“I didn’t make these decisions, they were made by people much smarter than you or I” says James Shannon in Peter Swet’s The Interview, currently playing at the Capital Fringe Festival. That’s the way I felt when I signed up to review this show. This show wasn’t one of the ones I had originally picked but I was very pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it
The Interview, is set in a 1970’s lower Manhattan tailor shop (and set against a soundtrack of Iggy Pop songs), where James Shannon (Jeff Mocho) shows up unexpectedly to interview 62 year-old Abraham Moscowitz (Larry Levinson) to determine how “risky” Abraham is and if he qualifies for the second insurance policy he has recently applied for. On the surface, Moscowitz seems like a simple tailor, but Shannon intuitively knows that Moscowitz is hiding something and is determined to figure it out. The interview dredges up heart-wrenching memories of the Holocaust for Moscowitz and before the night is out, both men will learn more about themselves, their humanity, and what it truly means to be free than they have in a lifetime.
Producer Wayne Nicolosi (who is a jack-of-all-trades as he is also the director, and sound and set designer) does an excellent job in casting Levinson as the snappy, determined Moscowitz. His biting humor and mocking and sarcastic delivery is spot on. The chemistry between Levinson and Mocho on the stage are the highlight of the show and at moments the tension between them is palpable. Lighting designer Colin Dieck’s and Technical Producer Ryan Maxwell’s use of the storm and the silhouette of what seemed like a murderer as well as using the storm to draw the audience’s attention at certain points is inspired.
Don’t be turned off by the description of the show, take a chance like I did, and you might just ending up loving it as much as I did! This short, one act play is definitely a ‘Must See’!
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For more information on the show and to purchase tickets, see our Fringe Preview.
