Pine Plains playwright Robert Lyons will bring his latest portrait of small-town American life to the Grace Note at Stissing Center on Friday, June 12.
In its way, “Helpful Neighbors” is a prequel to Lyons’ earlier play, “Upstate Untitled,” which he mounted at Stissing Center two years ago. But a prequel was not what he had in mind when he wrote the new script. His intention, he said, was simply to write another play centered on nonagenarian Grace Dietrich — “my muse,” Lyons said.
Dietrich stars in both plays, and in both, her character is named Gloria.
“The name seems to embody my alter ego for Grace,” he said with a wink.
In its concise 60-minute running time, “Helpful Neighbors” offers an indelible portrait of small-town America that is both universal and entirely specific. The setting is recognizably Pine Plains, and the cast is small: Dietrich as Gloria, Vaughn Fritts as Clark and Mary Jenkins as Vivian. Jenkins is a contributing writer and board member of the Herald. Jamie Gerber reads stage directions.
The characters could be your neighbors, helpful and otherwise.
Atmospheric overtones of Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town” pervade the play. Gloria mixes casually with celestial and infernal visitors, and both works convey the quiet ache of human existence. But Gloria finds herself in a predicament that is undeniably a product of the present moment, despite the timeless tomato garden, picket fence, and nosy neighbors conjured in the play. Which of her “helpful” neighbors has her best interest at heart, and which is poised to betray her?
Lyons is a playwright and director with decades of theatrical achievement to his name. In his hands, Gloria’s dilemma unfolds with humor and efficiency, even as it contains the weight of the world. And the music that weaves through the play — voice and piano, spiritual and classical — registers as a character in its own right.
“Helpful Neighbors” will be staged at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, June 12 at Stissing Center. Tickets are $10 and available for purchase online.