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Sometimes all a play really needs is two characters and some genuine emotion. Set in 1930s Berlin, playwright Janet Schlapkohl’s evocative two-hander tells of a pair of identical twin sisters (played by bona fide identical twins Elizabeth Hinkler and Emily Hinkler) beset by troubles as the Nazis rise in power all around them. 

Outgoing sister Magda (Emily Hinkler), a Sally Bowles type, slaves all day as a hospital orderly, but at night works as a cabaret singer in a demimonde nightclub catering to lesbians.  She has a close and tender relationship with her twin Matilde (Elizabeth Hinkler), who has been crippled since birth and lives hidden away in their tenement apartment, so the increasingly powerful Nazis won’t single her out for being eugenically impure. 

Matilde writes all the material for Magda’s cabaret performances; however, as she becomes more and more popular, Magda starts to edit out the more politically edgy and subversive elements of Matilde’s writing.  Meanwhile, Matilde begins to feel threatened as she gradually becomes persona non grata, as much due to her physical weaknesses as her political dissidence. 

A much shorter version of the play originally premiered at the Hollywood Fringe, but it has since been enhanced and elaborated into a full length drama, with original director Paul David Story joined by Ron Sossi to stage it. Changes notwithstanding, the core of Schlapkohl’s drama remains the deep affection between Magda and Matilde which, as depicted here, is nuanced and believable.  The two characters clearly rely on each other, with Matilde’s physical frailty matched by a ferocity and strength that the more easily distracted Magda lacks. 

The play isn’t perfect by any means, of course: Magda’s story too closely echoes the tropes of the musical “Cabaret,” while the progression of Matilde’s tale follows a standard tragic outline.

But the acting is tight to the point of being almost profound — and the fact that the two performers are themselves identical twins lends the work a fascinating psychological layer. 

The drama opens in flashback, with a scene in which one of the twins, now an old woman, recalls the fate of her sister, destroyed by the Nazis.  We, however, do not yet know which sister is doing the talking. Who’s the survivor and who the victim?  The answer is surprising and based on unexpected plot twists.

According to the press notes, the playwright spotted Emily and Elizabeth at the University of Iowa. The twins were in the undergraduate acting program and Schlapkohl, who was getting her MFA in playwriting, was inspired to write a piece for the two of them. 

It’s interesting how different the two characters are: Emily’s flamboyant Magda contrasts beautifully with Elizabeth’s vulnerable and sensitive Matilde.  And they are indeed identical twins in real life. One wonders if the two performers ever contemplated flipping a coin before a performance to decide who would play which role, and if such an exchange would lend even more dimension to this already wonderfully intimate piece.

Odyssey Theatre, 2055 S. Sepulveda Ave, West Los Angeles; Thurs.-Sat. 8 p.m., Sun., 7 p.m.;  Extended through March 20.  (310) 477-2055 or www.odysseytheatre.com.  Running time: 110 mins.