Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – Potent American origin stories in theatrically unassuming packages: MIRACLE ON SOUTH DIVISION STREET and HOW MY GRANDPARENTS FELL IN LOVE

• By drediman
• April 28, 2026
• No Comments

This spring, I encountered a pair of Off-Broadway shows that have landed in New York after successful runs at regional theaters just outside the city. Despite the unassuming, decidedly old fashioned theatrical packages they come in — one essentially a breezy sit-com, the other a romantic two-hander musical — they both nevertheless conceal fairly serious chronicles of diasporas from Europe leading up to and during World War II. As per usual, read on for my thoughts on these ultimately potent American origin stories.

MIRACLE ON SOUTH DIVISION STREET
The Sheen Center and Penguin Rep Theatre
Through May 10

Over at The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture, you’ll find Penguin Rep Theatre’s sturdy revival of Miracle on South Division Street (RECOMMENDED). Set in Buffalo, New York around 2010, Tom Dudzick’s brisk comedy tells the story of the Nowaks, a Catholic family whose claim to fame is presiding over the barbershop in which a vision of the Virgin Mary is said to have appeared (they’ve even built a shrine at the location of the sighting). But as the mysteries of this so-called “miracle” begin to be exposed — no spoilers here! — the family’s identity, faith, and legacy are tested to the extreme. Tonally, the play lands somewhere between a Neil Simon play and a television sit-com (for me, the shenanigans of the blue-collar family in Rosanne come to mind), producing consistent laughs, albeit through predictable, sometimes eye-rolling humor. Because of the comedically assured performances of a game ensemble cast — whose broadness all thankfully register on the same level — I was left unscathed through some of the more cringe-worthy passages of the play. Most notable among the company are veteran stage actor Liz McCartney and Grace Experience as, respectively, the overly critical matriarch of the family and her thespian daughter, whose theatrical aspirations lead to the unlikely unraveling of the Nowak family lore. Indeed, through a series of often very funny twists and revelations — handled with panache by director Joe Brancato — we ultimately get to the truth of the family’s history and how they ended up in America from war-torn Poland, a sobering story that segues into a genuinely heartwarming and unexpectedly satisfying conclusion.

HOW MY GRANDPARENTS FELL IN LOVE, A MUSICAL
New Jersey Repertory Company at 59E59 Theaters
Closed

Recently shuttering at 59E59 Theaters was New Jersey Repertory Company’s production of How My Grandparents Fell in Love (RECOMMENDED). Framed as a school presentation for which a student researches the story behind her grandparents’ escape from the rising fascist terrors of Poland leading up to World War II, the generic title precisely explains the premise of the show. In essence a small-scale single act two-hander musical, the piece unfolds in a straightforward manner with little surprise. That being said, the production has a number of things going for it, namely Neil Berg’s lovely, well-crafted melodies and the elegantly direct lyrics by Berg and Cary Gitter. Despite the relatively by-the-books storytelling of Gitter’s book, there are solidly old fashioned charms to be had in witnessing the budding romance between the dashing but impulsive Charlie and the intelligent yet headstrong Chava. Indeed, much of the first half of the show is contained strictly within musical rom-com territory (think The Last Five Years and Two Strangers), complete with gentle tug-of-war scenes that you’ve likely seen before in several other iterations. The show’s second half, however, delves into the dire circumstances of the couple’s escape from Poland, which lends the work much needed gravitas, sense of urgency, and poignancy. Although I appreciated the expert onstage playing of sole musical accompanist Aaron Benham on keys, the musical could benefit from expanding the orchestrations for a string quartet, which would allow some of the score’s more sweeping songs to soar as they were meant to. Efficently directed and designed by SuzAnne Barabas and Jessica Parks, respectively, the staging is clean and unfussy, leaving it up to the two performances to take the spotlight. Thankfully, Harris Milgrim as Charlie and Becca Suskauer as Chava inject their portrayals with specificity and engaging personality. To boot, the duo exhibit disarming chemistry and Broadway quality vocal chops.