Zarah Mahler and Marnina Schon (Photo by Jason Niedle/Tethos)
Reviewed by F. Kathleen Foley
Laguna Playhouse
Through March 31
RECOMMENDED
An off-Broadway hit in the late 1980s, Barbara Lebow’s A Shayna Maidel has been widely produced ever since. It’s easy to understand the play’s popularity. A heartfelt, sentimentalized piece, it persistently plucks at the audience’s heartstrings before arriving at an obligatory catharsis. But while the subject matter is certainly timely (just look at the crisis in Gaza and the worldwide rise of anti-Semitism), Maidel has not aged particularly well. Despite a few twists, the play lacks nuance and contains few surprises.
Set in 1946, the story concerns the reunion between Rose (Eden Malyn), a New York City career woman, and her older sister Lusia (Zarah Mahler), a survivor of the Nazi death camps. Rose emigrated to America at age four with her father Mordechai (Joel Swetow). Lusia, who was suffering from scarlet fever at the time, was left behind with their Mama (Samantha Klein). The years passed, the Nazi net tightened, and Lusia and her mother were trapped. Mama died in the camps and now, Lusia, who was lost in the post-war tumult, has been located and is in New York trying to piece together some comprehensible life. Meanwhile, she continues her seemingly quixotic search for her husband Duvid (Josh Odsess-Rubin), also lost in the camps and chaos years previously.
Laguna Playhouse’s artistic director David Ellenstein helms the proceedings authoritatively, with certain exceptions. Perhaps Ellenstein meant to emphasize the contrast between thoroughly Americanized Rose and shell-shocked survivor Lusia. However, Malyn’s Rose is cloyingly girly, at least initially, practically skipping through her apartment in belabored carefreeness. One senses a heavy directorial hand at work here, especially considering Malyn’s shatteringly effective subsequent scene, in which her character is overwhelmed by guilt, loss, and distant memory.
Ian Scott’s meticulously detailed sound is the standout among the design elements. Innovative flashback and fantasy sequences lend interest to the otherwise predictable flow of events. Swetow shines as the overbearing patriarch whose arrogant manner hides enduring shame, while Mahler is perfectly understated in her challenging role. Her deceptive quietude captures the simmering strength beneath her crushed but undefeated character. Marnina Schon nicely rounds out the solid cast as Lusia’s doomed best friend Hannah.
Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Rd., Laguna Beach. Wed.-Fri., 7:30 p.m.; Sat., 2 & 7:30 p.m.; Sun., 1 and 5:30 p.m. Added performances Thur. March 21 at 2 p.m. and Tues. March 26 at 7:30 p.m. Dark Sunday March 31 at 5:30 pm. Through March 31. (949) 497-2787. www.lagunaplayhouse.com 2 hours, 20 minutes with intermission.
