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| Mike Burstyn - Photos by Michael Lamont |
“Lo he goeth by me, and I see him not:
he passeth on also, but I perceive him not.” – Job – The Book of Job,
Chapter 9:11 – The Holy Bible – The King James Version.
West Coat Jewish Theatre presents an American Premiere starring Mike
Burstyn in “O My God” by Anat Gov directed by Howard Teichman and produced by
Howard Teichman & Jean Himmelstein through June 7th at the Pico
Playhouse.
I am not familiar with Mike Burstyn, or his career, but there was a
point in the show when he spoke emphatically as God. I heard his voice, I felt it in my chest cavity. It was an inspired voice and one that nearly lifted me from my seat.
Instead I raised my eyes from my notepad and took note of the actor
before me. Surely, I have missed something.
And I soon realized that I needed to catch up on my knowledge of internationally acclaimed American/Israeli
actors. – The Narrator.
After a successful run of “The Whipping Man,” also directed
by Howard Teichman at the Pico Playhouse, I really had to see what Mr. Teichman
was doing next. And because I had recently
been inundated with “God” at the Unitarian Universalist Church (go figure) and other
places, God kept appearing in disquieting peculiarity. I pondered the notion
that someone, some being was trying to tell me something.
Lior (Joseph Rishik) sat and played his cello. All decked out in drabbed New Balance
sneakers, black socks, brown shorts, and a worn brown Hawaiian t-shirt. His
face projected little emotion. The notes, the fingerings, were just there. The vibrations from the music affected little
of his soul, and his expressions were mechanical at best. On the chair, in his
quaint living room, with an enormous blue sky projected through the window,
Lior played on. What was bothering him? Why
wasn’t he connected to the passionate moments of the notes?
Ella
(Maria Spassoff), Lior’s mother, throws off her enormous garden hat and attends
to her son. She doesn’t ask, and doesn’t expect certain words to come from his lips. At this moment Ella is beaten by the heat, complains little about the lack of rain, and life in general.
And Lior says little – no, that’s not right – he says
nothing, not even hello mom, mother, mama, nothing. He utters only guttural
sounds, muttered squeaks and thrusts of vocal nothings. Not being understood, he resorts to being an
obstreperous child by throwing toys – too old for him to play with – and then
throwing Orson Welles’s “The Third Man” poster to the floor, which Ella calmly repairs
and hangs back on the wall.
Moments later, Ella gets a call from someone saying that he
needs to see her right away so she hustles her son out of the room, with cello
in hand, and prepares for the appointment. When there is a knock on the door, Ella
opens it and finds no one. Strange.
Not thinking much of it, Ella returns to her desk. Behind her, the door magically opens, and a
figure in a dark hat and suit enters It is God (Mike Burstyn), an enigmatical
tranquil being, with a problem.
Ella, the psychologist, is all business. She methodically grabs her note pad and asks the
gentleman to sit down before she starts the disquisition.
“Name?” – Ella
“You can call me, G.” – God
“What is your age?” – Ella
“Five thousands years old.” – God
“What do you do?” – Ella
“I’m an artist.” – God
“Father?” – Ella
“None.” – God
“Mother?” – Ella
“None.” – God
After more questions, Ella realizes this man knows
everything about her and she suggests he might be a part of the Israel
intelligent agency. But this man claims he is God.
“How long have you felt like
this?” Ella
“I don’t feel like, I am.” – God
An exasperated Ella is not having any part of this
discussion. Slightly frightened, she
steps back and says she has the name of a good psychiatrist. She wants this man to leave her home right
now.
But God has a few tricks but his
robes, um sleeves, and freezes Ella.
Lior comes back in and God unfreezes Ella and, by this time,
Ella has gotten the message and starts listening to God. She takes a drink of
water, the glass rattling on her teeth.
God tells Ella that she has talked to him for forty years
and he can remember her prayers from the age of four. Ella says that she doesn’t believe in God.
“You talk, but you don’t ask.” –
God
But God reveals a little vicious streak in him when he tells
Ella that she believes that her autistic son will call her mother one day and
that her husband will come back to her. The words stab at the heart of her
entire being.
Anat Gov, the writer, has written a very moving play which
was voted Best Play in Israel in 2012, the year of her death, at the tender age
of fifty-five, after a long struggle with cancer. This is the American Premiere
and a translated version of the Hebrew text.
(Translations between languages are tricky and hopefully nuances were
not lost in the translation.)
“God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and turned me over into the
hands of the wicked.” – Job 16:11. The Holy Bible
Howard Teichman,
the director, does a nice job putting it all together, nice show, nice evening
with remarkable talent. But there more to be had in the moments that should collectively
make the production soar. On this night,
they struggled to make the emotional connection that one hopes to get in the
theatre. And that connection is the one thing that causes a reaction, an
emotional moment, that keeps you in your chair long after the light come up. And also, I have to be hit over the head of
“Why this woman? Why today? Why now?” One is not sure these questions
were answered in the execution. Also, G
appears dressed in the manner of the Orson Welles character in “The Third Man”
in a moment that isn’t fully realized. There is a reason “The Third Man” poster
is on the wall and a reason that G enters Ella’s home dressed like Orson
Welles, coming in as the wind in one moment and Orson Welles in the next. Comedy, and this is a comedy, is best served
on a cold plate of pain. And the pain is inside all of the characters who are reaching
for the one thing they truly want. There is more to be had here. Still, it is early in the run and tweaks will
make it that much better.
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| Maria Spassoff and Mike Burstyn |
Mike Burstyn
plays G and does a tremendous job. G has
a problem and he comes to get counseling. He is still feeling guilty about the
way he treated Job. He needs help and he needs it right now or else he will die
and take everyone with him. There is a time element here in which the
character, God, must feverishly pursue his objective and there is little time
to lose. Burstyn is an amazing actor, his moments are carefully constructed, and
there is a delightful simplicity to his work, and I’ve already mentioned his
great voice, but I’ll say it again, great voice!
Maria Spassoff
does some amazing work as Ella, a strong vibrant professional woman who will do
anything to help her clients. Ella is at
the end of her rope. Her son will never
get better and that part of her life is a daily struggle. She needs her husband to come back but more
than anything she needs to move on. She
needs her son to call her mom. She needs
inspiration. But what she gets instead is more trouble. Ella suddenly finds herself in a position of
trying to save the world; the weight of humankind is on her shoulders. Her job is to help God and in doing so save
humankind.
Joseph Rishik
plays Ella’s son Lior. His playing of the cello is fine, with some very lovely
music coming out of his instrument. But his role as an autistic son requires a better-developed
character and a clear and meaningful objective.
Jean Himmelstein
and Howard Teichman are the Producers,
and once again have done an outstanding job.
Other members of this outstanding crew are as follows:
Bill Froggatt –
Associate Producer & Sound Designer
Kurtis Bedford –
Set Designer
Gil Tordjman – Stage
Manager and Lighting Designer
Michael Lamont –
Photographer
Ken Werther Publicity
– Press Representative
Run! Run! And take someone who likes to read The Holy
Bible.
Reservations:
323-821-2449
The Pico Playhouse
10508 W. Pico Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90064
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