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The play is a somber, self-serious affair.
Which is fine in theory, except that the tone is overwhelmingly static and morose.
Take away that friction and you end up with flint and no steel to strike it.
But like all the other characters inGirl From the North Country, Elizabeth is little more than a sketch.
McPherson seems to have cherry-picked hisdramatis personaefrom across American literature and neglected to fill in the outlines.
Whoisthe girl from the north country?
Or she could just be a song.
Things remain murky in Duluth, and the murk quickly gets dull.
How can you love someone who aint got a soul?
You have a soul, she tells him, but he shakes his head: I dont feel it.
The same goes for the play.
Girl From the North Countryis at the Public Theater through December 23.
