Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Stephen Unwin’s ALL OUR CHILDREN is a well-made play that’s worth your time

• By drediman
• May 2, 2019
• No Comments

John Glover, Karl Kenzler, and Sam Lilja in Stephen Unwin’s “All Our Children” at the Sheen Center. Photo by Maria Baranova.

Last night, I caught Stephen Unwin’s All Our Children, which is currently in the midst an Off-Broadway run at the Sheen Center. The play was recently staged in London (in a different production) to acclaim; it now makes its New York premiere. Set in 1941 in a pediatric clinic located near Cologne, Germany, the historical drama tells the story of Victor Franz, a doctor who is troubled by his role in aiding the Nazis in terminating disabled children. His dilemma comes to the fore when he is visited by Clemens von Galen, the Bishop of Munster.

Mr. Unwin, who is making his playwriting debut with All Our Children, has written a well-made morality play, a la Arthur Miller. Indeed, if Mr. Miller had written a play about the horrors of the Holocaust, it may well have ended up looking something like All Our Children (a title which bears a striking resemblance to the title of a Miller play currently enjoying a searing revival on Broadway). Even it all unfolds quite predictably, I was nonetheless impressed by Mr. Unwin’s apparent love of the craft and his careful and insightful attention to the rising stakes of the play. If you’re a fan of good old fashioned playwriting, his play is worth your time.

The piece has been directed by Ethan McSweeny (who has done some fantastic directorial work over the years in the Washington, DC area) with a sure hand. Indeed, Mr. McSweeney has staged All My Sons for maximum clarity and impact, thankfully without hitting the audience over the head with the play’s built-in histrionics. The acting from his cast is nothing less solid, gripping at times even. There’s really not a weak link from the cast, which includes Karl Kenzler (Franz), the great John Glover (the Bishop), Sam Kilja, Tasha Lawrence, and Jennifer Dundas. All give beautifully-calibrated performances that grow in forcefulness as the play approaches its dramatic conclusion.

RECOMMENDED

ALL OUR CHILDREN
Off-Broadway, Play
Sheen Center / Black Box Theater
1 hour, 30 minutes (without an intermission)
Through May 12