Sukkot

C+

Patrick Sullivan (Andy Robinson) is a retired Irish Catholic English professor prone to bursting into a line from Shakespeare at opportune moments. When the play opens, he is on the phone pouring out his heart to the rabbi who will be officiating at the unveiling of his Jewish wife Sharon’s headstone. The rabbi casually mentions that the ceremony will take place during Sukkot, the harvest-time holiday commemorating the Jews’ 40-year desert journey, during which they lived in temporary huts called sukkot. Observant Jews today build a sukkah outside their home in which they are supposed to eat and sleep during the seven days of the holiday. The rabbi also mentions that it is the only holiday during which God commands Jews to rejoice. Patrick is inspired to build his own sukkah outside his California home, complete with Christmas lights, as a way to break out of his debilitating grief and, perhaps, unify his fractious family. That’s the rather shaky setup for Matthew Leavitt’s dramedy, now at 59e59 Theaters. We meet the eldest child Asher (Jonathan Slavin) who must be near 50. After losing his teaching job and his partner, Asher moved back to the family home to be his mother’s primary caregiver during her excruciating final year. Since her death, he has been immobilized by grief, sleeping all day when he is not playing video games. Middle child Mairead (Liza Seneca) is a successful St. Louis gynecologist with an unsupportive husband who put career ahead of childbearing and now must be around 40 with two small children. She is the responsible one who tries to plan ahead. The youngest child Eden (Natalie Lander), nearing 40, is a free spirit residing in Portland who lives for the moment and who had a contentious relationship with her mother. Put them together in one room – or sukkah – and be prepared for the nonstop grievance fest that ensues. Along the way, two characters reveal secrets, one from the past, the other from the present. My problem is that, although they were characters I felt some compassion for, they were basically unpleasant people that I did not want to spend time with. The early scenes between father and son were repetitious. The dialog alternated between realistic conversation and speechifying. Flashes of humor punctuate the play. Reviews of the Los Angeles production were overwhelmingly positive, so I don’t know why it didn’t work for me. Mark Mendelson’s set design features a sukkah as large as many a Manhattan apartment; it even has an oriental rug. The costumes by Caitlin Cisek and Oriana Sophia are apt. Joel Zwick’s skillful direction deserved better material to work with. I found myself looking at my watch frequently and left disappointed. Running time: one hour 45 minutes; no intermission.

Heated Rivalry: The Unauthorized Musical Parody

A- 

If you didn’t see this Canadian series about the romance between two closeted gay hockey players when it became a sleeper hit on Netflix, you can stop reading here. There’s little point in seeing or even reading about a parody if you’re not familiar with the material it parodies. If you’re still here and were a fan of the show, read on. Triple threat Dylan MarcAurele has written the clever book, tuneful music and smart lyrics for this very entertaining show now gracing the postage-stamp-size stage of The Culture Club. The original series and the parody are based on a series of popular novels by Canadian author Rachel Reid. Audience research revealed, to the surprise of many, that a large portion of the books’ readers and the show’s viewers were straight women. Go figure. MarcAurele has cleverly used this fact to frame the story with narration by three middle-aged housewives, all named Susan. Shane Hollander, the Canadian hockey star, is at the heart of the story. Not yet out, he falls hard for the bisexual Russian player Ilya Rozanov, who claims to be in the relationship strictly for the sex. With broad strokes, the show reprises the ups and downs of their relationship over several years. To make room for interpolations by the three Susans that occasionally mention current pop culture memes and present-day events, MarcAurele has intelligently trimmed the script. The songs work well to advance the plot and are often melodious. The lyrics, many of which include obscenities, deserve to be heard. Unfortunately, the sound design has amped up the music to a level that occasionally makes that difficult. The two leads, Jimin Moon as Shane and Jay Armstrong Johnson as Ilya, are both very good. Ryann Redmond is a hoot as the main Susan. Cherry Torres amuses as Shane’s verbally abusive mother and Ryan Duncan is strong as Ilya’s disapproving father. Except for the two leads, all the actors play multiple roles. In a nice touch, each night a member of the audience is chosen to play the small but key role of NY hockey player Scott Hunter. The night I attended Scott was played by a very tall, athletic man who, with script in hand, did a pretty good job of acting. The scenic design by Sully Ross is appropriately tacky, as are the costumes by Brendan McCann. The choreography by Brooke and Tiffany Engen makes the most of a tiny space. Director Alan Kliffer keeps the show moving briskly. The audience, about 50/50 men and women, was wildly enthusiastic. All in all, it was a diverting 75 minutes for those who loved the series. Note: Avoid seats in rows B, C or E; they are not elevated above the row ahead.

The Saviors

 A

I was considerably less impressed than the critics with Bubba Weller’s first play, Well I’ll Let You Go, so I approached his sophomore effort, now at Atlantic Theater Company, with some trepidation. I needn’t have worried – it turned out to be one of the best plays I have seen this season. It’s primarily about two altar boys, Michael (Ivan Howe) and Paul (Julius Kinzel), who are best friends. Michael believes in going by the book and his vision of life is circumscribed by unquestioned expectations of parochial high school, the local Catholic college and a contented life in the parish. Paul is more flexible and compassionate and has broader visions for his future. Judy (Crystal Finn) is the parish’s organist and most prominent member, whose son is doing good at an African orphanage. Julian (Stanley Simons) is a homeless man who turns up at the church one cold winter evening while Michael and Paul are still there. I don’t want to say much more about the plot so you can experience its powerful moments on your own. I have not been in an audience that was so totally rapt in quite a while. The two 14-year-olds are both excellent, as are the other two actors. With one exception, the play is structured as a series of scenes for two in all the possible combinations. David Zinn’s set looks just like the altar of a neighborhood church. Avery Reed’s costumes are apt. Jack Serio, who also directed Weller’s first play, shows a real feel for his sensibility. It was good to see Weller deliver on the promise he hinted at in his first play. As for the title, I leave it for you to decide who’s saving whom. Running time: 95 minutes, no intermission. NOTE: It's on TDF for several performances this coming week.

Theater Bulletin: Birthright extension

 I am happy to report that MCC has extended their sold-out production of Birthright, which the Times made a Critic's Pick and I reviewed favorably, until August 23rd. Go to the MCC website to buy tickets.

From the archives: my very first review August 28, 2010 -- Me, Myself & I * (1* out of 5)

"Much Ado about Nothing" would have been a more appropriate title for Edward Albee's play at Playwrights Horizons. I suspect Albee had more fun writing it than you will watching it. Tons of style, milligrams of content. Lots of shouting and posturing. Elizabeth Ashley and Brian Murray are fun though. Zachary Booth has a nice backside. Don't leave at intermission or you'll miss an amusing stage effect near the end.

Is this a a trend in theater bathrooms?

When Geffen Hall introduced a unisex. all-stall bathroom off the lobby, it was initially a surprise, but I quickly got used to it. However, yesterday at MCC Theater, I encountered something I had never seen before: women in the men's room. Apparently some women have interpreted the sign outside the restrooms that says you can use whichever one makes you comfortable as an invitation to avoid the longer lines to the women's room. I must admit it made me uncomfortable having a woman standing a couple of feet away while I was accomplishing my mission. Has anyone else encountered this at another theater? 

Birthright

 A-

This new MCC Theater production penned by Jonathan Spector, author of Eureka Day, is named for the program that offers free 10-day trips to Israel to young Jewish adults to strengthen their Jewish identity and connection to Israel. In it we meet six participants of a trip 20 years ago at their reunions three weeks later, 10 years later in October 2016 and, finally, in 2024. Chaya (Zoe Winters) and Izzy (Molly Bernard) have been friends since preschool, but the others – Alona (Molly Ranson), Noah (Eli Gelb), Emerson (Nate Mann) and Lev (Hale Appelman) – have not met before the trip. They have bonded into a mishpacha (family) who decide to try to retain that bond over the years. Their first reunion, at Chaya’s home in the Virginia suburbs, is partially an intervention to prevent Alona from abandoning her doctoral studies and making Aliyah (moving to Israel) to join the IDF soldier who deflowered her on the trip. Lev, who mysteriously disappeared halfway through the trip, arrives late and explains that he left the trip to have his own unmediated experience. Noah is a blogging pioneer with unreciprocated feelings for Chaya. She plans to join the Obama campaign. Emerson, who has been kicked out of his rock band, decides to become an EMT. Izzy wants to found a Jewish social justice program that addresses problems in the U.S. Lev shocks the group by announcing that he wants to go to rabbinical school. Chaya's mother Deborah (Liz Larsen) puts in an appearance to share her wisdom.

The second act takes place around the hot tub at Chaya’s house. This time they have gathered for a wedding. (There is a brief nude scene between Emerson and Chaya that led the producers to make the audience put their phones in Yondr bags. Since the scene could easily have been staged in a manner that would not have required this, I think it was either a marketing ploy or a smart move to keep the audience focused on the play during the two intermissions.) We learn how their plans worked out – or didn’t – over the decade since their first reunion. The upcoming election is barely mentioned with Hillary’s election seeming assured.

While the first two acts were interesting, for me the play did not really build up full steam until the final act, set in 2024. This time they are gathered for a shiva (Jewish wake). In addition to their personal loss, they are grieving over the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel and the subsequent retaliation wreaked on Gaza. We learn how each of their lives has been adversely affected by these events. Spector is even-handed, allowing his characters to express at least three diametrically opposed viewpoints without taking sides. Although the arguments are cogently presented, I felt that Spector’s focus was more on the characters than on the 

arguments.

Along the way, there is lots of humor as well. A subsidiary theme is the increasing corrosiveness of social media over the years, which Spector literally shows us by projecting emails and chats on the walls.

The actors are all excellent. Occasionally I missed a line when an actor was speaking at high speed and low volume.  Terry Bergman’s direction holds everything  together well. Scott Pask’s beautiful traditional living room set in act one takes on a modern look in act three. The costumes by Clint Ramos are all spot-on. 

In summary, the play was slow to build but worth the wait for the payoff in the final act. I somehow expected that there would be more about the issues but the playwright instead chose to concentrate on his characters. I am not sure how much appeal the play has for non-Jews.

Running time: three hours 20 minutes including two 15-minute intermissions.