Act I

Mary Jane (MJ) Healy, is a mother writing the yearly family Christmas letter. She writes about her husband Steve's job promotion, her daughter Frankie's art, and her son Nick's early admission to Harvard University. MJ writes that she got into a car crash, but is healing with the help of natural remedies. What she doesn't write is that Steve is addicted to pornography, Frankie is making out with her best friend, Jo, as this letter is being written, and MJ is addicted to the painkillers from the car accident ("Right Through You"). MJ pressures Nick to be perfect to keep up the family's image ("All I Really Want"). At school, Frankie and Jo discuss how their mothers don't understand or accept them: Frankie's because of her disapproval of her self expression and Jo's mom not accepting her being gay or her gender expression ("Hand in My Pocket").

MJ tries to get drugs from the pharmacy, but she is out of refills. MJ moves through her day backwards, starting with getting her painkillers in the alley, doing her daily activities, and ending with her running out of the pills at the beginning of the day ("Smiling"). On the last day of Frankie's English class before winter break, she reads a short story she wrote aloud in a writer's workshop for her class to critique. The students in the class criticize her since things she claims to be ironic in her piece are not actually ironic, just bad things that happened to someone. A new student, Phoenix, defends Frankie and encourages her to finish ("Ironic"). A romantic attraction begins between the two. After class, Phoenix and Frankie decide to go to a party that night. At home, MJ and Steve get into an argument. Steve says he wants to see a marriage counselor, yet MJ refuses ("So Unsexy"). Nick comforts MJ after the fight. MJ claims that Nick is the only thing that she has ever done right. Nick reflects on the pressures of him from his mother to be perfect ("Perfect").

Frankie and Nick go to the party ("Lancer's Party (So Pure)"). Frankie and Phoenix find each other and leave the crowded party to talk alone, and they discuss their imperfect family lives. Meanwhile, Jo doesn't attend the party because her mom forced her to go to a church function. Jo's mom scolds her for not dressing femininely enough ("That I Would Be Good"). The next morning, Jo shows Frankie pictures that are circulating throughout the school of Bella, Nick's friend, who was drunk, passed out, and had her shirt pulled up at the party. Students are making fun of Bella and calling her a slut. Frankie and Jo go to Bella's house, despite barely knowing her, to check on her. Bella reveals that Andrew, Nick's best friend, was the one who took the pictures and raped her. Frankie goes home and wakes Nick up to reprimand him about not going to the police because he was the only one who saw how drunk Bella was. Nick brushes off Bella's claim, saying that Bella was being dramatic per usual. MJ overhears the conversation and insists that Nick should not come forward as it might ruin his reputation. MJ blames Bella for what happened since she chose to drink, but she is visibly upset by the story ("Wake Up"). MJ walks to the church for the first time in a while to pray about her failing marriage, struggling relationship with Frankie, and for help with her addiction. She then reflects on her own memory of being raped in college, but blames herself and feels it was God's plan for her ("Forgiven").

Act II

Steve and MJ go to their first marriage counseling session, despite MJ's reluctance ("Not the Doctor"). Meanwhile, Frankie and Phoenix hang out at a playground and end up sleeping together ("Head over Feet"). Jo enters the Healy's house uninvited ("Your House") and walks in on Frankie and Phoenix. Jo gets mad and storms out of Frankie's room. MJ and Steve come home early and Jo tells them that Frankie and Phoenix had sex. Phoenix leaves quickly, leaving Frankie alone with her parents. MJ and Steve reprimand her for having sex so young. Frankie comes out to her parents as bisexual, and she gets mad at her parents for disapproving of her consensual sex but not caring about Bella's rape. Frankie runs away to New York City. Steve and MJ fight about Steve not being present during Frankie's childhood. Frankie takes a train alone to New York ("Unprodigal Daughter"). When she gets lost in the city, Frankie calls Phoenix. She tells him that she loves him and that he should come pick her up. When Phoenix doesn't say 'I love you' back and that he needs to stay at home to help his sister with a medical condition, Frankie gets angry and feels that Phoenix used her for her body.

Students are gossiping about Bella and her accusations against Andrew. Bella comes to the Healy's house to talk to Nick, but the only person home is MJ. MJ tries to comfort Bella by telling her she was also raped in college. Bella asks MJ when she started to feel better after her rape, but MJ doesn't answer. Bella leaves realizing that it may never get better. Nick comes clean to MJ, telling her that he walked in on Andrew raping an unconscious Bella, but he did nothing and left ("Predator"). Nick says he wants to go to the police, but MJ says that it would ruin his life and not help Bella's. Nick accuses her of only caring about herself and her reputation, and not about Bella. MJ hits him. Jo comes to New York to pick up Frankie after she calls her out of desperation, lost and out of money. Frankie shows little remorse for sleeping with Phoenix since she didn't think her relationship with Jo was exclusive. She tells Jo that she is in love with Phoenix. Jo ends the relationship ("You Oughta Know"). At home, MJ overdoses on pills. Steve and Nick find her unconscious ("Uninvited"). When Steve gets to the hospital, he is devastated that he didn't know MJ had an addiction and promises her he will be there for her and the family from now on ("Mary Jane"). When Nick gets to the hospital, MJ tells him that he should go to the police, but Nick already told the police about what happened to Bella. Meanwhile, many students attend the rally that Frankie organized to get justice for Bella. Bella is mad at Nick since people only believed her once Nick came forward, and her statement wasn't enough ("No").

A year has passed, and MJ is writing the Christmas letter again. She writes about the progress being made in their relationships and lives. MJ tells Frankie that she wanted her to feel like every other kid and not be treated differently because of her race, but Frankie tells her that she wouldn't have wanted to fit in with the people in their town ("Thank U"). Frankie dares MJ to email the Christmas letter to everyone, despite it frankness about her overdose and her dislike of the culture in their town. MJ sends it, deciding that this will be her last Christmas letter. Jo and Frankie rekindle their friendship, and Jo has a new girlfriend. Frankie and Phoenix are now just friends. Frankie and MJ, Bella and Nick, and Bella and MJ all now appear to have mended their relationships ("You Learn").