The always-stalwart actor Lawrence Pressman plays a once-famous folk singer, Ramblin' Harry, in A Heap of Livin’,a new play by Elliot Shoenman now in its world-premiere run at the Odyssey Theater.
Ramblin' Harry, a kind of poor man's King Lear, may be old, widowed and dying, but he is still raging against the dark in his ramshackle home in the Los Angeles hills, much to the consternation of his two daughters.
Eden and Pearl (named after John Steinbeck novels) are played by two skilled actors (Jayne Brook and Didi Conn, respectively) who manage to hold their own with Pressman, no mean feat. Salli Saffioti plays Rachel, a friend of Eden's who is in rebellion against the strictures of a Hasidic upbringing. Having fled a loveless arranged marriage, she has been ex-communicated by the orthodox community; not even her father and mother will speak to her.
In a way, Rachel is the most interesting character in the play; unfortunately, she gets lost in the second act, which is mostly devoted to Eden and Pearl's efforts to convince their father to go into a nursing home. He, being proud, vain and macho, refuses to countenance the idea. He'd rather die at home, surrounded by his books, music and dogs.
This is a familiar dramatic set-up, but the playwright manages to put a fresh spin on things with a couple of strong confrontation scenes. He also goes deeper into character and uncovers some surprises about the cantankerous, unrepentant leftie and his disapproving daughters.
