(David C. Nichols’s article appeared in the L.A. Times, 9/28.)
As Eugene shares his secret writing ambitions and burning pubescent urges with preternatural aplomb and many one-liners, his real-life proxy makes pert observations about sibling rivalry, parent-child relationships and internecine charity. Despite a spate of over-tidy Act 2 resolutions and some too-easy Jewish-vs.-gentile zingers, the current environment lends Simon's plot turns a patina of relevance, from lost jobs and health crises to imperiled foreign kin and reckless enlistment.
Visit Stage Voices blog: http://stagevoices.typepad.com/stage_voices