Wild Man premieres at University

The International Theater Program's December 3 world premiere of the play The Wild Man brings new life to a nearly century-old story and new attention to a Yiddish theater pioneer.

The play, which opens at 8 p.m. December 3 in Todd Theater, is based on a turn-of-the-century play, Der Wilder Mensch, written by Jacob Gordin, considered one of the first realists in Yiddish theater in the United States.

WORLD PREMIERE -- Denver Nash, left, plays Lemech, a son who becomes obsessed with his father's new wife, Zelda, and Daleep Akoi, right, is Zelda's lover in The Wild Man, a new play based on a long-lost work by turn-of-the-century playwright Jacob Gordin. The International Theater Program premieres the play December 3.

When playwright-in-residence Howard Marc Solomon first heard reference to Der Wilder Mensch some years ago, he was determined to find a copy of the work. Already interested in Yiddish theater, Solomon was intrigued by the tragic tale of repressed passions and obsessions among the nouveaux riches.

Wild times The Wild Man will be performed at 8 p.m. December 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, and 12 in Todd Theater on the University's River Campus. There will be a matinee performance at 3 p.m. Sunday, December 6. Tickets are $8 general admission; $7 for faculty, staff, and seniors; and $5 for students. Group rates are available. Visa and Mastercard are accepted. Tickets can be purchased at the box office or by calling x5-4088.

His quest turned up a single edition of the play, published in 1907 in Warsaw. Solomon translated the piece into English and crafted a new drama based on it.

The play is still set in czarist Russia a century ago and unveils the unhappy household of a wealthy widowed merchant. When the businessman, Shmul Leiblich, brings home a new wife, a cabaret singer and actress half his age, he disrupts the already fragile state of his family.

"This play is about passion," explains Solomon, "the passion of one son for business; the passion of another son for scholarship; and the passion of the eldest son, an idiot, for his father's new wife."

One of the better known Yiddish playwrights, Gordin was born in Russia in 1853 and came to New York City in 1891. He is considered the first important serious Yiddish playwright, ushering in what came to be known as the "first golden epoch" of socially aware, realistic plays in Yiddish theater.

The production team for The Wild Man includes director Nigel Maister, lighting designer Peter Dusaitis and set designer Holly Laws. The original score and sound design is by Obadiah Eaves.