Bad Jews
OCT 24 - NOV 29, 2014Buy Tickets NowWritten by Joshua Harmon
Directed by Rebecca Bradshaw
Production Stage Managed by Tareena D. Wimbish
Scenic Design by Eric Levenson
Costume Design by Tyler Kinney
Lighting Design by Chris Bocchiaro
Sound Design by Ed Young
Properties Supervision by Kat Nakaji
Fight Choreography by Angie Jepson
Producers Circle
Producers
Will and Sue Korman
Executive Producer
Betty Goldstein
Associate Producers
Emily and Justin Gainor
This production is made possible through the generosity of these donors. For more information about joining the Producers Circle please contact Jeff Kubiatowicz, Director of Development, at jeff@speakeasystage.com or 617-482-3279.
Two cousins wage war over a coveted family heirloom in this biting comedy about religion and culture. At odds are the annoyingly devout Daphna Feygenbaum, a young woman who wears her Jewishness like a righteous badge of honor, and her equally self-centered cousin Liam Haber, an entitled young man who has spent much of his life distancing himself from his cultural traditions. When the combatants are forced to spend the night in close quarters, the result is a viciously funny brawl over family, faith, and legacy.
Approximately 100 minutes, no intermission.
Click here for a full calendar of performances and events. >>
Featuring:
Gillian Mariner Gordon*… Melody
Alex Marz… Jonah Haber
Alison McCartan*… Daphna Feygenbaum
Victor Shopov… Liam Haber
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Who's Who
Cast & Crew
MARCO AIELLO (Production Intern) is pleased to be making his SpeakEasy debut. In 2011, he was an assistant stage manager for a musical performance of Peter Pan and in 2013 he was a co-stage manager for a performance of AmericaMisfit.
CHRIS BOCCHIARO (Lighting Design) SpeakEasy: debut. Chris’ work has been seen throughout the greater Boston Area, including recent production at The Lyric Stage Company, Boston Opera Collaborative, Apollinaire Theatre, Flat Earth Theatre, Fresh Ink Theatre, The Longwood Players, Opera Brittenica, Fort Point Theatre Channel, Theatre on Fire, The Company Theatre, Gloucester Stage, Emerson Stage, and imaginary beasts, the last for which he is also an Artistic Associate. Chris was the recipient of the 2013 IRNE Award for Best Lighting Design. He holds a BFA in Theatre Design and Technology from Emerson College. chrisbocchiaro.com
REBECCA BRADSHAW (Director) SpeakEasy: directorial debut. Rebecca has previously directed world premieres of MJ Halberstadt’s not Jenny (Bridge Repertory Theater of Boston) and The Da Vinci Commission (Can’t Wait Productions), Patrick Gabridge’s Fire on Earth (Fresh Ink Theatre), and Mark Mazzenga’s A Feeble Mind(Brown Box Theatre Project). Other directing credits include: Red (The Umbrella), Othello (Studio 7 Productions), scenes from Cosi Fan Tutte, The Magic Flute, and The Turn of the Screw (New England Conservatory’s Undergraduate Opera Studio). She has worked with Huntington Theatre Company, ArtsEmerson, and New Repertory Theatre. Rebecca holds a BA from Emerson College in Theatre Studies.
LEAH CARNOW (Assistant Director) SpeakEasy: debut. Directing credits: Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Yearsand William Finn’s Elegies (Brandeis University). Acting credits: It’s A Wonderful Life (Wheelock Family Theatre), God Hates Musicals (Ministry of Theater), Ragtime (Fiddlehead Theatre Company), The Bacchae (Tubiforce/Komoi Collective), and Kiss Me, Kate (Longwood Players). Leah also appears as Jenny in Staying in Boston, a new webseries by Paracelsus Films. She received her BA in Theater Arts and Creative Writing from Brandeis University. For Yoni, my good Jewish boy. leahcarnow.com
PAUL DAIGNEAULT (Producing Artistic Director) was the recipient of the 2014 Elliot Norton Prize for Sustained Excellence by the Boston Theater Critics Association. Since founding SpeakEasy in 1992, he has produced over 100 Boston premieres. SpeakEasy directing highlights include: The Color Purple; In the Heights; Xanadu; Next to Normal; Nine; Body Awareness; The Great American Trailer Park Musical; [title of show]; The Savannah Disputation; Jerry Springer – The Opera; The New Century; Some Men; Zanna, Don’t!; Parade (2008 Elliot Norton Award – Outstanding Director, Midsize Company); Almost, Maine; Caroline, or Change; Take Me Out; Company; A Man of No Importance (co-production Súgán); Bat Boy: The Musical (2003 Elliot Norton Award – Outstanding Director, Small Company); Passion; A New Brain; Violet; Songs for a New World; Floyd Collins; Jeffrey; and Love! Valour! Compassion! Regional credits: Grand Hotel and Nine (The Boston Conservatory and Cincinnati Conservatory of Music); Rent, City of Angels, Sunday in the Park with George, and Merrily We Roll Along (The Boston Conservatory); and Into the Woods, Urinetown, and Blue Window (Boston College). Paul is also on the faculty at The Boston Conservatory where he teaches musical theatre and directing. He has also been honored with the Boston College Arts Council’s Alumni Award for Distinguished Achievement in 2007, and served as the 2011-2012 Rev. J. Donald Monan S.J. Professor in Theatre Arts. Outside the theatre, Paul serves on the Boards of the Barbara C. Harris Camp and Conference Center and the ICU Patient & Family Advisory Council at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
MARGARET GALVIN (Costume Design Intern) Margaret is excited to be working on her second show with SpeakEasy. A senior at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design with a focus in Fashion Design and Art History, she is thrilled to continue to experience different types of productions after her work on Far From Heaven. Margaret plans to pursue a career in Costume Design upon graduation.
ANGIE JEPSON (Fight Choreographer) Angie returns to SpeakEasy after having choreographed fights for several SpeakEasy productions including Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson and reasons to be pretty. Other Boston-area fight choreography credits include Becoming Cuba and M with the Huntington Theatre Company, Fences with Gloucester Stage Company,Camelot with New Repertory Theatre, and The Haberdasher with Argos Productions. Angie is also an actress and professor in the Boston area and currently teaches at Boston University and Worcester State University.
TYLER KINNEY (Costume Design) Tyler is excited to return to SpeakEasy Stage, having previously designed Next to Normal and Striking 12. Tyler also designed costumes for Henry VIII, (IRNE Award for Best Costume Design, Actors’ Shakespeare Project); One Man, Two Guvnors; The Temperamentals; By the Way, Meet Vera Stark (Lyric Stage Company); Collected Stories; Tales of Poe (New Rep); The Marvelous Wonderettes (Stoneham Theatre); Astro Boy & The God of Comics (Company One). Tyler is a BFA Theatre Design/Technology graduate from Emerson College. He was a Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival national finalist for his scenic design of Bud, Not Buddy. Upcoming productions include Meet Me in St. Louis (Stoneham) and Henry VI, Part 2. (ASP). TylerKinney.com
ERIC LEVENSON** (Scenic Design). Previous SpeakEasy designs include sets for Far from Heaven; CARRIE the musical; Kurt Vonnegut’s Make Up Your Mind; Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson; The Motherf**ker with the Hat; Next to Normal; Nine; [title of show]; The Savannah Disputation; Jerry Springer – The Opera; Blackbird; Some Men; Parade; Kiss of the Spiderwoman; Take Me Out; Company; A Man of No Importance (co-production with Súgán); A Class Act; Three Days of Rain; An American Daughter and Balm in Gilead (Elliot Norton Design Award). Eric recently participated in Sally Taylor’s Consenses, a multi-discipline project which premiered on Martha’s Vineyard in August. Eric is an All-Categories member of United Scenic Artists, IATSE Local USA 829.
GILLIAN MARINER GORDON* SpeakEasy: debut. Gillian’s recent credits include Donnie Darko (American Repertory Theater); A Christmas Carol (Belle, North Shore Music Theatre); These Seven Sicknesses (Antigone, Suffolk University’s Modern Theatre); and Singin’ in the Rain (Kathy), Fiddler on the Roof (Hodel), and The Sound of Music (Liesl, IRNE nomination, Reagle Music Theatre). Gillian has also performed at Wheelock Family Theatre and Stoneham Theatre and in the Boston Theater Marathon. Sincere thanks to Rebecca, Paul, and everyone at SpeakEasy. Love to the family. www.gilliangordon.net
ALEX MARZ SpeakEasy: debut. Previous roles include Chris in Becky’s New Car (Lyric StageCompany), Macbeth in Macbeth (Brown Box Theatre Project), Romeo in R&J (Boston Theater Company), and Posthumous in Cymbeline (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company). Alex has appeared on stage and trained at The Eugene O’NeillTheater Center and Williamstown Theatre Festival. He is a recent graduate of Connecticut College – Go Camels – holding dual degrees in Theater and American Studies.
ALISON McCARTAN* (Violet) is thrilled to return to SpeakEasy having previously appeared in Bad Jews and The Drowsy Chaperone. National Tour: Shrek the Musical (NETworks Presentations). Regional: Dames at Sea, Steel Magnolias, 42nd Street (The Wick Theatre); A Chorus Line (Weston Playhouse); Next to Normal, This is Our Youth (Hangar Theatre); The Rocky Horror Show (The Ordway). Proud graduate of The Boston Conservatory! She would like to thank Paul Daigneault and everyone at SpeakEasy, her agents at Henderson Hogan, and her incredible family and friends for all their love and support. Thoughts Become Things!
PAUL MELONE (General Manager/Production Manager) has managed over 80 plays, musicals, concerts, cabarets, and special events for SpeakEasy Stage. His SpeakEasy directing credits include: CARRIE the musical; Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (2013 Elliot Norton Award – Outstanding Director); reasons to be pretty; Adding Machine: A Musical(2010 Elliot Norton Award – Outstanding Director); The Little Dog Laughed; Fat Pig: The Moonlight Room; Our Lady of 121st Street; and The Shape of Things. Other local directing credits include The Apple Tree (The Boston Conservatory),Curse of the Starving Class (Apollinaire Theatre Company), and Things Beyond Our Control (Brandeis University). Paul is a graduate of Boston University’s Theatre Department.
VERONICA MORALES (Production Assistant) SpeakEasy: debut. Recently Veronica has stage managed the premier of The Homework Machine (Boston Children’s Theater). Her other credits include working for North Shore Music Theater and Apollinaire Theater as well as doing freelance for different theaters in the Boston area. Veronica is a graduate from Fitchburg State University’s Industrial Technology technical theatre department.
KATHRYN NAKAJI (Props Master) Kat made her SpeakEasy debut last season with CARRIE the musical. Her other Props Master credits include Sugar and Baritones Unbound (ArtEmerson), The Importance of Being Earnest (The Longwood Players), and On the Town (Emerson Stage). This summer Kat also served as the Assistant Prop Master for Finding Neverland (American Repertory Theater). When not propping shows, Kat works for the A.R.T. and the Harvard Radcliffe Dramatic Club at The Loeb Drama Center.
AMANDA OSTROW (Wardrobe Supervisor) Amanda is thrilled to return to SpeakEasy after working on: Far From Heaven,CARRIE the musical, The Whale, The Color Purple, Kurt Vonnegut’s Make Up Your Mind, Tribes, In the Heights,Clybourne Park, Other Desert Cities, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, The Motherf**ker with the Hat, and Xanadu. International touring credit: The Aluminum Show. Local credits include work at: Gloucester Stage Company, Hanover Theatre, Bad Habit Productions, Lyric Stage, Reagle Music Theatre, Actors’ Shakespeare Project, The Nora Theatre Company, and the Publick Theatre. Amanda received her BA in Media Studies and Business at the University of Southern Maine and is an EMC in Stage Management.
VICTOR SHOPOV SpeakEasy: debut. Other credits include Bent, The Normal Heart (Boston My Theatre Award, Best Actor; IRNE Award, Best Play), Punk Rock (Elliot Norton Award, Outstanding Production), A Bright New Boise, Enron (IRNE Award, Best Actor), and Farragut North (Zeitgeist Stage Company); Death of a Salesman, 33 Variations, and The Temperamentals (Lyric Stage Company); Indiscreet Discretion (Fort Point Theatre Channel);Hideous Progeny and The Mistakes Madeline Made (Holland Productions); The Country Club (Happy Medium Theatre); Macbeth (Gurnet Theatre Project); and The Heidi Chronicles (Longwood Players). He holds degrees from Emerson College and Northeastern University. www.victorshopov.com.
ALIX STRASNICK (Technical Director) Alix is excited to be back at SpeakEasy for her third season as the company’s Technical Director. Past SpeakEasy credits include Tribes; In the Heights, The Whale, and Next to Normal. Alix also served as Master Electrician for SpeakEasy’s productions of Next Fall and The Divine Sister. She is the Assistant Technical Director at the Groton School and worked on their productions of HairSpray and Romeo and Juliet. Other credits include Good Person, The Land (Fort Point Theatre Channel), Rock ‘n’ Roll, Lend Me a Tenor (Longwood Players), Much Ado About Nothing (Commonwealth Shakespeare Company: Apprentice Showcase) and She Kills Monsters (Company One).
JULIE STREETER (Master Electrician) Julie is excited to be working her first full season with SpeakEasy Stage! She also works as the ME at Brandeis University, and freelances for many of the theaters and event production companies in Boston.
TAREENA D. WIMBISH* (Production Stage Manager) Tareena is delighted to return to SpeakEasy having recently worked on Far from Heaven and The Color Purple. Boston: Auld Lang Syne (Gloucester Stage); Our Lady, In Between, and Tongue of a Bird (New Rep); Proclamation Project and The Donkey Show (A.R.T.); Kiss Me, Kate (CSC); and Next to Normal (Cape Rep). Touring (select): Gazillion Bubble Show (Jon B. Platt) and The 39 Steps (2nd National–Windwood). Upcoming projects: The Colored Museum (Huntington). Tareena teaches stage management at Cape Rep. in Brewster, MA and received an MFA in Stage Management from UC – San Diego.
EDWARD YOUNG SpeakEasy: debut. He was the 2012 Sound Design Fellow at the Hangar Theatre and has had his work included in the Cannes Film Festival (2011), EMM Festival (2011), Boehlen-Pierce Symposium, and a collection of Boston theatrical productions including:The Flick (2014 Elliot Norton Awards – Best Design & Outstanding Production), and How We Got On ( 2014 Elliot Norton Nominee – Outstanding Production) with Company One; Pattern of Life and Imagining Madoff (2014 Elliot Norton Nominee – Outstanding Production), with New Repertory Theatre; and The Lover (2014 IRNE Nominee – Best Sound Design), with Bridge Rep of Boston. edwardjakeyoung.org
Special Events: Bad Jews

From talkbacks to artists forums to special guest speakers, this Fall is full of special events around SpeakEasy’s production of Bad Jews! Recurring Events: ARTISTS FORUM: Participate in a talkback after the performance, featuring actors and other artists from the show. Friday, November 28(after 2PM matinee) AUDIENCE DISCUSSION: Join us for a post-show conversation about the themes and ideas […]
read more2014 IRNE Nominations

The Independent Reviewers of New England have announced their nominations for the 2015 IRNE Awards, and SpeakEasy is proud to have earned 20 nominations for our productions and artists. The ceremony will be held April 13, at 7:30 pm (doors at 7 p.m.), at the Cyclorama at the Boston Center for the Arts, 539 Tremont Street, […]
read moreBad Jews Production Photos

Click images below to view full size. Then right-click and “Save As” to download high-resolution versions. Credit all images to Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo.
read moreBAD JEWS Playwright Joshua Harmon

Playwright Joshua Harmon talks about the origins of BAD JEWS, its ideas of remembrance and memorial, and whether it’s objectively possible to be a “bad” member of any culture.
read moreMeet the Cast: Victor Shopov

Learn about Victor Shopov, the actor who portrays the intelligent and intense Liam.
read moreMeet the Cast: Alison McCartan

An interview with actress Alison McCartan, who plays the fiery Daphna, a young woman known as much for her thick, intense, frizzy, brown hair as for her “holier-than-thou” “in-your-face” attitude.
read moreMeet the Cast: Gillian Mariner Gordon

Gillian Mariner Gordon, the actress who plays Melody, shares her thoughts on her optimistic and sometimes “Pollyanna-ish” character.
read moreBad Jews – A Rabbi’s Reflections

Bad Jews is described as “a seriously smart comedy about family, faith, and legacy.” I would heartily agree… but we must also acknowledge that many people will find it provocative and perhaps even offensive. In the current charged political climate following this past summer’s war between Israel and the Hamas-controlled Palestinian area of Gaza, many […]
read more