“Hard Times” Honors Depression Despair & Healing Generosity—at Word for Word
Paul Finocchiaro and Ryan Tasker in "Hard Times." Photos by Robbie Sweeny
Ron Rash’s Brilliantly Staged Stories Reveal Hidden Grace
by Vasudeva Rao & Barry David Horwitz
“Hard Times: Appalachian Stories” reminds us that when the world contracts around us, it takes courage to express basic kindness. Word for Word’s striking adaptation of Ron Rash’s three short stories, set in the Depression era, turns fiction into movement and scarcity into redemption. Rash’s stories of North Carolina hardship become a mirror that reflects us today.
Directors Jim Cave and Amy Kussow conjure inspired performances that reveal emotion through restraint. Word for Word moves us ingeniously from humor to heartbreak. The stories track an emotional journey from humor to tenderness to tragedy.
Each of the three stories unfolds like a quiet parable.
In “The Night the New Jesus Fell to Earth,” Molly Rebekka Benson touchingly plays a down-to-earth wife who exposes the lies of her charming, manipulative con-man ex-husband Larry (humorous John Flanagan). Benson hilariously exposes Larry as a grifter who wants to play Jesus in a mock Crucifixion. The company’s “word-for-word” style delivers the comedy brilliantly.
John Flanagan and Molly Rebekka Benson in "The Night the New Jesus Fell to Earth."
In “Sad Man in the Sky,” Joel Mullenix gives a riveting performance as a recovering Depression stepdad who rents a helicopter to deliver a simple gift to his kids from the sky. As the sad man, carrying his life in a pillowcase, Mullenix’s fleeting expressions reveal both despair and hope, as he searches for deliverance, an extraordinary flight of tenderness.
Word for Word uses a rolling platform for the helicopter, making us believe Mullenix is airborne, while the pilot (Paul Finocchiaro) begins to understand “the sad man.” Narration and description develop a pulse in Rash’s moving story.
In the final, devastating tale called “Hard Times,” a farm family’s missing eggs ignite suspicion and pain in their poor, but proud community. As Edna and Jacob, Delia MacDougall and Ryan Tasker beautifully embody poor people’s aloofness and pride. They watch disdainfully as the totally destitute Hartley family walks the roads. When the farmer (Tasker) deals with the hungry girl (Carla Gallardo), their scene becomes tragic and real. You will hold your breath at their tragic encounter. Writer Rash asks what happens when fear replaces trust—and what’s restored when we dare to share.
The staging becomes a portrait of quiet ingenuity. Out of the simplest materials, the actors create a universe rich with texture and emotion.
Paul Finocchiaro and Joel Mullennix in "Sad Man in the Sky."
Though rooted in the 1930s, these stories reach us with surprising intimacy. Ours is not the Great Depression, but we, too, live amid uncertainty and invisible hungers. Rash’s characters remind us how fear can isolate us, how generosity connects us, and how empathy, though fragile, remains the only bridge across the gulf between us.
This “Hard Times” isn’t just nostalgia; it’s a recognition of how the past keeps echoing forward. We feel its heartbeat inside the present moment. In its quiet way, Word for Word’s production shows that to share—our food, our attention, our care—is still the most enduring form of hope.
If you can catch this show at Z Below, do. It’s a small masterpiece of empathy, ingenuity, and the quiet resilience of the human spirit.
“Hard Times, Appalachian Stories” by Ron Rash, directed by Amy Kossow & Jim Cave, scenic design by Jacqueline Scott, lighting by Jim Cave, sound by Drew Yerys, costumes by Callie Floor, props by Amy Benjamin, by Word for Word & Z Space, San Francisco.
Info: zspace.org – to November 2, 2025.
Cast: Molly Rebekka Benson, Delia MacDougall, John Flanagan, Joel Mullennix, Paul Finocchiaro, Nancy Shelby, Ryan Tasker, and Carla Gallardo.