THE SABBATH GIRL
Book by Cary Gitter
Based upon his play
Lyrics by Cary Gitter and Neil Berg
Music by Neil Berg
Directed by Joe Brancato
59E59
Reviewed by David Spencer
On the one hand, The Sabbath Girl is a fairly smart musical for its team to have created. It’s small, its production needs are modest and it’ll likely be catnip for stock and especially amateur groups, and most especially those affiliated with Jewish organizations or specializing in shows of Jewish interest. On the other hand…well, that other hand is trickier; because one could argue that it has no business being a musical in the first place.
The source is a play, a romantic comedy, by Cary Gitter, that, interestingly enough, debuted in the same theatre complex, 59E59, in 2020, not long before lockdown. The premise, which has undergone only minor tinkering, is this. We’re in contemporary NYC. Angie (Marilyn Caserta), newly moved into her apartment, is discussing life and career with her Italian American grandmother Sophia (Diana DiMarzio). Sophia urges Angie not to ignore her emotional needs but Angie’s had her heart broken and just wants to concentrate on making her startup art gallery a success. But wouldn’t you know it, not long after, neighbor Seth (Max Wolkowitz) knocks on her door, expecting to finds the previous tenant, an older Asian gentleman. Seth is an Orthodox Jew, there are certain things he’s forbidden to do on the Sabbath, and his former neighbor used to help him out; so he wonders if Angie might help similarly. It’s high summer and he forgot to turn on his air conditioner; would she do it for him?
Well, in short order, she becomes his “Sabbath Girl”—as the Orthodox Jews brand it—the shiksa who does favors; but of course, he doesn’t really think about her like that and in time, more will get turned on than just his AC. Seth is the inheritor and co-runner of a small, downtown blintzes shop with his sister Rachel (Lauren Singerman, the one holdover from the straight play cast) is of course very down on Seth “exploring” outside the faith; and there may be a rival for his affections anyway: a hot young artist with an ego to match his talent, Blake (Rory Max Kaplan). There’s not much more to say without delving into spoilers, but then again, how does this work out any way other than you’d expect? But that’s fine: a romcom of this nature is almost never about how it’ll end, but how will obstacles to navigated to get to the satisfying resolution.
The problem, though, with musicalizing romance—when romance is not a supporting thread to a plotted story, but front and center as the main and only issue—is that it’s “soft.” Most of the dramatic tention is internal. Therefore, set-piece songs can only be ruminations on longing, indecision (and stasis is the enemy of musicals), decision and resolution…all sung in the service of a predictable ending. This doesn’t go very far, and when you’re trying to get a quippy comedy going, it defeats comedy timing—it’s only really useful when the romance falters and the various characters have an excuse to look inside. So what do librettist/co-lyricist Gitter, and co-lyricist/composer Neil Berg do until that happens? The only thing they can:
Mostly, they musicalize conversation. Stuff that isn’t really important enough to sing about and doesn’t really earn its keep as song; which is rendered as recitative pushed into the vague shape of song form. The effort shows.
But because The Sabbath Girl tells an agreeable story, because the cast and direction (Joe Brancato, who directed the straight play version as well) are agreeable to match, it’s one of those odd duck shows where the audience tacitly makes a pact with it, hoping for delivery on the back end. And indeed, once The Sabbath Girl is into its final third, it actually starts to have the feel and cadence of organic musicalization and the audience, rewarded for their patience is gratified and satisfied.
As I said at the beginning, it can be persuasively argued (and will be by many), that The Sabbath Girl has no business being a musical. But, as I also said, those venues in which is will find its lasting home, the same ones that made a staple of Kuni Leml for years, will embrace its Yiddishkeit and charm. And that’s where you have to concede that Sabbath Girl being a musical is good business.