Playwright Alfred Uhry’s theatrical portrayal of a Southern Jewish family caught in the throes of an identity crisis is muted by charm and humor. But “The Last Night of Ballyhoo” does more than relay a story – it casts a spotlight on the crossroads of a region, history and topic rarely considered by literary America.
Peppered with comedy and sentimentality, “The Last Night of Ballyhoo” examines a broad social issue through a domestic lens. Uhry’s careful, light treatment of the family’s intense and deeply rooted predicament sacrifices profundity but retains audience appeal. The crowd leaves the performance entertained and, to some degree, enlightened.
With her Christmas tree and worries for her unwed daughter Lala’s (Makela Spielman) future, social matriarch and household figurehead Boo Levy (Irene Ziegler) symbolizes the family’s full assimilation to the culture and conscious of 1930s Atlanta. Carving its social niche among the wealthy and “well-padded,” the family has severed all ties to its Jewish heritage.
Enter Joe Farkas (Jason Nuzzo), a recent hire into the family bedding company by Boo’s brother Adolph (Arthur Laupus) and an Eastern European Jew whose proud orthodoxy contrasts with the family’s forgotten German Judaism. Joe asks Boo’s niece, Sunny Freitag (Carolyn Pasquantonio), to the annual ball capping off “Ballyhoo” – a weeklong celebration for the South’s German-Jewish elite that historically excludes “the other kind” of Eastern European Jews.
The family’s aristocratic notions are challenged. The final scene finds the group sitting down with Joe for their first Shabbat dinner in years, a miracle that coats the production’s culminating moments with cheesy sentimentality.
With Lala, a neurotic daughter; Boo, an embittered poseur aristocrat; Adolph, the even-tempered voice of reason; their sister-in-law Reba Freitag (Kate Davis), a well-intentioned space cadet; her daughter, Sunny, beautiful and learned; and Joe, an ostentatious northern Yankee, the characters’ divergent roles bring a sense of balance to the stage.
The set, centered around the family’s gorgeous living room, is imbued with Southern aristocratic style. Curving tightly against the seats, the stage softens the line between audience and actor, fostering an intimacy unmatched by other theaters. Although Uhry’s work falls short in its description of the unique and complex topic, The Studio Theatre’s production of “The Last Night of Ballyhoo” does the script justice with humor and charm.