The working class has made a comeback in American culture; extravagance just isnย’t cool anymore. And so there couldnย’t be a better time to revive Clifford Odetsย’s Awake and Sing! First produced in 1935, the seminal work introduces us to a struggling family soldiering through the Great Depression. According to Rebecca Udden, artistic director of Main Street Theater, Odetsย’s story has ย“more and more resonance every day.ย” While weย’re not quite in a 1930s-type depression, that ย“iconic era represents a time of testing of us as a nation and as humans. The people in this play want betterย…They persevere, and [in the end] our spirit is affirmed.ย” 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Through June 7. Main Street Theater, 2540 Times. For information, call 713-524-6706 or visit www.mainstreettheater.com. $10 to $36.

Fridays, Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 3 p.m.; Thursdays, 7:30 p.m. Starts: May 2. Continues through June 7, 2009

This article appears in May 21-27, 2009.