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

  • Alona Bach:
    16 Apr. 2019
    “ This is a lively and empathetic portrait of one family across time, and a Passover play that beautifully liberates the story from the seder table with a transcendent final act. I love the language, the traditions, the tough-but-vital questions that the play poses about what it means to be Jewish (here and now and across the generations). ”
  • Joanna Castle Miller:
    18 Jul. 2018
    “ In Every Generation is a haunting, poignant play about collective memory and the way in which we carry our pasts with us. By taking you on a journey through time and language, she explores what it means to be a family, a people, and an individual within a broader community. Ali has built a masterpiece around one dinner, and I can't recommend it enough. ”

Character Information

  • Dev Levi-Katz
    23,
    Chinese-American
    ,
    Female
    Speaks some Hebrew
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Asian, Pacific Islander, or Asian American
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Yael Levi-Katz
    19,
    White
    ,
    Female
    Speaks some Hebrew
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      Teens, 20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Valeria Levi
    57,
    White
    ,
    Female
    Speaks Italian
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      50s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Paola Levi
    85,
    White
    ,
    Female
    Speaks Italian and some Hebrew
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      70s+
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Davide Levi
    87,
    White
    ,
    Male
    Speaks Italian and some Hebrew
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      70s+
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Male

Development History

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