June 12, 2008 Issue                                       

©2007 The Chestnut Hill Local

Mt. Airy playwright brings Israeli conflict home
by JENNIFER KATZ

Mt. Airy playwright Larry Loebell presents a point of view in House, Divided that many American Jews would definitely find controversial. (Photo by Leslie Brossman)

In Mt. Airy playwright Larry Loebell’s latest work, House Divided, the convictions of American Jews and their attachment to Israel take center stage. The play, which debuted at the end of May and runs through June 22 at Interact Theater Company, explores the rarely talked about struggle some Jewish Americans face reconciling their beliefs with a Zionist movement that requires fervent loyalty.

For many American Jews, speaking out against Israel is unheard of, which makes the viewing of House Divided somewhat of a shock. By and large, it is a piercing dissection of the pro-Israel movement. Centered around two brothers, Lou and Doug Goldstein, and their sons, Oren and Paul, respectively, the play spans three decades telling the story of these two men who chose very different paths that led them away from each other and to opposing views on Israel, their family and the future.

“I wanted to write a play that was as balanced as possible from the American perspective,” said Loebell. “I didn’t feel I had the right to portray it from the Israeli perspective.”

Instead, Loebell tells the story of American-born Jewish men. After the Goldstein matriarch dies, Lou moves to Israel with his father, and Doug continues to work for the anti-war movement in the U.S. around the time of the Vietnam war.

Lou Goldstein (left, played by David Howey) and his son Oren Goldstein (played by Davy Raphaely) discuss why Oren has deserted the Israeli army and is seeking asylum at his uncle’s home in Philadelphia in InterAct Theatre Company’s world premiere production of the new drama, House, Divided, written by Mt. Airy playwright Larry Loebell, directed by Seth Rozin, running through June 22. (Photo by Seth Rozin and courtesy of InterAct Theatre Company)

Loebell first decided to write the play a couple of years ago. He has been the literary manager for Interact for about eight years. “We were seeing plays with Israel as the oppressor and the Palestinians as the oppressed,” he said.

To begin the process, Loebell applied for and received a grant from a Jewish organization. He took a trip to Israel in the spring of 2006, where he was able to visit Tel Aviv, the West Bank, Jerusalem and even some relatives who live in Israel. “Although the play is not autobiographical, some aspects parallel concerns of my family members,” he said.

In the play Lou comes back to Philadelphia after 33 years to get his son, Oren, who has fled Israel to figure out what he is going to do after abandoning his military unit. Lou and his brother, Doug, who still lives in their familial home, come face to face for the first time. Doug’s son, Paul, however, has been to Israel many times and knows both his uncle and his cousin quite well.

Oren deserted the military because he could no longer reconcile what he was being asked to do with his own beliefs. Along with the religious concerns that he shares with his father, Oren also has doubts about the way in which Israel is using its military. He disagrees with some of the tactical decisions that have been made and further has fallen in love with a Palestinian girl.

Loebell said that as he was writing the play, it became clear to him that it needed the voices of the next generation. “It’s really a family drama with the issues that face those living in Israel,” he said. “The characters are the embodiment of different ideas about nationalism.”

The brothers represent different sides of their generations’ views on the issue, while the cousins represent the evolution of the argument for the current generation. “I think that I have accurately depicted the views of the relationship between religion and politics,” said Loebell.

Oren believes in the religious ideas behind the conflict wholeheartedly but questions the practical implications of allowing religion to dictate military and political policy. When he talks about having to force women and children into the streets to “clear” a house of a suspect, his discomfort with the discrepancy between what he believes is right for Israelis and what he is forced to do to achieve that goal is palpable.

The Palestinian point of view is not portrayed in the play, although it is discussed at one point. Loebell said he made the decision that he didn’t want to write what he did not feel qualified to write. “It’s really two Jewish guys talking,” he said.

Loebell understands that his play may be considered provocative, although he insists he was just being true to the material. “Interpretation is the audience’s job,” he said. “My job is to create characters who passionately embody their beliefs.”