After their grandfather’s death, three adult grandchildren end up spending an evening in tight quarters squabbling through years of family issues. At the center of the rift is a Jewish medallion Daphna who holds tight to the teachings of their faith and Liam, the unbeliever, both want to keep it as it was their grandfather’s most precious possession. Liam’s little brother Jonah just wants to stay out of it all.
The play was held in the black box theatre at Mad Cow with a set so uncomfortably close to the audience you really felt the claustrophobic atmosphere in the New York studio apartment, a full size bed and two inflatable mattresses on the floor with barely enough room to walk. This was a perfect choice for the set. I am unsure if the color choice was on purpose, a mixture of black, white and gray with pops of dark orange on pillows and artwork as well as the underside of a table. Three neutral colors could represent the cousins and the orange Liam’s non- Jewish girlfriend Melody.
Lea Kalisch portrays Daphna with such ferocity one might think that this pushy, meddling and selfish character was her actual personality. This actress had a large hurtle to get over from the opening. Daphna’s dialogue rarely ceases during the course of the one act play aside from her exit to the bathroom and during Liam’s second rant. At the top of the show, I felt Lea struggled for a good 3 minutes, overly anticipating the next lines. Again, with a character who rarely takes a breath between sentences, I can see how this can happen. After the opening, Lea gained ground and felt ever present during the rest of the show.
Adam Reilly plays Liam, the eldest grandson. The moment he came in I felt the presence of a big brother. Adam was agile with his demeanor which seemed to change depending on the relationship he was reacting to. With Jonah, Liam was the big brother. With Daphna, the eldest son, cousin and rightful heir to grandfather’s necklace. With Melodie, the romantic and sexy boyfriend. Adam’s physical appearance felt too large for the space which worked for the character. Liam had been separating himself from the family and leaving their faith. He felt too big even for the set. I loved the difference between his size and the sizes of the other cast members, even that of the actor who portrayed his little brother. His voice and ability to change on a dime, worked for this character who seemed to feel he needed to be all of those things and keep them separate from one another.
Adam Minossora plays the quietest of the three, Jonah who was forever in the middle of the family feud but wanted no part of it. The actor’s challenge was his lack of dialogue. Both Daphna and Liam’s characters flooded the play with their words, their moods and their gestures. Adam’s Jonah listened and reacted with exquisite precision. This actor expressed more with his reactions than all the words in this script combined. I sincerely applaud Adam’s work. The character seemed to be doing everything he could to keep it together and Adam was able to fool me into thinking that maybe Jonah didn’t even care at all about the death of his grandfather. Maybe, he just wanted to stay out of everything, going further away from the family than Liam already was. The end of the show completely changed that, however. More than one time, Jonah broke my heart without even saying a word. Adam was able to portray a lost young man in a way that was so lovely, I couldn’t keep my eyes off of him.
Rachel Cameau played Liam’s girlfriend Melody. This character began as arm candy for Liam. I could see Rachel had chosen to put time and effort into the waspy character that didn’t know the first thing about the Jewish faith and may had never come into contact with a Jewish family so intimately. Melody was not superficial by any means. While Rachel’s Melody listened sheepishly when the characters with stronger personalities went on their tirades, I believe she was smart enough to learn as the show progressed, definitely defending herself and ultimately showing her strength.
While I wasn’t a fan of the abrupt ending of this play which had no resolution, I loved the characters, each whom had a full life in this one act. This play does well to show the family dynamic of children twice removed from the tragic beginnings of its birth and how religion and culture can change so dramatically in the American culture.
Bravo to this cast as well as Director Shami McCormic, who made her Mad Cow directorial debut with Bad Jews.
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