“Then, from all reports, we seem to be completely surrounded by love.” —Nat Miller in Ah, Wilderness!
Our main concern is Richard’s coming of age, neatly and safely accomplished in about 24 hours. Given a droll spin by Niall Cunningham, Dick is a curly-haired, beanpole-thin know-it-all when we first meet him, spouting opinions on Wilde and Shaw while declaring his epic love for Muriel, daughter of a cranky merchant named McComber—who arrives before long with the soul-baring if pedantic letters Dick’s been writing to Muriel in secret. (For a sense of how badly this kind of thing might go outside Connecticut, see Spring Awakening.) Dick is defiant about the letters but goes into a tailspin when he finds out that Muriel’s broken off their relationship. His dark night of the soul takes him to the Pleasant Beach House, a bar and brothel, where his visit with Amanda Drinkall‘s marvelous Belle is both comic and oddly lovely on its way to a messy sort of knowing.
Through 7/23: Wed 7:30 PM, Thu 2 and 7:30 PM (7:30 PM only 7/20), Fri 8 PM, Sat 2 and 8 PM, Sun 2 PM; also Sun 7/9, 7:30 PM; Tue 7/11, 7:30 PM Goodman Theatre 170 N. Dearborn 312-443-3800goodmantheatre.org $20-$75
