Review: A Coveted Family Heirloom Creates Havoc for Cousins in BAD JEWS

Everyone knows how tough it is to get along with family members after an elderly relative passes away when more than one person covets a family heirloom not mentioned in the will. Such is the case between two cousins in BAD JEWS, written by Joshua Harmon and directed by Sabrina Lloyd, which was presented by NotTheMom Productions at Hollywood's Theatre of NOTE through July 24, 2016. It's my hope the exemplary production will find its way into another theater or perhaps motivate audiences at synagogues around Los Angeles to discuss how Holocaust survivor families choose to honor their relatives who suffered during that awful time period.

A fierce, biting comedy about family, faith, and what you choose to believe when you're chosen, BAD JEWS follows self-centered motor mouth Daphna Feygenbaum (wild-haired Sigi Gradwohl), the self-proclaimed most devout Jew in her family, whose Grandfather just passed away. She is staying in New York with her cousin Jonah (Tyler Alverson) who devised his own way to honor his Grandfather's memory and has no need for the cherished Chai. Immediately after the funeral, Jonah's less than observant brother Liam (Jordan Wall) arrives bringing along a surprisingly non-Jewish element in the form of Melody (beautiful blonde Hilary Curwen), his latest shiksa girlfriend.

After doing her best to discredit everyone else, Daphna expresses her much-expected to-be-honored claim to a treasured family heirloom: a gold Chai, which symbolizes life, that her Grandfather managed to keep with him during his Nazi work camp internment.

What Daphna finds out is that Liam already has the Chai and is planning to propose to Melody with it, just as their Grandfather did with their Grandmother. And as the oldest of the 3 cousins, Liam feels entitled to it just as Daphna believes it is hers since her father was their Grandfather's oldest son and she is the most devout Jew in the family. Her fury that a non-Jew will be the one to inherit such a prized possession ignites a battle of Old Testament proportion during which the cousins sharpen their wit, familial vitriol, and humor. And I guarantee the final very physical battle between Gradwohl, Curwen and Wall for the heirloom will cause you to leave the theater wondering about the power of religion and what it takes to be a good person - certainly a discussion of much relevance in the world today.

As Executive Producers of BAD JEWS, the creative team of Sigi Gradwohl (Winner of Best Leading Actress at Theatre Palisades for Anne in The Diary of Anne Frank) and Hilary Curwen (MTV's "Happyland"), also are the co-creators of the award-winning "Bad Nannies" and stars of the viral YouTube hit "Girls are Assholes." Often labeled as "the next Broad City," this hilarious team of best friends is currently in pre-production for their pilot "SigNHil" -- a show about their friend obsession. I, for one, can't wait to see it!

And let's hope the two bring BAD JEWS to another location soon so it can inspire many more to question how their own family values contribute to the good or bad people we have become.

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