←Recommendations of AFIKOMAN

  • Morey Norkin: AFIKOMAN by Sam Heyman
    “

    The Passover Seder is a celebration filled with symbolism. And like a well-ordered Seder, AFIKOMAN is a story of emancipation, though on a very personal level, that beautifully captures the imagery of Passover. Leo, the middle child now adult is like the titular middle matzo, broken and hidden away. As with a Seder, this story relies on the youngest child to ask gentle, probing questions to understand the the meaning of events. Our hope is that Leo will be able to recline at the table free from past troubles. Outstanding writing, well-conceived! Someone please stage this!

    The Passover Seder is a celebration filled with symbolism. And like a well-ordered Seder, AFIKOMAN is a story of emancipation, though on a very personal level, that beautifully captures the imagery of Passover. Leo, the middle child now adult is like the titular middle matzo, broken and hidden away. As with a Seder, this story relies on the youngest child to ask gentle, probing questions to understand the the meaning of events. Our hope is that Leo will be able to recline at the table free from past troubles. Outstanding writing, well-conceived! Someone please stage this!

    ”
  • Philip Middleton Williams: AFIKOMAN by Sam Heyman
    “

    Family gatherings are fertile grounds for finding out the truths and feelings that lie beneath the veneer of celebration or mourning. When the Rubin-Rice family gathers for Passover and the observation of the traditions, we listen in as brothers Joel and Leo, estranged for years, come to terms with the past and the tragedies -- large and small -- that caused the rift. As it happens at every Seder, it is the child asking the questions, seeking the hidden truths, who leads them to find it, along with the afikoman -- the matzoh -- itself.

    Family gatherings are fertile grounds for finding out the truths and feelings that lie beneath the veneer of celebration or mourning. When the Rubin-Rice family gathers for Passover and the observation of the traditions, we listen in as brothers Joel and Leo, estranged for years, come to terms with the past and the tragedies -- large and small -- that caused the rift. As it happens at every Seder, it is the child asking the questions, seeking the hidden truths, who leads them to find it, along with the afikoman -- the matzoh -- itself.

    ”
  • Scott Sickles: AFIKOMAN by Sam Heyman
    “

    Leo, like the titular afikoman, is Jewish, broken, and hidden away as a family searches for him on Pesach. The hiding is of his own volition. And within him is hidden still more: past trauma, losses, resentments -- a helplessness in watching a toxic history repeat itself while everyone else makes the best of it. Well... not everyone. There's the other human afikomen in the room: his niece Rivka. The bond they share is quite profound, the family they share drowning in good intentions without realizing they need air. It's a gorgeous setpiece, theatrical, heartfelt and powerful.

    Leo, like the titular afikoman, is Jewish, broken, and hidden away as a family searches for him on Pesach. The hiding is of his own volition. And within him is hidden still more: past trauma, losses, resentments -- a helplessness in watching a toxic history repeat itself while everyone else makes the best of it. Well... not everyone. There's the other human afikomen in the room: his niece Rivka. The bond they share is quite profound, the family they share drowning in good intentions without realizing they need air. It's a gorgeous setpiece, theatrical, heartfelt and powerful.

    ”