The Echo Theater Company gives Jenny Schwartz's 2007 play, God’s Ear, a skillful production in its L.A. premiere at the Zephyr Theater. Schwartz is a decidedly modernist writer, one whose intent is to deconstruct the family drama genre by taking out the realistic elements and replacing them with comedy, wordplay and fantasy. At the same time, she also tries to delve into the dark corners of her characters, with boldness and power. It's a directorial challenge to hit all the right notes, but thankfully Rory Kozoll lives up to the task.
God’s Ear has a bare-bones plot. We meet a young couple, Mel (Amanda Saunders) and Ted (Paul Caramagno). He is a politician who travels a lot and makes speeches on TV. They've suffered a tragic accident, the death of their four-year-old son by drowning (on Mel's watch). Mel stays at home and cares for their teenaged daughter, Lainie (Alana Dietze). Conversation between husband and wife is mostly conducted on the telephone, cryptically and obliquely.
There are five other characters: the Tooth Fairy (Tara Karsian), a transvestite Flight Attendant (Jeremy Shranko), a woman named Lenora (Andrea Grano) who Ted meets in a hotel bar, A Guy (Troy Blendell), and GI Joe (Shranko again). How Schwartz manages to not only bring these odd, disparate people to life but link them organically is part of the magic she works with her play. Whimsy is one of her tactics, as evidenced by this typical dialogue exchange: Q. "Why was Helen Keller's left leg yellow?" A. "Because her dog was also blind."
Later, in one of the last scenes of the play, the Tooth Fairy announces that she is off to Beirut. "They have teeth there too," she explains, adding, "but not as many, of course)
Ultimately God’s Ear is about the pain of existence, the presence of death in life, but the playwright doesn't hammer away at those dark themes, just touches deftly but tellingly on them. Her quirky, jabbing style is captured perfectly by Kozoll and his adept crew of actors.
