Tuesdays with Morrie By Jeffrey Hatcher & Mitch Albom Translated by Rivka Meshulach Directed by Moshe Naor Haifa & Cameri Theaters February 17 When he sets aside his repertoire of crowd-pleasing schtick, Yossi Graber is a great actor, and if there was ever a role that has no need of schtick, it's that of Morrie Schwartz. Schwartz was Mitch Albom's teacher at Brandeis. His Tuesdays with Morrie happened 16 years after his graduation when, from a TV interview, he learned that his beloved teacher had ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's Disease, an always fatal neuro-degenerative condition. Albom went to see him and returned thereafter every Tuesday until Morrie's death. The book Albom wrote became and remains a massive bestseller. The play is based on the book, whose central message is that for those who live fully, who love, who give, death is just one part of that life.For millions Morrie Schwartz's practical and gentle wisdom has been life-changing. And there's the rub. Naor and his actors revere too much. Instead of just showing us, and letting us "get it," that reverence - for the man, for his courage and for his wisdom - just gets in the way. Lily ben-Nahshon's bare-bones set gets it, and surely Naor had much input on that set. With respect, Yiftach Klein's Albom affords no real sense of the man. Graber's Morrie, because of schtick, lacks substance, lacks breadth and so comes out as cute. Probably, when the critics aren't there, his Morrie is magnificent and schtickless. But finally, Tuesdays with Morrie is an anthem to all those who face ALS with the heroism that most do.
