History we all know: 1620. Plymouth
Plantation. The
Mass.
Bay Colony. Brave
ancestors who came to these shores seeking religious freedom and refuge from
English persecution.
Well, not exactly. William Gibson’s searing
indictment of our earliest founding fathers, GOODLY CREATURES (presented by Hub
Theatre at the First and Second Church stage through Oct.6th) sets
the record straight: the “Divine Slaughter” of 700 Pequot men, women and
children while they slept, ex-communication (and worse) of citizens who didn’t
toe the Puritan party line, condemnation of women who “meddle in men’s business”
and accusations of heresy, sedition and witchcraft.
The characters in GOODLY CREATURES are quite
familiar to Mass.
residents. State House statuary celebrates our first governor and the city of Winthrop bears his name.
Although Anne Hutchinson, too, has a statue, her fate at the hands of Governor
Winthrop was anything but “Christian” and no town is named for her.
Gibson slowly and deliberately sets up the
colonial conflict in Act I. You’re so busy trying to tell all the ministers
apart—(What’s that old saw about too many ministers spoiling the cloth?)—that
you hardly have time to absorb all their semantic squabbles: “Good works…good
words…a good spirit” all seem compatible to us but those Puritans were adept at
splitting hairs. In fact, these protestant ministers, whose ancestors went to
great lengths to separate from the Catholic Church, end up having the same
objections about worshippers speaking directly to God without sanctioned
intermediaries.
The good news is that Gibson has written a
rousing Act II. When the dominoes start to fall, collapsing in Anne’s
direction, the play catches fire. Now that you know who’s who, it’s riveting to
watch the disaster unfold AND BECOME OUR SACRED HISTORY! While you are at the
Church (founded by Winthrop et al), look for his statue outside. Inside you’ll
find a display case with the church chronology and portraits of the very
ministers in the play who are so threatened by Anne.
Director John Geoffrion has gathered an
accomplished cast, headed by Nancy Finn as the headstrong Anne Hutchinson and
Phil Thompson as her nemesis, Governor Winthrop. The charismatic Finn gives
Anne warmth and humor as well as a touch of hubris to keep her from seeing
what’s coming. Thompson, as well, makes us understand the conviction beneath Winthrop’s misguided actions, so that his character isn’t
merely a villain (as opposed to the real Winthrop
who plotted Massachusetts’
first mass murder: “A nation of 700 wiped out of history,” his
character/narrator confesses in the play.)
Craig Houk as Anne’s husband provides a
welcome playfulness to the somber proceedings, acknowledging that he “never
wins in an argument” with his wife. Robert Orzalli and Floyd Richardson as
Anne’s immutable foes add plenty of chills. Morgan Bernhard supplies the
nobility as an evenhanded governor and Cristhian Mancinas Garcia, the
excitement of a revolutionary firebrand. But it’s Jack Schultz as Anne’s mentor
who gets to break our hearts (and hers) when he feels he can no longer support
her case.
Hub Theatre is a bright, new company on the Boston scene. One of the
things which make it unique is its pay-what-you-can tickets. Their productions
are lively and spirited and definitely worth a visit. Do see GOODLY CREATURES
for the history you never got in school!
