The God of Isaac

Oy Vey – any more Jewish and they would be serving chicken soup with matzah balls as you entered the theatre. Like a generous Bar Mitzvah spread, there are mountains of food to feast upon. The dishes on offer included a mother’s guilt, corny jokes, angst, marrying out of the faith and Nazis.

A straw poll of Jews at the opening night performance found nine out of ten thoroughly enjoyed the production, one said it gave him indigestion – whilst the non-Jew I spoke to was underwhelmed.

The play was written in the 1980’s and set in the village of Skokie Illinois, which is home to more Holocaust survivors that any other suburb in the United States. This was the trigger for a group of neo-Nazis to seek a permit to demonstrate outside the local town hall.

Into this town, playwright James Sherman drops a local journalist Isaac Adams (Lloyd Allison-Young), who has to cover this issue whilst at the same time coming to terms with his own search for identity.

The sweetest part of the play is the repartee between Adams and his mother played by Annie Byron. The embarrassment Adams endures from his mother’s attendance at the play is delicious.

Isaac has a nice Jewish girlfriend but disappoints his mother by marrying a Shikse (non-Jew) just a few months after meeting her.

Sprinkled into the narrative are short scenes from famous musicals or plays which are meant to offer an insight into the narrative. They include The Wizard of Oz, My Fair Lady and Huckleberry Finn. Whilst amusing, they were at times somewhat puzzling.  I was wondering if we were going to also see a snatch of Fiddler on the Roof, but perhaps that would have been too obvious. 

The assortment of characters were skilfully navigated by the cast. Tim McGarry’s menu included a holocaust survivor and a rabbi. Claudia Ware shone as the non-Jewish spouse Shelly, Alexis Fishman was sweet as the Jewish ex-girlfriend Chaya.

Less didactic plays and musicals have been traversed these topics with more universal appeal since The God of Isaac was penned, but for the its intended audience, this production ticks all the boxes.

David Spicer

Images: Blumenthal Photography.