Margaret’s apartment to her son if she can’t come up with the rent. Bingo mate Jean (Becky Ann Baker) says that she just ran into old school chum Mike (Tate Donovan), a doctor, who has done well for himself -- he’s lace curtain, as the Southies disdainfully refer to the wealthy-- and suggests Margaret contact her old boyfriend about a job.

She barges into his office, but Mike isn’t hiring and isn’t all too happy to be reminded of his less sophisticated roots. In the course of conversation, he mentions that his wife is throwing him a birthday party and after a verbal game of chicken, Margaret wins an invite. After all, some of the folks attending might be hiring, Mike suggests. When he calls to cancel, she assumes that he just doesn’t want her there and decides to call his bluff and show up any way.

When she arrives on the doorstep of their elegant suburban home (John Lee Beatty designs the sets, which are changed with lightning speed), Mike’s African-American wife, Kate (Renée Elise Goldsberry) thinks the caterer has come to clear tables for the party which really was canceled when their daughter became ill. Mike isn’t too happy to see her, especially since he‘s never told his wife, with whom he has been in marriage counseling, about his past relationship with Margaret. Kate’s excited, however, by the possibility of hearing stories about her husband and his old neighborhood, about which he’s been very silent, and she invites Margaret to stay for an impromptu wine-and-cheese party.

The polite conversation soon turns nasty with hints of blackmail and questions about the paternity of Margaret’s daughter. What becomes the most intriguing question is: just who are the “good people” here? It might not be whom you think.

Daniel Sullivan directs with excellent timing, especially with interrupted dialogue which makes it sound like real conversation rather than lines being said. He guides excellent performances across the board. McDormand is perfect, right down to the Southie accent. Look for a Tony Award nomination, with a probable statue for her. Parsons, in a minor roll, creates a character both comical (selling silly looking bunny crafts) and frightening in her apparent lack of concern about Margaret and her daughter. Baker, as the supportive friend who spars with Dottie, lends just the right balance. Donovan and Carroll also deliver strong performances and Goldsberry is a master of intonation, giving a number of lines multiple dimensions and humor. Top-notch performances are made easier, of course, when the script is good, and with Good People, Pulitzer-Prize-winner Lindsay-Abaire proves once again that he is the master of play structure.

Catch it at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, 261 West 47th St., NYC. extended through May 29.
Discounted tickets are available at http://www.givenik.com/show_info.php/Masterworks/295/individual.

Christians might also like to know:
Language
Lord’s Name taken in vain