Media Release | The Ohio State University at Lima

The Ohio State University at Lima will present My Jewish Dreams in public performances at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., Sat., Feb. 28, 2004, in Reed Hall 160. The play is written and directed by Dr. Maria Ignatieva, Assistant Professor of Theatre at Ohio State Lima. It examines the effects of anti-Semitism in particular and prejudices in general on a teenager in Soviet-era Moscow.

Seating in Reed Hall 160 is limited and tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Tickets are $5 for general admission, $4 for students, and $3 for seniors. To reserve tickets or for more information, call the Box Office at (419) 995-8382.

My Jewish Dreams is the latest in a long series of Ohio State Lima’s Theatre for Young Audiences performances that blend the magic of theatre with a worthwhile educational experience. In addition to the public shows, the cast will also be performing at several area middle schools. All shows begin at 9 a.m., except Delphos St. Johns, which will start at 9:15 a.m. Each show will run approximately one hour and 15 minutes with an additional 15 minutes for questions and answers. (Media note: The school performances are not open to the public.)

My Jewish Dreams is set in Moscow during the early 1980s before the Soviet Union was dissolved. The seven-dream sequence of Luba Meizel recalls events that occurred a year earlier. Her mother has married a Jewish man, Ezra Meizel, who in turn, adopts Luba. While Luba and her mother look forward to their newfound happiness, they quickly learn the consequences created by becoming part of a Jewish family. With the Jewish surname “Meizel,” Luba learns all too well how ignorance breeds intolerance for those who practice different customs and hold unfamiliar religious beliefs. Luba is questioned about her heritage. Is she Jewish? Why would she trade her Russian name for a Jewish name? Does she not realize that by doing so, she will be labeled as a Jew and be under continual scrutiny?

The process that Luba goes through has many valuable lessons to teach, and is somewhat metaphorical to similar issues both national and international that have been at the core of our existence. Whether directly or indirectly involved, we cannot escape the strife caused by differences in religion, race, or ethnic persuasion. As the play unfolds, the uphill battle against prejudice reveals its triumphs and tribulations. My Jewish Dreams is about Anti-Semitism, but it is also about the human condition in general, and the efforts of one girl, Luba Meizel, to take a risk by building bridges among her peers.

Bethany Small of Bellefontaine..................................Stage Manager, Militia Woman

Janera Torres of Lima.................................................Luba’s mother, a Mask, Fatimah, Student

Jair Torres of Lima.......................................................Brezhnev, Anna’s father, Street Kid

Cristin Gerleman of Lima..............................................Luba

Megan Collar of Columbus Grove .............................Anna, a Mask, Street Kid

Eliot Walters of Lima ....................................................Igor, a Mask, Street Kid

Albert F. Sullivan IV of Lima ........................................Militiaman, Oleg, Street Kid

Jennifer Poeppelman of Fort Loramie .......................Mask, Teacher, Street Kid