Review: BAD JEWS Set Off Sparks at SpeakEasy Stage

Written by Joshua Harmon; directed by Rebecca Bradshaw; scenic design, Eric Levenson; costume design, Tyler Kinney; lighting design, Chris Bocchiaro; sounde design, Edward Young; fight choregraphy, Angie Jepson

Cast in Order of Appearance:

Jonah, Alex Marz; Daphna, Alison McCartan; Liam, Victor Shopov; Melody, Gillian Mariner Gordon

Performances and Tickets:

Now through November 29, SpeakEasy Stage Company, Roberts Studio Theatre, Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street, Boston; tickets are priced from $25-61 and are available online at www.SpeakEasyStage.com or by calling the Box Office at 617-933-8600.

If watching family members spew venom at each other for 100 uninterrupted minutes is your idea of holiday cheer, then by all means head on over to SpeakEasy Stage Company this Thanksgiving weekend for a visit with BAD JEWS. This recent biting Off-Broadway comedy by newcomer Joshua Harmon pits feuding cousins Daphna (nee Diana) Feygenbaum and Liam (nee Shlomo) Haber against each other in an all-out battle to see who "wins" their deceased grandfather's "chai" - the religious medallion symbolizing life that miraculously survived the Holocaust with him.

The play takes place in a cramped studio apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan on the afternoon and evening following the cousins' beloved Poppy's funeral. It is inhabited by the unassuming Jonah (Alex Marz), Liam's younger brother. When Daphna (Alison McCartan) and Liam (Victor Shopov), along with his Christian girlfriend Melody (Gillian Mariner Gordon), descend upon Jonah from out of town, they both figuratively and literally crowd him into a corner. If he could blend into the woodwork, no doubt he would welcome the opportunity.

For most of the play Jonah watches from the sidelines as Daphna and Liam duke it out ferociously. Daphna exalts in her religious self-righteousness, believing that her devout Jewish beliefs and practices entitle her to Poppy's chai. Liam flouts his decidedly secular perspective, responding to Daphna's scathing insults with brutal accusations of his own. While both have sincere connections with Poppy, they allow their deep-seated animosities toward each other to turn their grief into a verbal blood bath.

While BAD JEWS has a lot to say about the scars and badges that the grandchildren of Holocaust survivors carry with them, in this SpeakEasy production much of the play's power is overshadowed by the altogether strident performance of McCartan as Daphna. She is obnoxious and completely unlikable and revels in feeling superior to everyone else in the room. When she hurls insults, she gleefully bares her teeth and licks her chops as if circling her prey just moments before the kill. Her religious fervor thus becomes a thinly veiled excuse for venting years of pent up jealousy and self-pity. It's very difficult to feel any sympathy for Daphna since McCartan makes her performance all about herself.

As Daphna's sparring partner Liam, Shopov fares better. His outbursts are fueled by frustration and discomfort, and he modulates his anger with tenderness and compassion. He is absolutely hilarious during an extended melt-down that leaves Melody dumbstruck by what she is seeing, but he is equally touching when recalling a story about his Poppy and grandmother on the eve of their wedding. One can see the genuine affection he has for his own girlfriend even as he parades her as a symbol of his rebellion against the shackles of his heritage and past.

As Melody, Gordon adds a degree of humor to her stereotypical Middle American innocent. She smiles and defers politely despite the madness swirling around her, even when Daphna turns her crosshairs in Melody's direction. What ultimately pushes her over the edge is unexpected and painfully funny. Gordon's performance is at once delicate and deep.

It is Marz as Jonah who ultimately packs the true emotional wallop in BAD JEWS, however. While silently reacting and recoiling throughout most of the play, he conveys a gentle spirit and wounded heart that expresses pure love for his Poppy, with no ulterior motive. The youngest and least certain of the cousins, he is the one for whom there may be the most hope.

PHOTOS BY CRAIG BAILEY: Gillian Mariner Gordon as Melody, Victor Shopov as Liam, Alex Marz as Jonah, and Alison McCartan as Daphna; Alison McCartan, Victor Shopov and Gillian Mariner Gordon; Victor Shopov, Gillian Mariner Gordon, Alex Marz, and Alison McCartan; Alex Marz and Alison McCartan

To post a comment, you must register and login.