Late playwright Wasserstein's big question resonates today as it did 25 years ago

Wendy Wasserstein's "The Heidi Chronicles" tried to answer 'the' central question of feminism—can women have it all—more than 25 years ago, through Heidi Holland, an idealistic, liberal art history professor whom we meet as a high school student in the 1960's. Like so many women of her time (and since), she wants it "all," including love, a family, and a fulfilling career.

Holland's story (and you have to wonder if it was not, for Wasserstein, more than a bit autobiographical) is as relevant today as it was in 1989. In fact, if it were not for the fashions and the political references, it would be hard to tell in what year it is set. Director Vivienne Benesch handles the passage of time deftly, having Holland (played endearingly by Angela Brazil) change shoes and accessories to mark the years.

Otherwise, Brazil spends the performance in a wrap dress as timeless as the issues the play is trying to confront.

From campaigning for Eugene McCarthy where she meets (and sleeps with) Skip Rosenbaum (Mauro Hantman), the man who will prove to be her weakness throughout the play, to the 1980's where the other man in her life Peter Patrone (Charlie Thurston) confronts being part of a community that's being decimated by AIDS, Holland makes choices about her life and relationships that determine her trajectory. It all makes Holland's character very easy to relate to. If Heidi's not you, she's your best friend.

The idea of choices and the paths we take in life is illustrated by a clever interactive display on the wall leading into the theater. Questions are posed, and guests can write their answers on post-it notes that meander along the wall—it was something to think about during the brief intermission.

Ultimately, Holland has a revelation, albeit a minor one, that makes her question some of the choices she has made in her quest for happiness, and the final scene (nearly destroyed by a guest with a ringing cellphone) shows her going in a new and somewhat unexpected (but not unsatisfying) direction.

Does "The Heidi Chronicles" answer the question of whether women can have it all, whatever that is? No. But for women and men, it's a fun and entertaining diversion along the path of life as we examine the many choices we make along the way.

"The Heidi Chronicles" is at Trinity Rep through January 3. Tickets ($26+) are available at 401/351-4242, online at www.trinityrep.com, or in person at the theater’s box office at 201 Washington St., Providence.

If you go, turn off your phone. Better yet, leave it in the car.