The Hood River news., May 06, 2015, Image 13

Wednesday, May 6, 2015
B1
The ‘Southie’ in all of us
‘Good People’
at Columbia
Arts Center
By KIRBY NEUMANN-REA
News staff writer
T
he title of the play is itself full
of irony: “good people,” the
phrase used in South Boston
and elsewhere to loosely de-
scribe firm acquaintances for
whom you know, both the good and not-so-
good.
Through the gossip, half-truths, and self-
fibs of modern life, a group of Boston resi-
dents work with and against each other in
making sense of their lives.
A central question to David Lindsey-
Abaire’s 2012 play is: does character or cir-
cumstance determine our fate?
Bingo serves as plot driver and
metaphor for the attempts these hard-
scrabble people make to find some form of
luck in their lives.
This is a small cast, and a concise show,
with a total of four scenes in two acts. The
first scene after intermission lasts nearly
45 minutes, but it has that hold-your-
breath quality: what will happen next.
See CAST, Page B2
INNOCENT SYMBOL
takes on more meaning
as past frustrations and
current travails come togeth-
er. At left: Mike (Joe Garoutte)
confronts Margie, an old
flame (Kathleen Morrow),
while Mike’s wife Kate
(Desiree Amyx-Mackin-
tosh) maneuvers strange
middle ground.
Photos by Kirby
Neumann-Rea
Stevie (Angel Reyes), from right, Jean (Kim Robichaud), Dottie (Rona Klein) and Margie (Kathleen Morrow) ply
their luck at parish hall bingo, and learn about theirs’ and others’ lives in hard-scrabble South Boston.
TICKETS AND TIMES
Good People, by David Lindsay-Abaire; directed by Judie Hanel
Shows are May 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, and 23 at 7:30 p.m. and May 10 and 17 at 2 p.m.
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Third Time Around
On stage this summer …
“GOOD PEOPLE” is the third
drama in a four-year span fea-
turing actors Joe Garoutte and
Desiree Amyz-Mackintosh as
two people in adversarial posi-
tions. In 2012’s “Doubt,” they
played a priest and nun at odds
in a “John Patrick Shanley’s tale
of faith and perceived deceit. In
2013 they were Macbeth and
Lady Macbeth, and in 2015 they
are Mike and Kate, a married
couple experiencing uncertainty
when events rock their worlds
even more.
2 0 1 5
CAST Theater musical —CAST Theatre and Columbia
Center for the Arts present the summer musical Next To Nor-
mal in July 2015. Next To Normal, with book and lyrics by
Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt, explores how one subur-
ban household copes with crisis and mental illness. Winner of
three 2009 Tony Awards including Best Musical Score and the
2010 Pulitzer Prize, Next To Normal was also chosen as “one
of the year’s ten best shows” by critics around the country, in-
cluding The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Rolling
Stone and The New York Times.
Dad’s an architect; Mom rushes to pack lunches and pour
cereal; their daughter and son are bright, wise-cracking teens,
appearing to be a typical American family. And yet their lives
are anything but normal, because the mother has been bat-
tling bipolar disorder for 16 years. Next To Normal takes au-
diences into the minds and hearts of each character, present-
ing their family’s story with love, sympathy and
Shows are July 10-11, 17-19, and 24-25 at 7:30 p.m.
■
Rebekah Meyer productions — Rebekah Meyer pro-
ductions presents two shows in July and August featuring
youth grades 4-11: “Mulan” and “New Kids.” Costs and
schedules vary, see Hood River Community Education catalog
(hrcommunity.org) for details. Packets with scripts and CDs to
be picked up in late June; rehearsals are at Hood River Mid-
dle School.
■
2 0 1 2
2 0 1 3
CCA – All the Arts! Workshop, grades 4-6, Aug. 10-13,
taught by Sullivan Mackintosh. Participants will explore visu-
al art, dance, theater, and music; register at columbiaarts.org