By SHARON EBERSON
It’s cozy by the fireside, with the scent of pine trees seeming to permeate the air, as City Theatre invites us to spend the holiday season with the ever-growing canon of Lauren Gunderson Sisterhoods at Christmastime.
The commissioned adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women unfolds as if it were a graphic novel come to life, with thought bubbles spoken aloud, alongside dialogue, and Anne Mundell’s set design featuring the tangible metaphor of trees carved from the novel’s pages.
The play is as family friendly as the story gets, with the Civil War a spoken-of but unseen danger. It is poverty and deadly disease that are the more pressing threats to the “little women” with big hearts and playful spirits.
A gentle spirit combined with boisterous girl power is perhaps the reason for the novel’s lasting success. It has never been out of print since its publication in 1868, boasting widespread translations, and cinematic and theatrical versions, including a Broadway musical.
Some of that popularity has quickly rubbed off on City Theatre, with an extension of the rolling premiere’s performances announced during opening weekend.
The play’s central character of Jo, and her counterpart “Lou,” is played as an unbridled force of nature by Zanny Laird, a strong outing to follow her leading role in Waitress for Pittsburgh Musical Theater.
Tomboyish Jo is hellbent on succeeding as a writer, taking a stand against the constraints on women who dare to dream of a writing career. In describing an encounter with a publisher, Lou states her grievances, and her “Miss” is more of a “Ms.” to my ears.
Lou/Jo declares the intention to be a spinster writer for all her days, while also holding tight to her sisters. The second of the four Marsh girls would seem to be vexed by feminine pursuits and is most comfortable with a fountain pen, or playing at pirates with her neighbor.
It is easy to see why the lonely, rich boy across the way would fall under her spell. As Laurie, Brenden Peifer goes from coy to charming and playful, as he is caught up in the whirlwind that is Jo.
There are love stories told in Little Women, of course, and loss enough to rain down tears, but the overarching story is one of perseverance and sisterhood, a niche that the playwright Gunderson continues to explore and hone.
With City Theatre having produced two of Gunderson’s Pride and Prejudice sequels the past two holiday seasons, I found comparisons unavoidable among the sets of sisters: Jane Austen‘s five Bennets and Alcott’s quartet of Marshes.
In particular, it is easy to see the parallels between the two youngest — Lydia Bennet Wickham and Amy Marsh — and their growth from bratty youngsters to wiser young women. Nell Murphy (CMU Drama Class of 2026) is a memorable Amy, a nemesis of decorum until she begins to find her way in the world.
CMU alum Annalisa D’Aguilar plays the oldest March sister, Meg; for perspective, Meg and Jo are teenagers when the story begins. D’Aguilar’s Meg is an open book of emotions, funny and fierce, while also radiating big-sister warmth.
As gentle Beth, the apple of Jo’s eye, Alex Manalo is a calming presence when the other Marsh girls are arguing and agreeing and agitating, sometimes all at once, as sisters are wont to do.
Holding down the homefront while Mr. Marsh is serving as a chaplain in the Union Army is Marmee, who, defying all stereotypes of the age, is a supporter of her daughters’ individual a, and is Jo’s biggest fan. Nancy McNulty infuses the matriarch with a regal, endearing quality, amplified when she briefly unloads a bit of humbug as the crotchety Aunt Marsh.
Men who win the hearts of both Meg and Jo are both poor, relatively meek educators, and both portrayed by Juan Rivera Lebron, who has played Mr. Darcy for City Theatre, and who currently chairs the Theater Department at Point Park University.
Kaja Dunn directs the retelling of this oft-told tale with a pumped-up volume of passion and playfulness. To that end, the Fourth Wall breaks on occasion, including an addressing of the Jo-Laurie relationship that had me nodding in recognition.
You don’t need to know the story of Little Women to appreciate this furthering of the adapted works. The enduring charm of the Marsh sisters will be evident well before the spotlight fades on Laird’s radiant face.
TICKETS AND DETAILS
Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women is on the Mainstage at City Theatre, 1300 Bingham St., South Side, through December 13, 2025. Originally due to close on December 7, the four additional performances are 7:30 p.m. December 10-12 and 1 p.m. December 13. For tickets, visit https://citytheatrecompany.org/production/100834/louisa-may-alcotts-little-women.
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