[NoHo Arts District, CA] – A NoHo Arts theatre review of Foster Cat Productions presentation of the highly anticipated Festival of Jewish Playwrights, showcasing lesser-known works from three legendary Jewish-American playwrights Ethan Coen, Wendy Wasserstein, and Shel Silverstein.
Foster Cat Productions has created six weekends of rotating short plays that include works by Shel Silverstein, (yes, that Shel Silverstein) Wendy Wasserstein and Ethan Coen. These are adult plays, full of lovely, very adult content, so don’t be tempted to bring your kids!
I was able to attend the opening night, February 29, so I had the pleasure of seeing the Shel Silverstein plays and there was not a giving tree in sight! I had no idea that Mr Silverstein was a playwright, let alone that he wrote for grown ups. Although, to be fair, I always thought the giving tree had far more in it for the parents reading to their children than the children themselves. Such is the way with the best of children’s literature though…none of us are too old for a revelation or two.
These plays are astounding…brilliant in their concept, in their subject, in their structure, in their uniquely ‘Silverstein-ness.’ Funny, poignant, sad, visceral and revelatory.
They pierce the veil of the human condition, weirdly, roughly, intellectually and with all the directness of a poet who needs to tell you exactly what he means. But all of this wouldn’t mean a thing if the actors couldn’t rise to the truly remarkable challenge of performing Mr Silverstein’s very specific perspective on the world. It would be nice, I guess…but not good. Not ‘theatre’ good.
The folks at Foster Cat Productions know how to do Silverstein…they were absolutely wonderful. Excruciating, inflammatory, coyly pornographic, brash, bold, brazen and very, very human. I absolutely loved these performances. Every single one of them.
I laughed, I felt, I identified, oh boy did I! Each of these fine and heartfelt actors connected so completely with this cunning material that it seemed like a masterclass in Silverstein…I am not exaggerating….they were brilliant and wonderful and real…in short I utterly believed them. Bravo!
I can only imagine that these brilliant thoughtful and hilariously talented actors will do just as much justice to the other two playwrights’ work, Ethan Coen and Wendy Wasserstein. I am really, really hoping to see the rest of the plays, trying desperately to squeeze them into my crazy schedule! Fingers crossed!
Tickets:
https://www.onstage411.com/newsite/boxoffice/cart.asp?show_id=6430&orgin=guest
When:
Running through April 7.
Where:
905 Cole Ave Studio
905 Cole Ave., Hollywood