Pangs of the Messiah
by Motti Lerner
directed by Edward Einhorn
ORIGINALLY PERFORMED:
October 27– November 20, 2011
Theater at the 14th Street Y
344 E. 14th St. (at 1st Ave.)
The year is 2014, and Israel is on the verge of signing a peace accord; in the West Bank settlements that Israel may soon abandon, no one is celebrating. Lerner’s tense drama focuses on the Head of the Council of Settlements and his family as they struggle to retain the life they have built in anticipation of the coming of the Messiah. The play provides a rare window into the lives and psyches of the settlers from an insider’s perspective. It is a family drama with broad political implications.
Translation: Anthony Berris
Original music: Henry Akona
Sets: Jane Stein
Costumes: Carla Gant
Lighting: Jeff Nash
Dramaturg: Sarah Ollove
Assistant Director: Patrice Miller
Stage Manager: Becky J. Doster
Assistant Stage Manger: Elizabeth Irwin
Clarinet: Jenny Lee Mitchell*
With: Sidney Fortner*, David J. Goldberg, Gusta Johnson, Elliott Mayer, J. M. McDonough*, Paul Muriillo*, Yvonne Roen*. Max Wolkowitz
Graphic art by Clinton Corbett
NY PREMIERE OF NOTED ISRAELI PLAYWRIGHT MOTTI LERNER’S POLITICALLY CHARGED DRAMA SET IN A WEST BANK SETTLEMENT
Graphic Design by Clinton Corbett
Reviews
“The production benefits from brisk direction, strong acting and an unusual focus on the internal destruction caused by radicalization, rather than empathy with the enemy.”
— Catherine Rampell,
The New York Times
“Yvonne Roen steals every scene she's in as the childless Tirtzah, torn between her desire to have a baby and her devotion to her increasingly divided family....Jane Stein's inventive set visualizes the encroaching outside conflict by employing miniature models of cityscapes that are consuming the family's home. Henry Akona's original music is one of the production's highlights, and Jenny Lee Mitchell's clarinet playing is touching.”