In Lisa Loomer's lively playDistracted, now making its New York premiere at the Roundabout's Laura Pels Theatre under Mark Brokaw's direction, Cynthia Nixon plays a conscientious mother (listed only as Mama) beset by a major question: whether her 9-year-old son Jesse (Matthew Gumley) has Attention Deficit Disorder or is merely a "great kid" going through an age-appropriate obnoxious phase. Judging from the running R-rated commentary that the unseen Jesse lobs from the wings, he'd definitely try anyone's patience. No wonder his mother is on a maintenance dose of yoga and the St. Francis prayer. But whether the child should be put on a daily dose of Ritalin is another story.

As she did in Liv[...]