Dong Hyeok Lee - Irena’s Vow revision
Irena’s Vow, Giving Us a Powerful Message from the Past
When was the last time you risked your own life for people that were almost complete strangers? This is not common among regular people like us because our lives are so important to us. However, to some warm-hearted people during the Holocaust, this was the only choice that they had for saving innocent Jews. Irena’s Vow, starring Tovah Feldshuh, is a story about a young woman named Irena Gut Opdyke who made it her own responsibility to save twelve Jews from being captured and sent to death camps. Irena had gone through many troubles trying to save these Jews. She had to face being raped, becoming the Nazi Major’s mistress, and even being humiliated by her own people of Poland just to help these people from being captured. She was basically playing the role of God to them because through her choices, these Jews were either going to live or die. This play is based on true memoirs of Irena and shows how courageous Irena was being in trying to save innocent people that did not deserve to die.
Irena’s Vow is a new play by Dan Gordon, directed by Michael Parva, being shown through November 2nd in the Baruch Performing Arts Center. The playwright Dan Gordon is considered to be a “master storyteller” in which he can create incredible relationships between the characters and the actors. Before writing this play, he contributed to many movies in which he helped the actors get familiar with their characters. Some of his works were Denzel Washington’s character of Rubin Carter in The Hurricane, Kevin Costner’s role in Wyatt Earp, and Kevin Bacon’s character of Henry Young in Murder in the First. The director Michael Parva, has an extraordinary background as well. Being the Artistic/Producing Director of The Directors Company, he developed numerous new plays and musicals. Some of his works are Bad Girls by Joyce Carol Oates, Kilt, featuring Tovah Feldshuh, Good Will, and more. He has worked with some of the most exceptional playwrights, including Dan Gordon’s Murder in the First, before working together for Irena’s Vow.
Irena’s Vow is a thrilling play and Tovah Feldshuh proves why she is the winner of four Tony nominations, four Drama Desk Awards, and more. Through her comedic acting and at times being very serious that her words go straight to your heart. The reality of this play was mostly because of the level of authenticity Tovah was able to express through her acting. She has proven her acting abilities in works such as Golda’s Balcony, which was sold out in San Francisco and Los Angeles in eight straight weeks. Other actors include Thomas Ryan, who played the Nazi Major Rugemer, and Steven Hauck, who played Schultz. These two actors have incredible resumes in their acting careers. All ten of these actors and actresses have great backgrounds with their acting.
I thought that overall Irena’s Vow was very well done. In the beginning, it was a little slow and boring, but as the plot went on, and as scenes were getting more intense, I could not keep my eyes off the stage. I was at the edge of my seat hoping that the Nazis would not capture these Jews. Given that it was a very small stage, it was like watching a movie with the great cast. I think that these actors did a very fine job in bringing their characters to life, especially Tovah’s role as Irena. This production does a good job in sending out the message to people that we should not forget that the Holocaust had occurred. Irena explains to us in the end of the play that if a day comes when people forget about the Holocaust, that the same thing might reoccur. I recommend this powerful play to all readers, in remembrance of the death of millions of innocent Jews in the Holocaust.
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