KDHX Theatre Review - The Disputation
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Here at the beginning of the 21st Century, we’re used to computer-enhanced vocals in our music, huge CGI effects in our movies and television documentaries that can take us anywhere in the world -- even to other planets. So, what does live theater have to offer that none of these other fantastic mediums can match? Well, good theater can still take nothing more than a simple stage, a couple of chairs, and extended scenes in which nothing happens except the exchange of ideas, and still keep us glued to our seats. And that’s just where The Disputation, the latest production at The New Jewish Theatre, excels. In Europe during the 13th century, a series of debates between Jewish and Christian scholars took place, mandated by the Catholic Church, with the intent of showing the Jewish people the error of their religious ways and converting them to Christianity. The Disputation reproduces what we are told may be the most remarkable of those debates, which took place in Barcelona in 1263. This debate between a monk, Pablo Cristiani and Rabbi Moses ben Nachman, was sponsored by King James of Aragon at the urging of his Queen, Yolanda. This production directed by Donna Northcott, also the artistic director of St. Louis Shakespeare, boasts a very fine script by Hyam Maccoby and top notch performances by a talented cast. While on the surface presenting a great debate between two passionate scholars, I see this script as really about the conflict between the basic instinct for self-preservation and the human need to save and serve one’s own society and culture. There are fundamental truths being discussed here about tolerance, faith, and the basic value of humanity over unforgiving doctrine. These are the kind of debates and lessons we could use more of in this modern world so caught up in religious an racial intolerance . If there is a flaw with the script or with this production, it may be that it takes quite a long time to get going. There are about 40 minutes of exposition to catch the audience up on historical information and, at least at the performance I attended, things started off with a low energy level. But, once the exposition is over and the debate starts, things really take off. Of special note are performances by Dave Steckel as Brother Pablo Christiani and Jerry Vogel as Rabbi Nachman. The best performances in theater are all about “what do I want and what will I do to get it.” Both Mr. Steckel and Mr. Vogel understand this and they both go for it with abandon. Also very good was Deborah Sharn as Queen Yolanda. Ms. Sharn is sharp as a knife in portraying Yolanda’s virulent anti-semitism and her conniving to retain her power at court, even if she can’t keep her adulterous king, played by Drew Bell. Other fine performances are turned in by David Cooperstein and Kate Puglisi, who play a pair of tentative lovers and share what is probably the best scene in the first act. Then there is Richard Lewis in the role of Father Raymond de Penteforte. Mr. Lewis gives us a sensitive, nuanced performance as this conflicted, complex man who is arguably the real hero of the play. The deceptively simple set by Sanghee Moon effectively conveys the feeling of 13th century Spain in the intimate setting of the Wolfson Studio Theater at the Jewish Community Center. The Disputation plays at The New Jewish Theater through February 29 [2004]. Call (314) 442-3283 for reservations soon, as performances in the small theater are, deservedly, selling out and I urge you to see it if you can.
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