On Stage: Heller play tells of a religious coming of age By KAREN SHADE World Scene Writer 5/30/2005 Ultimately a story of tolerance, stage adaptation of ‘The Chosen’ focuses on divisions and war Two boys, two fathers and separate futures tie together in a story about bridging divisions played out at Heller Theater starting Thursday. Set in Brooklyn during World War II, "The Chosen" opens with Reuven remembering back to when he first met his friend, Danny. The boys play on opposite teams and meet on a schoolyard baseball diamond.

Christopher Stefanic (left) and Judah Hudson perform a scene from Heller Theater's production of "The Chosen." SHERRY BROWN / Tulsa World

One concussion later, competitive nature gives way to a close friendship between the sons and opens the doors to understanding between their fathers -- one a strict Hasidic rabbi, the other an orthodox Jewish scholar with a more interpretative view on religion.

"The Chosen" is Heller's final show of the season, and one that communicates on many planes, said director Julie Tattershall.

"If you want to ask why I'm enthralled by the play, it's because it's fantastic writing. It's very thoughtful. It's very deep. It has many levels," she said.

Based on a book written in 1967, the book's author, Chaim Potok, collaborated with playwright Aaron Posner to create the play, which had its debut in 1999.

"One father and son are from a very orthodox Jewish tradition and the other is not. So you got the conflict of a very strict religious background, and one that is very religious in the same religion, but it's much freer.

And though the paths for Reuven and Danny might appear to be thought out, both young men still have much to think about and become aware of their freedom.

When the characters learn about the Holocaust in Europe, the families are brought to face previously incomprehensible confusion, horror and sorrow.

"Part of the play is about, 'Well how do we make meaning out of the 6 million Jews that are gone?'" Tattershall said.

She and her cast took a field trip to the Charles Schusterman Jewish Community Center's museum in May to better translate the period.

The lessons are not only from Auschwitz or the other Nazi concentration camps.

"Even though the play is set in the 1940s, the same things are happening now," Tattershall said. "One of the most poignant moments in the play is when one of the fathers is saying, 'Never again will we abide by destruction of our fellow human beings.' Well, what happened in 1999 in Rwanda? We sat there. We sat there again and a million people were killed in a hundred days. Look at Darfur (in Sudan)," Tattershall said.

A play largely about tolerance, "The Chosen" deals with the larger picture of division and war, but places its power in the families.

"It's a play that most of the population will enjoy because it's also about growing up. It's about a coming of age and what do you do when you're not what your parent wants you to be," Tattershall said. "It's a very human condition, so to me, even though we have these incredibly deep things happening in the play, we also have these wonderful father-and-son relationships. They're not perfect. They're trying the best they can to connect. They really love each other, but they have trouble talking to one another."

Ron Friedberg, who plays Reuven's father, David Malter, said the study on that relationship is also a study on influence.

"The play really shows the relationship between fathers and sons and the impact a father can have on any son, not just his own," Malter said. "They open them (the sons) up to respect because they respect each other, even though we're of the same culture but different philosophies in the future of Judaism and Israel," Friedberg said.

Tattershall said the show, with all its weight is not a story of tragedy, but of redemption and hope.

"The universal theme is the father and son, the parent and child missing the boat, and then how do you reconcile that, how do you forgive your parent, how do you think of your child? How do you let each be what they need to be and love them anyway? I find that very profound."

The cast includes Friedberg, Tom Berenson, Mark Albert, Christopher Stefanic and Judah Hudson.

"The Chosen" opens 8 p.m. Thursday and will play through Friday and Saturday. It will show at 2 p.m. Sunday and at 8 p.m. nightly June 9-11. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for seniors and students.

Heller Theater is located at 5328 S. Wheeling Ave. For more call 746-5065 or go to www.hellertheatre.com.