These and Those by Ruth Geye

October 27, 2018

Six college students pile into a small basement apartment for Shabbat lunch, but they can’t keep the outside world from showing up uninvited.
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These and Those

Recommended by

  • Playwrights Foundation:
    11 Oct. 2023
    “ The community of National Committee readers for the 46th Bay Area Playwrights Festival advanced THESE AND THOSE as a Semi-Finalist at Playwrights Foundation. We were compelled by the play's interrogations of how observing traditions shapes one's worldview, as well as friendships and relationships. We were deeply moved by the impact of an outside traumatic event on the characters, and variety of responses generated from within a community's safe space and traditions. We hope this play is considered for further development and investigation, and finds dedicated collaborators in this play’s journey towards production. #BAPF46 ”
  • Ruby Lee Lowenstein:
    16 May. 2022
    “ This play is so thoughtfully and boldly written. The characters are sincere and fully human, each with their own set of razor sharp insights and perceptual shortcomings. The searching, grasping, self-examining, urgent dialogue is truly a force to be reckoned with on the page. I'm really glad I read this play!! ”
  • Jewish Plays Project:
    14 Feb. 2022
    “ The Jewish Plays Project recommends THESE AND THOSE as a Semi-Finalist for the 11th annual Jewish Playwriting Contest. Our community of readers found this piece compelling as it dramatizes debates facing the modern Orthodox community today, and how beliefs change when violence becomes closer and more real. The play questions if it's more important to be right or safe---with characters that are highly recognizable and specific. THESE AND THOSE rose to the top 20 out of 250 plays and we hope this play swiftly finds opportunities to reach new audiences. ”
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Character Information

  • Ayala Melamed
    early 20s,
    Moroccan+Ashkenazi
    ,
    woman
    Lots of opinions, zero self-awareness.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Middle Eastern, North African, or Arab American, White
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Bension Zargari
    early 20s,
    Persian
    ,
    Man
    tall, quiet, and 2-3 years too old to be a freshman in college.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Middle Eastern, North African, or Arab American
    • Gender: 
      Male
  • Elisheva Birnbaum
    early 20s,
    Ashkenazi
    ,
    woman
    effortlessly frum, unintentionally cold.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Jake Attias
    early 20s,
    Russian+Moroccan
    ,
    Man
    regional secretary of the College Republicans.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Middle Eastern, North African, or Arab American, White
    • Gender: 
      Male
  • Josh Landsman
    early 20s,
    Ashkenazi
    ,
    Man
    drifting away from the Orthodoxy he was raised with but unable to commit to new convictions
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Male
  • Katie Miller
    early 20s,
    woman
    became religious on her own as a teen; occasionally overcompensates, but always earnestly.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      Any age
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Theater Between Addresses
    ,
    2021
  • Workshop
    ,
    NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Undergrad Thesis
    ,
    2020
  • Workshop
    ,
    Theater Between Addresses
    ,
    2020

Production History

  • Fringe
    ,
    New York Theater Festival - Summerfest
    ,
    2022

Awards

Longlist, Theatre 503 International Playwriting Prize
,
2023
Semi-Finalist
,
O'Neill NPC
,
Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
,
2021
Quarterfinalist
,
Screencraft Stage Play Competition
,
2021