Crossing Delancey
The current show at the Newport Playhouse is the delightful romantic comedy, "Crossing Delancey" by Susan Sandler.The story is about Izzy, a young Jewish woman and her relationship with her grandmother, Bubbie. It is where the old world traditions of Bubbie clash with Izzy's contemporary ones. Izzy is infatuated with a pompous author but Bubbie wants to have great-grandchildren and hires Hannah, a matchmaker to fix her granddaughter up with the pickle man. Bruce Lackey directs his five performers wonderfully, obtaining many laughs and a heart warming feeling at the close of the show.
Erin Olsen excellently plays Izzy who works in a bookstore,
visits her Bubbie on Sundays and lusts after Tyler Moss, her favorite
author. The character of Izzy also narrates the vignettes of the show and
the lighting changes for her dream scene. Erin conveys her love for her
grandmother, distaste for the pickleman and Hannah as well as her longing
for the author. The symbolic gift of a hat from Sam, the pickleman, helps
Izzy decide what is important in her life. Erin is a topnotch actress who
I reviewed many times at URI and the last time was this August when she
played the bitchy Myrtle Mae in "Harvey" and last November when
she played Mrs. Keller in "The Miracle Worker" at 2nd Story Theater.
Erin's funniest line is when she tells him to kiss her ass in
Yiddish. I directed "Crossing Delancey" back in 1991 and it
brings back many pleasant memories. Molly Marks as Bubbie commands
the stage in all her scenes including her interpretations of dreams and
her pushing for a match for her beloved offspring. Molly's reactions
and her interactions with the other characters is perfect and she sing
some funny Yiddish songs including one about kugel. Some of her hilarious
moments include when she pulls up layers of clothes to give Izzy $500 to
make what she said about her granddaughter's dream come true, her disgust
at Hannah's gluttony when she tells her to be a person and use a napkin,
asks her how much she weighs, her astonishment at Sam's ugly jacket for
the dinner scene and her hysterical reaction to Sam at the end of the
show.( She pretends not to know him but secretly heard Sam and Izzy
kissing.) The last scene is priceless and as Bubbie would say, it
proves the old ways still work in these current times. Brava!
Another scene stealer in this show is Sandra Nicastro as Hannah. She
wears a highly teased red wig and hilariously funny
and outlandish outfits. The character reminds you of Lainie
Kazan as the aunt on "The Nanny". Hannah eats nonstop in all the
scenes in Bubbie's kitchen and puts the kugel and chicken
wings in doggie bags and napkins to take home with her. Sandra's
one liners are excellently delivered and she receives many laughs
from them. John Brennan plays the role of Sam, the pickle man
and gives it the warmth it needs, making him endearing to the audience.
His winning personality makes you root for the pickleman to win the woman
of his dreams. Sam is a wise man who lives in the present but still
believes the old values of his father. His biggest laughs come with the
bright pink jacket Hannah told him to buy from her brother-in-law and
when he tells Izzy the ice in the glass was really Bubbie's false
teeth. The pompous ass author, Tyler Moss is well played by
Nishan Lawton. He pays no attention to Izzy until he wants her for his own
ends. Nishan captures the role of this cad beautifully and deserves to be
booed as this jerky character with the audience astonished at his audacity
during their "date" scene. Bruce directs this show wonderfully with his
blocking, stage business and character developments. He gives them a lot
of business to do including the spitting scenes of Bubbie and
Hannah where they want to stop the evil eye from happening to
them. The gorgeous set by Fred Davison consists of three playing
areas including Bubbie's old fashioned apartment with floral wall
paper on stage left, a park bench on center stage and Izzy's
bookstore with paneling on stage right. It captures the atmosphere of
the East side of NYC beautifully. The stage manager, Henryce Zannini keeps
things moving smoothly all night long, handling the lighting and sound
cues beautifully. The excellent all you can eat buffet before the
show is prepared by Sue Raposa with many mouth watering selections to
chose from including home made turkey and stuffing. The rousing cabaret
includes many numbers including a gorgeous duet from "Jekyll and Hyde"
between Staci Morin and Jonathan Keene called "Love Has Come of
Age". So for a wonderful evening out and a trip back to New
York City, be sure to catch "Crossing Delancey" at the Newport
Playhouse.
CROSSING DELANCEY ( 1 October to 1 November,
2009)
The Newport Playhouse, 102 Connell
Highway, Newport, RI
1 (401) 848-PLAY or www.newportplayhouse.com