Oklahoma Samovar by Alice Eve Cohen

In 1887, two Latvian teenagers, Jake and Hattie, flee the Russian Army and become the only Jews in the Oklahoma Land Rush. One hundred years later, their ninety-year-old daughter Sylvia reinvents their story, aided by ghosts, blintzes and strong Russian tea. Traveling through time, five generations in a Jewish pioneer family travel East to West and then West to East, staking their claims in Kansas, Oklahoma,...
In 1887, two Latvian teenagers, Jake and Hattie, flee the Russian Army and become the only Jews in the Oklahoma Land Rush. One hundred years later, their ninety-year-old daughter Sylvia reinvents their story, aided by ghosts, blintzes and strong Russian tea. Traveling through time, five generations in a Jewish pioneer family travel East to West and then West to East, staking their claims in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Coney Island. Along the way, they put down roots and dig graves, embodying their own Jewish variations on the mythologized and turbulent American Dream. Based on real events, Oklahoma Samovar is an utterly human and absolutely unique American story.

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Oklahoma Samovar

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4W, 2M (with doubling) Flexible casting up to 16 actors (10W, 6M)
EMILY, 22. Same actor plays Rose.
HATTIE, 17. Same actor plays Maxine.
JAKE, 18. Also 56.
SYLVIA: 90, Same actor plays Hattie’s Mother and Mrs. Giventer.
CLARA (6-8): Same actor plays Little Rose

CHARACTERS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
SYLVIA: 87 years old; also appears at ages 4 and 45. Daughter of Jake and Hattie. Born and bred on a farm, she speaks with a rural Oklahoma accent. Born 1900 in Chandler, Oklahoma.

EMILY: 20 years, a college student. Daughter of Clara. Born 1967 in NYC

HATTIE’S MOTHER: 42 and 97 years-old. Latvian, Jewish. Born 1845, Riga, Latvia.

JAKE: 18-56 years. Free-spirited Jewish pioneer, Latvian immigrant. Husband to Hattie, father to Rose & Sylvia. Born 1869, Riga, Latvia.

HATTIE: 16-75 years. A fearless and practical Jewish pioneer, Latvian immigrant. Wife to Jake, mother to Rose & Sylvia. Born 1870, Riga, Latvia.

ELLIS ISLAND OFFICIAL: A New Yorker

MAX: Jake’s friend, a recent Jewish immigrant.

WOMAN ON GRAND STREET: Recent Jewish immigrant.

CHARLIE McCLANAHAN: Kansas banker and pioneer; born in Ireland.

SOONER: Outlaw in the Oklahoma Land Run of 1889.

ROSE: 18-49 years. Daughter of Jake and Hattie, mother of Clara and Walter. Romantic, idealistic, and beautiful. Born 1896, Chandler, Oklahoma.

LITTLE ROSE: 8 years old (played by child actor). Daughter of Jake and Hattie. A farm girl. Born 1896, Chandler, Oklahoma.

BEN: 22-53 years. Rose’s husband. Intellectual, Russian Jewish immigrant. Born 1892, Odessa, Russia. Came to America in 1912.

MAXINE: 24-50 years. Ben’s big sister—rebellious, bisexual, flamboyant. Born 1890, Odessa, Russia. Came to US in 1910.

CLARA: 6 to 8 years old (played by child actor). Rose & Ben’s daughter. Born in Brooklyn, 1923.

MRS. GIVENTER: 50-75 years. Ben’s Mother, Orthodox Jew from Russia, a mean old lady. Born in Odessa, Russia, 1864. Came to America in 1912.

BEN, 22. Also 53. Same actor plays Max, Ellis Island Official, Woman on
Grand Street, Charlie, Sooner, Passover guest.

LITTLE ROSE, 6-8-years-old. Same actor plays Clara

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Jewish Plays Project, National Jewish Playwriting Contest virtual tour
    ,
    2021

Production History

  • Workshop
    ,
    78th Street Theatre Lab
    ,
    2009

Awards

Finalist
,
Jewish Play Project 10th Annual Jewish Playwriting Contest
,
Jewish Play Project
,
2021