In Every Generation

by Ali Viterbi

One family. One holiday. Four millennia. The Levi-Katz family celebrates Passover again and again (and again and again) and while times, location, and languages change, traditions stay the same. Over matzah ball soup and (vegan) brisket, the close-knit clan contends with questions of race, religion, and inter-generational trauma. The present echoes the past—and the past the present—as the family repeatedly...

One family. One holiday. Four millennia. The Levi-Katz family celebrates Passover again and again (and again and again) and while times, location, and languages change, traditions stay the same. Over matzah ball soup and (vegan) brisket, the close-knit clan contends with questions of race, religion, and inter-generational trauma. The present echoes the past—and the past the present—as the family repeatedly reenacts the exodus from Egypt, each time asking themselves: must we define ourselves through trauma? Will we ever be free? And why is this night different from all other nights?

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In Every Generation

Recommended by

  • David Davila: In Every Generation

    A masterpiece of a play that asks its audience to wager the price of a people's identity against the survival of that very identity. Is it better to assimilate to the identity of the oppressor or die filled with a pride for your cultural and ethnic history? Everyone should read this play and it should be taught in schools. The perfect starting point for conversations around colonialism, fascism, and genocide in any generation across all racial, ethnic, and national identities.

    A masterpiece of a play that asks its audience to wager the price of a people's identity against the survival of that very identity. Is it better to assimilate to the identity of the oppressor or die filled with a pride for your cultural and ethnic history? Everyone should read this play and it should be taught in schools. The perfect starting point for conversations around colonialism, fascism, and genocide in any generation across all racial, ethnic, and national identities.

  • Lainie Vansant: In Every Generation

    "Ritual is tradition, but it's also time travel." What a beautiful start to this beautiful play. Viterbi tackles the mystical with humanity and grace in this piece. It's heart wrenching and lovely, and I wish I could see it live.

    "Ritual is tradition, but it's also time travel." What a beautiful start to this beautiful play. Viterbi tackles the mystical with humanity and grace in this piece. It's heart wrenching and lovely, and I wish I could see it live.

  • Nick Malakhow: In Every Generation

    A beautiful play both intimate and epic in scope. In the Levi-Katz family and the holiday of Passover, we have a core nucleus to care about and track as Viterbi explores so many aspects of Judaism, Jewish identity/diaspora and the multitudes within. Highly theatrical but accessible...I hope to see this produced far and wide!

    A beautiful play both intimate and epic in scope. In the Levi-Katz family and the holiday of Passover, we have a core nucleus to care about and track as Viterbi explores so many aspects of Judaism, Jewish identity/diaspora and the multitudes within. Highly theatrical but accessible...I hope to see this produced far and wide!

View all 13 recommendations

Character Information

  • Dev Levi-Katz
    Speaks some Hebrew
    Character Age
    23
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Chinese American,
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • Yael Levi-Katz
    Speaks some Hebrew
    Character Age
    19
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    White,
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • Valeria Levi
    Speaks Italian
    Character Age
    57
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    White,
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • Paola Levi
    Speaks Italian and some Hebrew
    Character Age
    85
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    White,
    Sephardic Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • Davide Levi
    Speaks Italian and some Hebrew
    Character Age
    87
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    White,
    Italian Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Male

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization North Coast Repertory Theatre, Year 2018
  • Type Reading, Organization Last Frontier Theatre Conference, Year 2018
  • Type Reading, Organization The Barrow Group, Year 2018
  • Type Residency, Organization Wildacres Residency, Year 2017

Production History

  • Type Professional, Organization TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Year 2023
  • Type Professional, Organization Victory Gardens Theater, Year 2022

Awards