Irena’s Vow

We have all heard Anne Frank’s famously tragic story, and Dan Gordon’s Irena’s Vow is just another “Anne Frank” story. It is a story based on a very serious matter, the heroic efforts of Christians putting their own life at stake to save the lives of Jews. I never lose interest in reading various accounts of this sad part of our history, and the text of Irena’s Vow was indeed a wonderful chronicle of Irene Gut Opdyke’s account of her role during the holocaust. However, the performance was just sub-par.
First and foremost, Michael Parva’s casting was not very accurate. Even so much as the main role of Irena, being played by highly esteemed Tovah Feldshuh, was not acted out at its best. Although Feldshuh’s techniques of sharp breathe intakes and quivering lips definitely added to the emotions that the play was supposed to convey, it just was not strong enough.
As a matter of fact, most of the actors and actresses in the play did not seem as if they fit the role that they were designated to play. Thomas Ryan, who played Major Rugemer, seemed too old and senile for a major in Nazi Germany. Rokita as well did not display enough toughness and rigidity of a true SS officer who believed in the cause of wiping out everyone who is not part of the Aryan race. This is not to say of course that everyone acted poorly. Schultz, a factory manager, played his role wonderfully as a German who was on the side of the victims.
The setting of the play took place in many different places however, for lack of space, one small stage was used to portray all of them. The proximity of some of the characters to others who were not even in the scene made the play a little difficult to comprehend and hard to focus on. However, the whole play featured only nine cast members, so the stage was not overly cluttered.
Overall, Dan Gordon’s narration of Irena Opdyke’s story was sub-par. It is truly uplifting to see how people stuck together through horrible times and made it out alive eventually, but Gordon did not seem to convey this feeling. It is very sad to see our history replayed in our minds in such a manner, especially when it entails the losses of so many lives. Although a very emotional topic, Michael Parva’s rendition of Irena’s Vow transformed it into a bland and not-so-sentimental drama.