"Of Mice and Men' at People's Light

Throughout the 20th Century, when most serious novelists sought to downplay narrative and concentrate more on what was happening inside their characters' minds, John Steinbeck remained defiantly old-fashioned. His best works deliver the strong storylines and forward momentum of classic 19th Century literature. As one side benefit, his books seem to adapt to stage and screen more successfully than those of most of his contemporaries.

For Of Mice and Men, currently receiving an excellent revival at People's Light, Steinbeck wrote the stage adaptation himself in 1937, the same year the novella was published.

It tells the story of two migrant field workers in northern California during the Great Depression: George, an intelligent but cynical man, and Lennie, a huge man of great strength but severely limited mental capacity. Although George is frequently exasperated by Lennie, he remains intensely protective of him. They dream of settling down one day with their own little farm.

Meanwhile, George lands them a job on a ranch in the Salinas Valley. At first, things appear to be looking up. Candy, a lonely, aged ranch hand, offers to help George and Lennie buy the farm they want if they will let him live with them.

Tragic stew

But their optimism is tempered by several ominous developments. Curley, the ranch owner's son, is extremely aggressive and dislikes larger men, leaving Lennie vulnerable. Curley's wife is flirtatious and provocative, constantly igniting Curley's uncontrollable jealousy. And Lennie is clearly attracted to her. Steinbeck slowly allows the characters to stew in the situation, and the results are ultimately tragic.

There's a long and affecting tradition in literature in which two characters form a deep friendship that shelters them from a hostile or indifferent world. George and Lennie in some ways are part of a line that extends back to Dickens's Nicholas Nickleby and Smike and Twain's Huck and Jim. At the same time, loneliness is a theme that appears constantly throughout Of Mice and Men. Candy, Curley's wife and Brooks, the black stable hand, all speak of their isolation. As dirt-poor as they are, George and Lennie are the fortunate ones in their mutual companionship.

Pryor's deeper side

As George, Pete Pryor— best known in and around Philadelphia as a clever comic actor— reminds us that he's equally adept at conveying deeper emotions. Ian Bedford as Lennie convincingly suggests a little boy trapped in a giant's body; he is at turns touching, funny and intimidating.

Director David Bradley also elicits good work from Chris Faith as Curley; Jessica Bedford as Curley's pretty but reckless wife; Jerry Richardson as Slim, the one ranch hand who seems to be as smart as George; and especially Lou Ferguson, who does a brief but masterful turn as the lonely and bitter Brooks.