Jacob and Jack
by James Sherman

Jacob and Jack Book Cover — Jacob and Jack Cover

Highlights

Female

Male

90 mins Flexible Cast Size Unit Set/Multiple Settings Comedy

Synopsis

THE STORY: Jack Shore, a well-known television personality, is appearing for one night only in a tribute to his grandfather, Jack Shemerinsky, great star of the Yiddish Theater.

Backstage in his dressing room, Jack confronts his challenges as an actor and as a husband to his co-starring wife.

Simultaneously, 75 years in the past, Jacob has problems of his own.

Actors play their past and present roles in a dizzying display of life in the theater in this time-traveling farce.

Press Reviews

"JACOB AND JACK is a comedy transcending time. The humor is beautifully showcased in the similarities and differences between past and present theatre. It's witty with a shmeer of the absurd…a comedic shtick with hilarious results. Sherman has delivered a farce honoring not only the Yiddish theatre but also highlighting the struggles of contemporary theatre.“ —Chicago Theater Blog. ”A classic marital farce ingeniously complicated by historical layering and virtuosic dual role-playing. And a beguiling comic love letter to the American theater—from its Yiddish roots to its long obsession with the siren call that lures stage actors to Hollywood. All this, plus a whole lot of laugh-out-loud escapades."
— Chicago Sun-Times