June 27, 2014
The Senior TimesJune 25, 2014
By Irwin Block
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Soul Doctor, Journey of a Rock Star Rabbi, is the kind of spirited and uplifting show that audiences at the Segal Centre have come to know and love.
The play, on now, is the musical biography of the late Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach and his friendship with jazz vocalist Nina Simone. Written by Daniel Wise to be performed Broadway, which it was last year, it is offered here in Yiddish, with some English.
It tells the story of the Carlebach family with its long rabbinical lineage, and a young Shlomo growing up and then being forced to flee Vienna, because of Nazi anti-Jewish violence, and build a new life in New York.
It’s the 1960s, and young people are rejecting traditional religious practices and searching for spiritual fulfillment beyond the pew and that is where Carlebach meets up with Simone and is transfixed by her classic, I Put a Spell on You.
Carlbach sees a new way of reaching youth and after meeting the Hassidic Lubavitcher Rebbe, splits with his Rabbi father and decides to sing his way into the soul of the peace-and-love generation.
This does not go over well with his family, which likens his decision to reach rebellious Jews with his kosher rock to “Dancing the hora in Sodom and Gemorrah.”
Lines like that bothered most of the critics in New York City, but here in Montreal, with a great cast of volunteers, a lively Yiddish rendition and the spirited co-direction of Bryna Wasserman and Rachelle Glait, and choreography and musical staging of Jim White, this play rocks.
Its 32 songs, with lyrics by David Schechter and the original Shlomo Carlebach, begin and end with the nationalistic Am Yisrael Chai (The Israelite Nation Lives), and are woven into the story as they entertain – though some parts of the show’s second half seem to drag and deserve to be cut.
Adam Stotland, whose day job is cantor at Shaare Zion Congregation, as the adult Carlebach and Coco Thompson as Simone are in excellent voice and credible in their respective roles. Jonah Presser, depicting the young Carlebach, also is impressive.
Veteran character actor Mark Bassel makes us laugh with his pantomime of record producer Milt Okun and more restrained depiction of Reb Schneerson. Equally adept are Sam Stein as the senior and disapproving Rabbi Carlebach and Aron Gonshor as the sneering Reb Pinchas. Among the younger actors, Stephanie Finkelstein shines as Ruth, with whom Carlebach flirts and disappoints.
The Yiddish text and lyric translation are by Edit Kuper and Aron Gonshor. English and French translations can be read from supratitles, that is, they are screened above the stage.
The outwardly simple set, an open concept designed by John Dinning, is cleverly designed to enable multiple entries and exists, yet with lighting changes by Luc Prairie, works for the various settings.
Other children in the play, which opened June 8, include Aron Widman and Benny Winkelman-Batchelor, who were well-directed and show promise. The host of players of various ages that dance and animate the crowd scenes are signatures of the Wasserman production style.
Soul Doctor continues until June 29. For tickets call 514-739-7944, or visit segalcentre.org