''Bad Jews'' is a dark comedy play by Joshua Harmon. After a beloved grandfather dies in New York, leaving a treasured piece of religious jewelry that he succeeded in hiding even from the Nazis during the Holocaust, cousins fight over not only the family heirloom, but their "religious faith, cultural assimilation, and even the validity of each other's romances."McKnight, Steven
"''Bad Jews'' returns to Studio Theatre"
''DC Theatre Scene'', December 7, 2015

Background

Harmon had the idea for the play "after attending a service in which grandchildren of Holocaust survivors were invited to speak." He won a fellowship from the National New Play Network, which provided his playwright-in-residence at the Actor's Express in Atlanta, Georgia, where he developed the play. He finished the first draft of the play in April 2011, and the play was then given a reading at The Lark in New York City, sponsored by the National New Play Network.

Productions

The play premiered

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer tha ...

in October 2012 at the

Roundabout Theatre Company The Roundabout Theatre Company is a leading non-profit theatre company based in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. History The company was founded in 1965 by Gene Feist, Michael Fried and Elizabet ...

's Black Box Theatre and then transferred to the Roundabout's

Laura Pels Theatre The Roundabout Theatre Company is a leading non-profit theatre company based in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. History The company was founded in 1965 by Gene Feist, Michael Fried and Elizab ...

. The play opened at the Laura Pels Theatre on October 3, 2013, and closed on December 29, 2013. Directed by Daniel Aukin, the cast for both productions featured

Tracee Chimo Tracee Chimo Pallero is an American stage, television and film actress who became an arts critic favorite after her 2012 breakout role as Daphna Feygenbaum, the antagonist in Joshua Harmon’s hit dark comedy ''Bad Jews''. In 2018 she married C ...

as Daphna,

Michael Zegen Michael Jonathan Zegen (born February 20, 1979) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles in the television series ''Rescue Me (American TV series), Rescue Me'' (2004–2011), ''Boardwalk Empire'' (2011–2014), and ''The Marvelous Mr ...

as Liam, Molly Ranson as Melody, and

Philip Ettinger Philip Ettinger is an American actor who first gained attention for his supporting role as the troubled environmental activist, Michael, in Paul Schrader's '' First Reformed'' (2017). Other significant roles have been as Garrett Drimmer in the C ...

as Jonah. Writer Harmon commented: "This is a private fight within the family, and you're somehow intruding, which is an exciting, dangerous place for an audience to be. You're seeing something that is not meant to be seen." The UK premiere, directed by Michael Longhurst, was at Bath's Ustinov Studio in August 2014 before transferring in 2015 to the West End at the St. James Theatre and in 2015 at the

Arts Theatre The Arts Theatre is a theatre in Great Newport Street, in Westminster, Central London. History It opened on 20 April 1927 as a members-only club for the performance of unlicensed plays, thus avoiding theatre censorship by the Lord Chamberl ...

, in London. The UK cast included Ilan Goodman as Liam, Jenna Augen as Daphna,

Gina Bramhill Gina Bramhill (born 30 July 1986) is a British actress. Background Gina Bramhill was born in Eastoft, where she grew up on a farm, and was educated at South Axholme Academy and John Leggott College. As a child, she appeared in several scho ...

as Melody and Joe Coen as Jonah. Among regional productions, it played in 2014 and was revived in 2015 at the

Studio Theatre A black box theater is a simple performance space, typically a square room with black walls and a flat floor. The simplicity of the space allows it to be used to create a variety of configurations of stage and audience interaction. The black ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and ran at the

Geffen Playhouse The Geffen Playhouse (or the Geffen) is a not-for-profit theater company founded by Gilbert Cates in 1995. It produces plays in two theaters in Geffen Playhouse, which is owned by University of California Los Angeles. The Playhouse is located ...

in Los Angeles. It was revived in 2016 at the

Haymarket Theatre The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre on Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use. Samuel Foote ...

. Canada's

Koffler Centre of the Arts The Koffler Centre of the Arts is a broad-based cultural institution established in 1977 by Murray and Marvelle Koffler and based at Artscape Youngplace in the West Queen West area of downtown Toronto, Ontario. History Established in 1977 as part ...

staged the Toronto premiere of ''Bad Jews'' in 2017. A revival of the original production is announced for an 11-week run at the

in London from July to September 2022. This revival UK cast includes Ashley Margolis as Liam, Rosie Yadid as Daphna, Olivia Le Andersen as Melody and Charlie Beaven as Jonah.

Awards and nominations

The play won the 2014

Lucille Lortel Award The Lucille Lortel Awards recognize excellence in New York Off-Broadway theatre. The Awards are named for Lucille Lortel, an actress and theater producer, and have been awarded since 1986. They are produced by the League of Off-Broadway Theatre ...

, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play, Tracee Chimo. Jenna Augen also won the UK Theatre Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in 2014 for the UK premiere. * 2014 Lucille Lortel Award nominations: :: Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play,

:: Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play, Molly Ranson :: Outstanding Play * 2012-2013

Outer Critics Circle Award The Outer Critics Circle Awards are presented annually for theatrical achievements both on Broadway and Off-Broadway. They are presented by the Outer Critics Circle (OCC), the official organization of New York theater writers for out-of-town newspa ...

nominations:Gans, Andrew
"Outer Critics Circle Nominees Announced; 'Pippin' Earns 11 Nominations"
Playbill, April 22, 2013 :: Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play :: Outstanding Actress in a Play, Tracee Chimo :: John Gassner Award, Joshua Harmon * 2014 Off Broadway Alliance Awards nomination, Best New Play

References

{{reflist

External links

Internet Off-Broadway Database
2013 plays Comedy plays English-language plays American plays