Previews: LYING TO SPIELBERG at Palace Theatre

What would you do if you received a phone call from The Spielberg Shoah Foundation to talk about your experience in concentration camp? Here’s a story you won’t read or see anywhere else but in Broadway veteran Bill Nabel’s play Lying to Spielberg, which will play at the Stamford Palace for one night only, October 7. Yes, the day that marks the horrific attack on Jews (and others) by the terrorist organization Hamas.

The two-act play takes place in August 1994 in an apartment on the Upper West Side. On the news are two sad stories: the suicide of Kurt Cobain and the bombing in Buenos Aires by terrorists who destroyed a building and murdered 85 people.

The cast features Alex Havacek, an 84-year-old Polish-Jewish patriarchal Holocaust survivor. Originally a tailor, he became a successful real estate investor. His identity is wrapped up in his experiences during World War II. His emotions are deep and go to extremes – very loving, tender, and generous, but also calculating and even vindictive. He was a survivor and won’t let anyone forget that. Oh, and he will forever hold a grudge against someone who slighted or insulted him. He frequently talks to groups and schools about being a Holocaust survivor.

His niece, Marta, aged 30 in the play, is the daughter of Alex’s brother, Gershon. While she is devoted to her uncle, she is licking her wounds over some poor decisions in her life, such as her marriage. She is as unsure of herself as Alex is confident about himself.

Gilbert Sterner, a German who was born after World War II and is 45 in the play, comes into their lives with huge surprise. He’s a multi-faceted character – handsome, ingratiating, charming, and calculating to the point of possibly being duplicitous.

Finally, there is Amy Neuberg, a 22-year-old college graduate who has good intentions, but is totally inexperienced as an interviewer an intern at the Shoah Foundation. Her role is off-stage, but the audience can hear her youthful clear voice.

Nabel’s book is concise and compelling, filled with surprises from the beginning to end. It is more than just another story about a Holocaust survivor. It’s about identity, belonging, and escaping yet coming to terms with the past. It explores the fine line between different truths – and fiction.

Lying to Spielberg comes to Stamford, where Nabel lives, after readings at the Utah Shakespeare Festival, Abington Theatre, and Greenhouse Ensemble in New York. Prior to writing this play, Nabel was the American Academy of Arts and Letters Richard Rodgers Prize finalist for Take Me America, an award-winning musical about immigrants who were seeking asylum in the United States. Nabel wrote the book and lyrics, and Bob Christianson composed the music. It was the opening show at the Village Theatre in Issaquah, Washington. Nabel and fellow Stamford resident William Squier wrote the book and lyrics for Love on Ice, with music by Jeffry Lodin. It was a finalist at MUT International New Works in Munich, Germany. I was presented by Manhattan Musical Theatre Workshop in New York and t Florida Festival of New Musicals. Nabel also wrote the book and lyrics for Gollywobble, which was based on “The Andy Griffith Show, and Who Killed Mario Lanza?

Nabel performed in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast for its entire thirteen year run on Broadway. He was in A Chorus Line, Sweeney Todd, 42nd Street, Home Sweet Homer, Ain’t Broadway Grand, Evita, and The Most Happy Fella. On screen, he appeared in Madame Secretary, Freedom, Gravity, and Professor Marston and His Wonder Women.

Fun fact: Nabel’s sister-in-law is Broadway veteran Jan Neuberger, sister of the late Susan Nabel, a Stamford resident who served in local offices and so beloved and admired that a park was named her.

Lying to Spielberg will be presented by professional actors on Monday, October 7 at 7:00 p.m. at the Palace Theatre, 61 Atlantic Street, Stamford. Lynn Colatrella is the director and producer. The theatre is at the heart of Downtown Stamford and easy to get to by train. Tickets are $15.00. Call (203) 325-4466 or visit www.palacestamford.org/events/detail/scripts-on-tap-2024-lying-to-spielberg.

To post a comment, you must register and login.