david lindsay-abaire

“As tough as it is tender, and shot through with aching authenticity, Good People is that rare play that is timeless and keyed into a specific moment of American life, without the need to grasp for topicality…Bringing the same clear-eyed emotional observation that distinguished his Pulitzer Prize-winner Rabbit Hole, Lindsay-Abaire has crafted another penetrating drama about deeply relatable issues.” –David Rooney, Hollywood Reporter

“Searing, superbly written…this is a well-made play, in the best sense of the term.” –Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune

“If Good People isn't a hit for Manhattan Theatre Club, there is no justice in the land. Lindsay-Abaire pays his respects to his old South Boston neighborhood with this tough and tender play about the insurmountable class divide between those who make it out of this blue-collar Irish neighborhood and those who find themselves left behind.” –Marilyn Stasio, Variety

“Substantial, tender yet often howlingly funny…delectably uncomfortable to sit through. I’d call it a smart, painful social comedy with a head and a heart.” –Dominic Maxwell, The Times (UK)

With his signature humor, Lindsay-Abaire explores the struggles, shifting loyalties and unshakeable hopes that come with having next to nothing in America. Set in Boston’s Southie neighborhood, where a night on the town means a few rounds of bingo, where this month’s paycheck covers last month’s bills, we meet Margaret Walsh, who is facing eviction and scrambling to catch a break. When a friend from the old neighborhood, who is now very successful, moves back to town, Margaret hopes he may be the ticket to turning her life around.


David Lindsay-Abaire is the Pulitzer-winning author of Rabbit Hole, which was made into a feature film. He is the author of Good People, Fuddy Meers, Wonder of the World, A Devil Inside and Kimberly Akimbo, as well as the book and lyrics to Shrek the Musical. He has written the screenplays for Rabbit Hole, Rise of the Guardians and Oz: The Great and Powerful. Born in South Boston, he now lives in Brooklyn.

“David Lindsay-Abaire has crafted a drama that’s not just a departure but a revelation—an intensely emotional examination of grief, laced with wit, insightfulness, compassion and searing honesty.” –David Rooney, Variety

“A beautifully observed new play blessed with David Lindsay-Abaire’s customary grace and wit.” –Ben Brantley, New York Times

“With Rabbit Hole, David Lindsay-Abaire has crafted the most serious, simply told work of his career—a painstakingly beautiful, dramatically resourceful, exquisitely human new play.” –Backstage

A story of loss, heartbreak and forgiveness—told through daily moments and emotional hurdles—as a family moves on after the accidental death of their 4-year-old. After a critically acclaimed Broadway premier and successful film adaptation (starring Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart, and Diane West), Rabbit Hole has been hailed as an artistic breakthrough for the highly regarded Lindsay-Abaire. A drama of what comes after tragedy, it captures “the awkwardness and pain of thinking people faced with an unthinkable situation—and eventually, their capacity for survival.” -USA Today

David Lindsay-Abaire is the Pulitzer-winning author of Rabbit Hole, which was made into a feature film. He is the author of Good People, Fuddy Meers, Wonder of the World, A Devil Inside and Kimberly Akimbo, as well as the book and lyrics to Shrek the Musical. He has written the screenplays for Rabbit Hole, Rise of the Guardians and Oz: The Great and Powerful. Born in South Boston, he now lives in Brooklyn.

"A lyrical and understanding chronicler of people who somehow become displaced within their own lives…Mr. Lindsay-Abaire has shown a special affinity for female characters suddenly forced to re-evaluate the roles by which they define themselves."—New York Times

Set in the Bristol Place Assisted Living Facility, this glorious and biting new comedy from David Lindsay-Abaire centers around Abby, who takes pride in her residence in one of the most coveted rooms in the rest home. Things turn sour quickly when she must take in Marilyn, a new roommate to share her precious space. In a satirical conflict of territory and control, Lindsay-Abaire spins a benign, typically mundane setting into an absurdist, colorful battleground. This high-stakes comedy examines our expectations of what it means to grow old in twenty-first century America, and what happens when a sense of possession collides with a mania of obsession.

David Lindsay-Abaire's plays include Good People, Fuddy Meers, Kimberly Akimbo, Wonder of the World, High Fidelity, A Devil Inside, and Rabbit Hole, winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Lindsay-Abaire wrote the book for Shrek the Musical, and the screen adaptation of Rabbit Hole starring Nicole Kidman. Lindsay-Abaire is a proud New Dramatists alum, a graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and the Juilliard School, as well as a member of the WGA and the Dramatists Guild Council.