“Indecent” reviewed by Julia W. Rath

[rating=5] The brilliantly executed drama “Indecent”, written by Paula Vogel and directed by Kelsey Leigh Ervi, deals with Jewish identity and issues of assimilation to American culture during the first half of the twentieth century. Tied together by the device of a “play within a play”, the story is largely told through the eyes of Lemmi (Samuel Rosner), who becomes the stage manager of a popular theatrical troupe. We follow his life and those of his actors—Chana (Lucia Padilla Katz), Avram (Andy Hartman), Halina (Gabrielle Bieder), Mendel (Sean Zuckerman), Vera (Sarah Welford), and Otto (Harrison Lewis)—as they perform throughout major European cities. Throughout this presentation, we learn about Jewish immigration to the United States and the common desire among most Jews to put European culture behind them and become Americanized. Among other things, becoming part of the “melting pot” means having to dispense with the mother tongue of Yiddish.

Yiddish was once central to Eastern European Jewry. It was a living language, through which poets and scholars would express their most intimate thoughts. Enter Sholom Asch, a Polish-born Jewish writer, who wants to produce authentic theatre. He writes his original script called “God of Vengeance” as a young man in Warsaw and invites a number of people to be at his table reading. They include a young man named Lemmi, who is honored to have been a part of the reading group and is enthusiastic about the play: not offended like most of the others in hearing a story where Jews are not perfect people. There are a number of forbidden subjects in Asch’s text, where he writes about two lesbian lovers, about a Jewish man who owns a brothel, about domestic violence within a Jewish family, and about wanting to destroy a Torah (Judaism’s sacred books from the Bible). Asch is a bit of a rebel and wants to portray a “question of sin” on stage. Although most of the readers think that his script is a bad idea and can lead to unflattering stereotypes about Jews, Asch feels that his story is something that a live audience needs and would want to see. Theatrical success thus becomes the balm that soothes. The actors not only became used to performing in this play, but it becomes a part of their personal as well as their professional lives.

After “God of Vengeance” makes its world premiere in Warsaw in 1906, it soon picks up its lead actor the famous Rudolph Schildkraut during its Berlin performance. Lemmi becomes the play’s advocate, publicity director, and most importantly, its stage manager as the show tours Europe to critical acclaim. But the larger story of “Indecent”, which starts out relatively humorous and light, soon spirals downward into tragedy as the march of time affects the lives and fortunes of European Jews. Anti-Semitism has led Lemmi to move to the United States in 1920, where Asch and his wife have already been living; he is tasked as stage manager for performances in Yiddish theatre in New York. By 1923, Asch becomes upset and depressed about the fact that he can barely speak English and that his wife now has to serve as his translator. As a consequence, he has retreated to his typewriter in order to write novels in Yiddish and his interest in “God of Vengeance” wanes. He is grateful, however, that the show is now being produced on Broadway at the prestigious Apollo Theatre.

A good portion of “Indecent” is thus framed around the Broadway debut of “God of Vengeance” and the fact that the script is now in English and that it now contains major rewrites. The public reaction to the production and its fallout brings to a head the cultural gulf in which Lemmi, the cast, and Asch and his wife find themselves in. This leads to all sorts of doubts, fears, and worries among the characters regarding their future, with all of them questioning what it means to be a Jew in America.

I absolutely loved how the titles are projected in English and Yiddish, and how we are informed when the characters are speaking Yiddish and when they are speaking German and so forth The outtakes, called “A blink in time”, are brilliant. All of this titling is the fine result of projection designer Dwight Bellisimo, who typically fades out the words, as if the human beings in this show are constantly being erased. Scenic design by Milo Bue is great for both the play and the “play within a play”, with the versatile, almost makeshift, mostly plankboard set harkening back to the dustiness and dreariness of life in a previous century. Costumes—from full garments to underwear to ritual shawls of every design—are perfect for the era, thanks to the efforts of Lia Wallfish. Choreography by assistant director Tal Schatsky is splendid and quite entertaining. Lighting design by Yun Lin and sound design by Brandon Reed work well for the space. Above all, credit must go to dialect coach Linda Gates in working with the actors to learn Yiddish, French, and Yiddish-accented English. There would be no show without these smooth transitions between languages.

The most perfect musical accompaniment is the klezmer band, consisting of Moriz (music director Otto Vogel) on accordion, Saul (Jesse Ji) on violin, and Mayer (Noah Stone) on clarinet and saxophone. The trio takes the story from the pale of Eastern Europe to New York City and the Catskills, as they impart the mood of a bygone era, accompany live performances on stage, and accentuate the feelings of the characters—largely by playing traditional Jewish music as well as songs of more recent vintage.

“Indecent” is perhaps the most decent show that one can watch about such “indecent” subject matter. While the overt lesbianism may shock some, the performance nevertheless points up the fullness of human experience: from the risks that one might take as a young person regarding career, personal life, and sexual experimentation—to the quest for safety, security, and relative ease that one might choose as an older adult. It can inform us about what different generations are willing (or unwilling) to tolerate on stage and what might be considered taboo in different eras and locales. It is also a story about keeping those elements of a minority culture and tradition that are considered fundamental versus discarding those aspects that are viewed as old-fashioned or unnecessary in the desire to assimilate to mainstream American society.

To gain the most from watching this production, it can be helpful (but not necessary) to have some basic familiarity with the history of anti-Semitism, having to do with the pogroms in Eastern Europe and the loss of six million Jewish lives in the Holocaust. Consequently, I believe that an older audience and mainly one that grew up Jewish (or already knows a lot about Jewish history and culture) will be the most impressed with this story and the way it is being told. They would probably get the Yiddish references much more than the rest of us do. But being familiar with these things is not necessary to enjoy the show or to understand it. In fact, in the lobby at the end of the evening, people of all ages kvelled about the strength of the performance.

This show is a winner. The production is a must-see!

“Indecent” is playing through April 30, 2023, at Northwestern University’s Wirtz Center for the Performing Arts, Josephine Louis Theater, 20 Arts Circle Drive, in Evanston.

Tickets prices are as follows:

General Public – $25
Senior Citizens – $22
NU Faculty and Staff – $20
Full-Time Students – $10
Full-Time NU Students – $6 in advance, $10 at the door
A per ticket service charge will be added to all online ($3 per ticket), phone ($2 per ticket)

Performance schedule:

Sunday, 4/23 – 2:00 p.m.
Thursday, 4/27 – 7:30 p.m.
Friday, 4/28 – 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, 4/29 – 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, 4/30 – 2:00 p.m.

Rabbi Rachel Weiss, of the Jewish Reconstructionist Congregation, in Evanston, introduced the show on Friday, April 21st. She and director Kelsey Leigh Ervi will have a talkback after the performance on Thursday, April 27th.

For more information and to purchase tickets, please go to: https://wirtz.northwestern.edu/indecent/.

COVID restrictions require that masks fully covering your nose and mouth be worn throughout the building and inside the theatre.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “Indecent”.