“Good People”

***** “Good People”! This is the title of a play that was written by David Lindsay-Abaire dealing with the difference between class difference, racial differences, fortune, luck and just life, itself! We have all heard the expression “S–t happens!”, as well as “you are one lucky son of a B–ch”!. Many of us grew up with a lot less than many of our freinds, and others with a great deal more. In this play, we find that our main character, Margaret ( a powerful portrayal by Jodi Kingsley) is a single mother of a daughter who is special needs. While we never meet her, we know that part of the life that has “chosen” the way Margaret lives is due to her. The play opens with Margaret being fired from her position at the Dollar Store by her supervisor Stevie ( Steven Horn).

She is now in need of a job and with very little around, she learns that an old flame is back in town and is now a successful doctor. Perhaps he can help. She sets her mind on meeting with him so he can help her with securing a position. After all, at one time they did date and she sort of “let him go” so that he could go to college and not deal with the lives they had in the Boston projects. Her landlady, Dottie ( deftly handled by Maggie Cain) and bestie, Jean ( played t perfection by Wendy Hayne), think that going to Mike ( Bryan Breau is terrific) may be the answer to her problems, but when the party that she was invited to is cancelled, convince her that she should go and get that job.

When Margaret shows up at the house she is met by Mike’s wife, Kate ( brilliantly played by Sandra Adjoumani), and as the party truly was called off, she feels obligated to learn more about the younger years of her husband’s life. Sharpley directed by Lauren Berman on a masterful set designed by Kevin Rolfs, the second act where we have many confrontations between husband/wife, Margaret/Michael, Margaret/Kate and a great many old memories that are brought to the forefront make for comical moments mixed with moments of truth, and we are exposed to what people might classify as racism, snobbery, luck ( both good and bad) and how that for some life is easier than for others.

The clever set allows us to go from scene to scene with very little time lost allowing the story to run its course quickly so that we never lose sight of where Lindsay-Abaire is taking us. I am never one to give away the sub-plots that change the course of the story and will leave that for you to see on your own. What is a good person? Is it one that is an achiever? One who gets great grades? The one who wins at every game? While they may be good, one might look at these people as lucky, or maybe just luckier. In this story, Mike goes off to college leaving his friends behind. His new life is the opposite of how he grew up. Margaret, on the other hand is kind of living the life that she was raised in, but trying hard to keep her head above water.

As the play progresses and certain truths are revealed, we see a major change take place for both Margaret and for Mike ( and perhaps Kate as well). We also learn about goodness from another source, but again, I will let that be like a hostess cupckae’s surprise inside. Yes, you know that the cream filling is there, but are always surprised when you take that bite and it squirts out. This story will give you that same feeling and at the end, you will feel ( and perhaps taste) the squirt of the” Good People”.

On the tech side, I applaud what Berman has done on a small stage at Theater Wit ( Theater One). The stage has what appears to be trucks or storage vaults and they are designed to open up to sets, again, designed by Kevin Rolfs. They are effective. The lighting (Trey Brazeal) and sound (Petter Whalback) are perfectly executed and the costumes (Anika Splettstoeszer) are perfect. Emma Jean Golden’s props are amazing and quite impressive. I just love the “rabbits”!

“Good People” will continue at Theater Wit thru August 23rd with performances as follows:

Thursdays   7:30 p.m.

Fridays        7:30 p.m.

Saturdays   7:30 p.m.

Sundays      3:00 p,m,

To obtain tickets call the box office at 773-975-8150

visit www.theaterwit.org

This is one you want to see! I promise you willlearn a great deal about life and have a few laughs as well. Let’s face it, we all need to laugh a bit, don’t we?

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “Good People”.                                           photos: Greg Metzler