Bad Jews: Comedy. By Joshua Harmon. Directed by Ryan Guzzo Purcell. Magic Theatre, Building D, Fort Mason Center. S.F. (415) 441-8822 or www.magictheatre.org.

September 19- October 5, 2014.

BAD JEWS a taut, thoughtful comedy at the Magic [rating:3]

In this their 48^th season Magic Theatre continues its tradition of presenting provocative intellectually stimulating plays that often send the audience away with ambivalent feelings. The previous such play was pen/man/ship by budding playwright Christina Anderson and directed by Ryan Guzzo Purcell.  This time Purcell returns to direct Joshua Harmon’s 2012 comedy Bad Jews that played to rave reviews in New York City and is now making the rounds at a number of theatres across America. In pen/man/ship conflict was centered on Blacks with different ideologies. In Bad Jews it is amongst two Jews with polemic opinions about being Jewish.

The combatants are Daphna Feygenbaum (Rebecca Benhayon) and her first cousin Liam Harber (Max Rosenak).  Liam has a younger brother Jonah (Kenny Toll) who is reluctantly drawn into the conflict.  They are all grandchildren of a holocaust survivor who carried a gold amulet called a chai (a religious symbol meaning “life”) throughout his internment. Daphna knows that a chai is typically worn by men but hyper-religious Daphna feels that she is the only one in the family who deserves it because of her unquestioning belief in Jewish Faith.

Daphna is a bright senior at Vassar planning after graduation to immigrate to Israel to do rabbinical studies and marry an Israeli she met on Facebook. Liam, the oldest grandchild is a Chicago postgraduate student working on his PhD in Asian studies. He is the epitome of a “bad Jew” having missed his grandfather’s funeral, does not partake of religious ceremonies and is content to be assimilated into the secular world. Their initial quarrel is the ownership of the chai.

They meet in a cramped studio apartment in New York City after the burial of the patriarch.  Motor-mouth Daphna is furious that Liam has brought along his gentile girlfriend Melody (Riley Krull) who becomes the target of Daphna’s vitriol.  With Melody and Jonah looking and listening, the vicious verbal ranting between Liam and Daphna raise serious questions about what it means to be Jewish in our modern world.

Author Harmon imbues his antagonists with cogent arguments to buttress their beliefs giving each a viable position in their nasty give-and-take face-offs.  It is not necessary to be Jewish to appreciate this play since there is a touch of universality in the arguments of the adversaries. Many religious families face similar situations as each succeeding generation draws away from dogmatic religion.  Harmon is hardly impartial since the Daphna he has created is totally unlikeable and exudes cruelty when she humiliates Melody.  Liam bares a streak of that same cruelty when he exposes Daphna’s true nature leaving her bereft in the final scene.

Before that devastating final scene plays out the actors give tour-de-force performances with Rebecca Benhayon’s non-stop-talking Daphna dominating the play from the opening scene with the docile Jonah. Kenny Toll has the most difficult role in the almost no-speaking part as Jonah. Toll gave a Tony Award type performance in Dracula Inquest when he was in a strait jacket the entire play. His simple declaration of not wanting to be the final arbiter in the decision about who deserves the chai rings true. Max Rosenak does not quite match the power of Benhayon but does have some of the audience routing for him especially when he drops Liam’s shouting posture to express his love for Melody. Beautiful Riley Krull is perfect as Melody.

Ryan Guzzo Purcell moves his characters around Eric Flatmo’s cramped, claustrophobic set as if they are boxers in a ring throwing their verbal punches with direct and glancing blows. The quiet final scene with Daphna and Jonah contrasts beautifully, but sadly, with loud bombast that dominates the evening. Running time a fast 90 minutes.

CAST: Daphna Feygenbaum – Rebecca Benhayon; Liam Haber – Max Rosenak; Jonah Haber – Kenny Toll; Melody – Riley Krull.

CREATIVE TEAM: Scenic Design by Erik Flatmo; Costume Design by Antonia Gunnarson; Lighting Design by Ray Oppenheimer; Sound Design by Sara Huddleston.

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of www.theatreworldinternetmagazine.com.

OLD HATS: A Modern Vaudeville Event. Created, performed and featuring Bill Irwin and David Shiner with Shaina Taub. Directed by Tina Landau. American Conservatory Theater (ACT), 415 Geary St., San Francisco, CA. (415) 749-2228 or www.act-sf.org. September 17- October 12, 2014.

OLD HATS flies high at A.C.T.  [rating:5]

There are times when a theatre production has every quality one could desire in a live performance. In 1998 Bill Irwin and David Shiner, two baggy pants vaudevillian comedians gave such a performance with their hysterical, eye-popping Fool Moon. That staging was so well received that they were brought back in 2001 for a reprieve that was equally successful. Now they are back to open A.C.T.’s 2014-2015 season with a standing ovation quality show Old Hats that received rave reviews when it was produced in 2013 at the Signature Theatre in New York.

The raves are still attached to the show that opened last evening and it is even better than remembered. They have brought aboard Tina Landau as director, added spectacular visual and auditory graphics plus a charismatic four piece band lead by the incomparable singer Shaina Taub who wrote the music and lyrics and gets to perform a production number with Irwin and Shiner before the evening ends.

After the band arrives late and is chastised (non-verbally, of course) for their entrance, the fun begins with the duo being chased from the back of the stage by a graphic of a huge ball stolen from the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark.( Digital video projections by Wendall K. Harrington)

Now that the ball has rolled it is time to get on with the show. What better way than a debate between two candidates running for office. Each has a podium with hidden tricks that show up with infrequent regularity. Yes, infrequent regularity is correct because you never know when they will appear. The debate progresses with slapstick galore and the proverbial clown large mallet to bang a head or two. The visual indicators on the back screen go wild as each candidate earns an edge with the voters.

There are eight scenes and a finale in the two hour running time including the intermission and as our intrepid pair change costumes between scenes Shaina Taub sings and the band moves back and forth from their station on stage right to the front of the stage apron in close proximity to the audience.

Members of the audience are dragged into the act in two of the skits and perform admirably adding to the fun. First up is a young lady chosen by Shiner, playing the reluctant slightly reliable female assistant, to take part in Irwin’s Magic Show. He is very adept at slight hand maneuvers and adroitly severs the lady, now in a box, into two halves. Never fear, after a few false starts, receiving approbation and physical abuse by Shiner he puts her back together.

The modern technical digital age puts Irwin into a dither when he finds himself inside his Ipad and does battle with his alter ego. The digital effects are absolutely superb and you might think twice before using an Ipad. You too may be dragged into digital cloud.

Shiner gets his solo turn upon the stage as a lonesome hobo searching through a trash can looking for a relationship. Hilarity abounds as each object he extracts from the can could come for your trash. When he creates a woman (well sort of a woman) from the detritus and waltzes off stage spontaneous applause erupts.

To this reviewer, the most intricate, most hysterical part of the evening was Shiner as the silent film director shooting a western. It is a variation on a similar scene from Fool Moon but four times more fun made so by the four cooperative (sort of) members of the audience. Another rehash from their previous show that seems as fresh as remembered has Irwin dealing with a pot of spaghetti that has a mind of its own

Not to be forgotten is “The Encounter” with Irwin and Shiner adding baggy suit coats to the ubiquitous baggy pants standing on hidden stilts carrying umbrellas and newspapers waiting for a train. Before the train arrives they go up and down in stature as they share pills for their various ailments.

(From L to R) Bill Irwin, singer/songwriter Shaina Taub, and David Shiner in the finale.

A new twist has been added with our intrepid duo competing for the love of femme fatale Shaina in the final scene when they actually sing. Never fear a woman will never come between them and they return to their silent ways as the audience erupts to the standing ovation mentioned in the opening paragraph.

Created, performed and featuring Bill Irwin and David Shiner with Shaina Taub.

Creative Team: Directed by Tina Landau; Music and Lyrics by Shaina Taub; Set and Costume Design by G. W. Mercier; Lighting Design by Scott Zielinski; Sound Design by John Gromada; Projection Design by Erik Pearson and Wendall K. Harrington; Video Production by Erik Pearson; Musicians Mike Brun,  Jacob Cohn Cohen, Mike Dobson and Justin Smith

Kedar K. Adour, MD

Courtesy of www.theatreworldintenetmagazine.com

Photo by Kevin Berne.

Alien abduction by the Tralfamadorians

Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children’s Crusade: Adapted by Eric Simonson. Directed by Brian Katz. Custom Made Theatre Company, Gough Street Playouse,1620 Gough St. (at Bush), San Francisco, CA 94109. Gough Street Playhouse is attached to the historic Trinity Episcopal Church 510-207-5774; www.custommade.org. September 16 –October 12, 2014

Slaughter House -Five a hit at Custom Made.   [rating:4]

Kurt Vonnegut’s fame as a writer and social commentator on the futility and horror of war is well deserved. That fame was burnished when it was published in 1969 when the youth of the United States were rebelling against the futility of the Vietnam War that began in 1954 and became the burden of the U.S.A. in 1964. His writing captured the frustration of the populous and is labeled metafictional, where fact is intertwined with fiction forcing the reader to intellectually recognize the dichotomy and appreciate both.

Slaughterhouse-Five is a satirical novel following a soldier named Billy Pilgrim through actual World War II experiences intermingled with his travel to the mythical world of Tralfamador where death (“And so it goes.”) is an extension life. Vonnegut also takes us into forays of the minds depicting the hallucinations of his characters.  If you have read the book you will marvel at Custom Made’s adventurous staging and almost fully understand the multiple scenes that are simplistically, adroitly and powerfully staged by Brian Katz, one of the Bay Area’s best directors.  For those who are unfamiliar with the novel be advised to stay alert and the multiple non-linear scenes will coalesce.

Vonnegut’s experiences in World War II were the impetus for the novel with special reference to being a prisoner of war is Dresden when the city was fire-bombed by the Allies.  The only reason he lived through that nightmare was that he and other prisoners were housed in a concrete building labeled Schlachthof Fünf (Slaughterhouse #5).  He did not see the fire-bombing: “The attack didn’t sound like a hell of a lot. . .Whump. . . When we came up the city was gone.” The before and after of that incident is a significant thread throughout the novel.

The journey of the novel to a stage play begins with an adaption by Vince Foxall produced in London. Eric Simonson adapted and directed a new version for Chicago’s famed Steppenwolf group using many technical gimmicks. Simonson’s final adaptation appeared Off Broadway in 2008 and it is this version used by Custom Made. Following the storyline of the book the play maintains its non-linear structure and Katz has elected to abandon physical props relying on fast paced scenes and computer generated projections to buttress the dialog.  

Most, if not all, of the characters are there beginning with a narrator called

Dave Sikula as Man

Man (Dave Sikula) who is a stand-in for the author. Sikula is perfect for the role. Recognizing individual actors would require an extended review. It is a true ensemble production with each actor adding a quality performance to the whole doing justice to Vonnegut’s most popular work. Running time is one hour and 50 minutes without intermission.  Recommendation: Intriguing. A should see and will stimulate you to read the novel.

Cast: Ryan Hayes- Billy Pilgrim; Brian Martin- Young Billy Pilgrim; Dave Sikula – Man; Alun Anderman /Myles Cence – Billy Boy (alternating performances); Stephanie Ann Foster -Valencia/Derby/Ensemble; Sal Mattos -Weary/Rosewater/Ensemble; Chris Morrell – Chetwynde/Campbell/Ensemble; Jessica Jade Rudholm – Barbara/Tralafamadorian/Ensemble; Carina Lastimos Salazar – Montana Wildhack/Dotty/Ensemble; Paul Stout* -Kilgore Trout/Reggie/Ensemble; Sam Tillis – Lazzaro/Rumfoord/Ensemble

Production Crew: Brian Katz, Director; Cat Howser, Stage Manager; Christine Keating, Asst. Director; Sarah Phykitt, Scenic Designer; Maxx Kurzunski, Lighting Design
Karina Chavarin;  Costume Design Rebecca Longworth, Video Design Liz Ryder;  Sound Design; Daunielle Rasmussen;  Movement Stewart Lyle, Technical Director; Perry Aliado; Dramaturge.

Kedar K. Adour, MD