Teens challenge fathers in Milwaukee Repertory Theater's spiritual drama 'The Chosen'

"The Chosen," an intellectually and spiritually exciting story about two Jewish teens in Brooklyn, is firmly set in the 1940s, with World War II, the Holocaust, the Zionist movement and the creation of the state of Israel in the background.

But Aaron Posner, adapter and director of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater's new production, said he believes the theater on stage must speak "to the ears that will be listening now." So he has made recent changes to the script for an audience fully aware of current events in Gaza.

Performances of "The Chosen" begin March 5.

Based on the late Chaim Potok's 1967 novel of the same name, "The Chosen" presents us with two bright, observant Jewish teenagers, Reuven Malter (Eli Mayer) and Danny Saunders (Hillel Rosenshine), and their fathers, Reb Saunders (Ron Orbach) and David Malter (Steve Routman). The Saunders are Hassidic Jews, with Danny apparently destined to succeed his father as rabbi and authority figure. The Malters have been described as Modern Orthodox; they move more freely in the secular world. As teenage boys are wont to do, Reuven and Danny question and challenge many of their elders' precepts.

The fathers disagree on some questions, with no conflict more intense and vehemently expressed than their positions on the creation of the nation of Israel.

Posner created the play in the late 1990s when he was working as a theater artistic director in Philadelphia and grappling with his Jewish identity. Posner had met Potok, so he planned to ask the author for advice on a good work to adapt for the stage. Before their meeting, he decided to read some Potok. After rereading "The Chosen," a book he vaguely remembered from junior high school, his visit to Potok turned from asking for advice to asking for permission.

"I found the story of this friendship (between the boys) incredibly powerful and moving and vulnerable," Posner said. "I found the complicated relationships these boys have with their fathers also very, very moving."

In discussing the story with Potok, Posner was upfront with the novelist, explaining that he was Jewish and had been bar mitzvahed but was not observant.

"That's not a problem," he remembers Potok telling him. "I need you to be a good playwright."

Later, after the novelist's death in 2002, Posner also adapted his "My Name Is Asher Lev," which was a hit for Milwaukee Rep in 2010. That book encapsulated the challenge of Potok's life, Posner said: Potok was a deeply religious Jewish man who also was deeply pulled to art and wanted to live fully in both worlds, immersing him in conflict.

Many Jewish theaters have performed "The Chosen," for which Posner is grateful.

"However, I'm even more excited when theaters that are not culturally specific do this play," he said. "You do not have to be Jewish to appreciate this production," he said, underlining his point. "You don't have to be Jewish to understand that, sometimes, relationships with parents can be difficult. You don't have to be Jewish to understand that growing up is hard."

As Potok did in his novel, Posner takes pains to ensure that culturally specific words and traditions are clear in context. People who know a little Yiddish will enjoy the sprinkling of that language's flavorful words throughout the script. Mayer and Rosenshine, who play the sons, both speak Hebrew and some Yiddish and are both engaged in their own journey with their Jewish identity, Posner said with avuncular pride.

Posner was born in Madison while his father was teaching at the University of Wisconsin, though his family moved to Oregon before he turned 2. But he has now directed six productions at Milwaukee Rep and another six at American Players Theatre in Spring Green.

"I actually feel connected to Wisconsin," he said. "I do as much directing in Wisconsin as I do anywhere."

If you go

Milwaukee Repertory Theater performs "The Chosen" March 5-31 in the Quadracci Powerhouse, 108 E. Wells St. For tickets, visit milwaukeerep.com or call (414) 224-9490.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Rep stages gripping spiritual drama 'The Chosen'