2021
Productions
CAST
Mr.Halpern - Ken Farrell*
Mr.Jonhson - Gerard Pauwels
*Member of Actors’ Equity Association
PRODUCTION STAFF
Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dale McFadden
Playwright. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lionel Goldstein
Technical Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Corey Hollinger
Talkback Facilitator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Darrell Ann Stone
JTB STAFF
Artistic Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Audrey Heller
Managing Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amalia Shifriss
Administrative Assistant . . . . . . . . . . Kathleen McConahay
A PICKLE
By Deborah Yarchun
Directed by Francesca Sobrer
Annabel Armour as Doris Rubenstein
Based on a true story, A Pickle follows Doris Rubenstein and her famous, kosher dill pickles. For the second year in a row, the Minnesota State Fair rejects her traditional kosher dill pickles. When Doris confronts the judges, it becomes clear that they don’t understand her traditional Jewish brining process. When they also inform her that they have “a difficult time judging recently arrived immigrant groups,” Doris realizes there’s more than pickles fermenting – there’s hell to raise! A Pickle is a dark comedic look at prejudice and the power of Chutzpah (outrageous gumption).
BLESSINGS FROM THE PANDEMIC
By Rich Orloff
Directed by Darrell Ann Stone
Author Rich Orloff who has written dozens of award-winning full-length comedies and short plays, began writing poems in his New York apartment toward the beginning of the pandemic in March. Since that time, his collection has grown. Blessings from the Pandemic is a collection of over 60 poems “responding to this challenging time” that “cover the mundane to the spiritual.”
Cast
Adrianne D. Embry
Paula Gordon
Ray Hedin
Dion D. Kimbrough
Richard Perez
Shana Ritter
Francesca Sobrer
Company Staff
Producing Artistic Director......................Audrey Heller
Managing Director..................................Cassie Hakken
Administrative Assistant..............Kathleen McConahay
Stage Manager......................................Corey Hollinger
HALPERN AND JOHNSON
During the Covid pandemic and time of social distancing, JTB successfully presented Halpern and Johnson, A Pickle and Blessings from the Pandemic virtually via Zoom displayed below in Zoom slides.
By Lionel Goldstein
Directed by Dale McFadden
A poignant comedy drama, Halpern and Johnson features two men in their 70s, Mr. Joseph Halpern, a Jewish factory owner and Mr. Ernest Johnson, a retired Catholic accountant. At the funeral of Halpern’s wife, Florence, Mr. Halpern meets Mr. Johnson, who shocks him with the disclosure that he and Florence had maintained a close friendship for the past 40+ years. Six weeks later, Mr. Halpern and Mr. Johnson meet again. Their interactions make way for plenty of comedic moments as they each learn information about their lives and about Florence that ultimately changes them.
