A theatre review of plays ‘Terror’ and ‘The Crucible’

Two riveting court dramas are now onstage in Ramat Gan.

The 2015 German play Terror, by Ferdinand von Schirach, translated by Esther and Sara von Schwarze, is being shown at Beit Zvi. The 1953 US play The Crucible, by Arthur Miller, translated by Shmuel Hasfari, is being performed at Impro. Both plays use court settings to confront our fears of the unknown.

In Schirach’s play, German jet fighter pilot Major Lars Koch (Dvir Ona) is accused of shooting down a commercial flight, killing civilians. Koch admits this, his reason being that the plane was hijacked. The terrorists in charge of it aired their intention to use the aircraft as a weapon and murder 70,000 people attending a soccer match.

Prosecutor Nelson (Roni Shoshan) claims he is a murderer. Defense counsel Biegler (Omer Bar) argues that his client acted justly. The judge (Sapir Nave) sits under the sign of the Court of Justice of the EU, a sword hovering over a book.

In this play, audience members act as jury. When Dedi Baron directed it in Salzburg, each patron was given a coin. Audience members placed their tokens on a scale to see if Koch was guilty or not. At Beit Zvi we were asked to scan a code and vote via phone.

Schirach, a lawyer, based his fictional play on facts. The German constitution starts with “Human dignity shall be inviolable.” One may not take the life of one person to save the life of another. Koch makes the argument that, after 9/11, anyone boarding a flight knows he might be turned into an unwilling component of a flying weapon. Nelson glances at the audience. “What risk had we taken leaving home tonight?” her eyes seem to ask.

Bar’s Biegler is viciously funny with an over-the-top attitude that glitters like the earing he wears. When told by the judge to wear his black robes, he comments, “Indeed, one should know where the criminals are” – a reference to a lawyer’s joke made by a German monarch. The polite rage Shoshan brings to the part of Nelson, as she confronts Biegler, is delicious to watch.

Directed by Maya Shaya, this solid and tight production is a good way to spend an evening enjoying contemporary theater.

Another court drama play to see

IN THE CRUCIBLE, Arthur Miller used the Salem witch trials of the 17th century to depict the Red Scare he and others experienced in the 1950s.

The fright felt by the American public in the ’50s was due to the Soviet Union appearing to be a foe to US values and interests. The USSR had Sputnik in space and nuclear weapons at the ready.

Miller and other intellectuals felt that Communism might be a real threat, but that the manner in which it was dealt with was insane.

The plot concerns Abigail Williams (Miroz Adri), who led several young women to a party of sorts in the woods. Discovered by Rev. Samuel Parris (Mani Asis), she claims that Tituba, a black slave (Geot Madmon), is a witch, and that she, Williams, is a victim of the devil. Williams is able to recruit the other girls from the woods, and together they shriek and claim to see visions.

Parris is quick to see the potential; he can muster the town to combat Satan! We later learn Williams was removed from another household, that of John Proctor (Daniel Shavit), after he had an affair with her.

We quickly learn Satan had allegedly tempted other women – including Proctor’s wife – and all will be hung as witches. Will the town, in a frenzy, continue to hang people, believing they are destroying the minions of the Devil, or will Proctor save his wife? A court of justice is created, and Judge Thomas Danforth is summoned.

Ido Behar, who plays Danforth, is a large man. He employs his bulk to tower above other characters and portray the judge as a bastion of stern might.

Only when confronted by the supernatural visions of several women huddled together does his confidence crack.

Behar is excellent at allowing us a glimpse into the inner workings of a man who strongly upholds the law but, at the same time, also fears hell.

Madmon deserves praise for her portrait of Tituba, a decent woman forced to say horrendous things to survive. Tav Hatav also deserves praise in the role of Rev. John Hale, who starts the play earnestly believing that the unseen forces of the inferno are described in books, and ends it denouncing the witch trials as a sham.

Directed by Dori Engal, the play is an effective adaptation of an American classic still poignant today.

Terror will be shown at Beit Tzvi Theater, 2 Shu’alei Shimshon Street, Ramat Gan, on Monday, Feb. 12, at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 13, at 7 p.m., Wed., Feb. 14, at 8:30 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 15, at noon and at 6 p.m. NIS 50-60 per ticket. Call (03) 579-9290 to book. Roles alternate between acting students. Hebrew only. 

The Crucible will be shown at the Impro Theater, 104 Jabotinsky Street, Ramat Gan, on Tuesday, Feb. 13, Thursday, Feb. 15, Saturday, Feb. 17, Tuesday, Feb. 20, Thursday, Feb. 22, Saturday, Feb. 24, Tuesday, Feb. 27, and Thursday, Feb. 29, at 8:30 p.m. (all shows). NIS 70 per ticket. Purchases must be made online via https://www.impro.co.il/. Hebrew only.