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The drama-writer, who works for the
Hopkinson Theatre, has obviously developed a certain recipe,
according to which he prepares the dramatic dishes for the theatre.
There must always be a fool here, or a semi-idiotic
bridegroom-to-be who they want to marry off to a rich bride, and
here there must always be a second frivolous pair, who lead to a
feast-like matchmaking.
And every time the role of a foolish
bridegroom-to-be is in the hands of Menasha Skulnik, the main
laugh-master of the Hopkinson Theatre.
This time, in L.
Freiman's new comedy, "An eydem oyf kest," which is now playing in
the Hopkinson Theatre. We see such a shlimazl bridegroom, when then
becomes a son-in-law, and also this time the role is played by the
son-in-law Menasha Skulnik.
This time he is a small shtetl
student, Pinie, who was thrown out of the old country before coming
to Mexico and then to America. A swindler from America, along with
his accomplices, lure the mysterious Pinie to Mexico in a scam.
They heard that a young couple from America had died in a train
accident, and that the parents of the young woman in America had to
pay an inheritance to her husband. They turned Pinie into the young
husband of the American wife who has apparently survived the train
misfortune and brought him in America, to her parents to claim
the inheritance.
After a lot of confusion, it turns out that
the young woman did not die in the train accident, and that she has
not yet married. It continues narrowly with Pinie. They arrest him
and they want to send him out of the country; but it turns out that
the man who handed him over is just Pinie's father, who left his
wife and child in the old country.
In the end, he marries
the apparently deceased rich girl.
I have also given the content
here, [but] you should see [this] for yourself. This is a stupid entanglement, and you
should convince yourself what kind of an artist's concocted "family"
this is.
It's actually a dramatic phenomenon that you can
call whatever you decide to call it: comedy, burlesque,
farce, vaudeville, etc.
But no matter what you call it, the
audience keeps laughing and they don't laugh at the humor in the
play, but at Skulnik.
Skulnik has a special ability to evoke
laughter, even with a wink alone. The audience
fills the theatre with laughter, even with a wink alone. The
audience fills the theatre with laughter, even then, when Skulnik
simply goes around to announce what will be played tomorrow in the
theatre. His figure, his engaging smile, his dress and the way he
holds himself -- all of this evokes laughter.
He manages to
make fun of many of the often awkward plays in which he acts.
At the same time, Yetta Zwerling, the funny comic actress, who
is a real winner for the Hopkinson Theatre, helps him out.
The rest of the roles have absolutely no meaning and no life.
Seymour Rechtzeit in the role of the sinister lawyer, shows that
he is young and mobile. Bennie Zeidman and Sara Skulnik here are a
couple of middle-aged parents whose characters you don't begin to
know.
Isidore Friedman and Ella Wallerstein are a middle-aged
couple without any character in their roles.
Isidore Lipinsky
plays the role of an idiotid student with exaggerated burlesque
features.
Bessie Budanov plays the role of the flowering rich
girl, the supposed accident victim. She dresses beautifully, has a good
figure -- and this is all that she shows in her character role.
A good impression is made by the young, lively group of
choristers who try to bring out [the songs] the best they can.
As to the
singing numbers, they save L. Markowitz's song "Kabalero."
The music is by Benjamin Blank.
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