Sharae Foxie and Zeke Goodman in “One Jewish Boy” at Echo Theater (Photo – Cooper Bates)
Even “perfect match” romantic relationships have kinks of various intensities depending on the personal experiences of the couple.
By Carol Germain
At first, it may seem that it’s just surface “mixed couple” issues (they are both British but he’s Jewish and she’s mixed race). However, they each undeniably are shaped by their pre-love life experiences, and current social circumstances amplify their history, which complicates their true love for each other. One Jewish Boy, written by British playwright Stephen Laughton, directed by Christ Fields, and presented by The Echo Theatre Company at Atwater Village Theatre, presents the story of a couple determined that their love will overshadow the deep, but different, wounds that have shaped their individual psyches and the current threads of those painful experiences that each cannot completely disclaim.
Jesse (Zeke Goodman) and Alex (Sharae Foxie) each seem determined to make the intensity and validity of their connection bury the pain of the semi-past, but the scars cannot be smoothed completely, and the gnawing edge on each as they try to absolve/resolve the past is palpable. The unique sequencing of the events of their lives, back and forth over a decade, is clever and effectively emphasizes their efforts to normalize their lives and the life of their child. The waves of past and present trauma are contagious and sustained, and the natural reaction, at least for those who have not had such specific and repetitive negative experiences, is to believe that “love will conquer all.” However, Alex’s sustained experiences of discrimination and disrespect because she is female and mixed race, and Jesse’s bouts of paralyzing recall and reaction to the dramatically painful and physical anti-Semitic experiences of his past, seem to overwhelm the healing effects of their love.
The writer, the director, and the actors brilliantly convey sustained hope, determination, and faith in the possibilities. The cast of two, and the rollercoaster of their lives, kept the audience intrigued, immobilized, and hopeful.
Zeke Goodman and Sharae Foxie (Photo – Cooper Bates)
One Jewish Boy
By Stephen Laughton
Directed by Chris Fields
Cast: Zeke Goodman andSharae Foxie
Echo Theater Company
@Atwater Village Theatre
3269 Casitas Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90039
747-350-8066
Through April 28
Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Mondays
Tickets: EchoTheaterCompany.com
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