After its world premiere at NJ Repertory Company last season and an acclaimed run in Edinburgh last Summer, The Rosenberg/Strange Fruit Project, comes to New York.
The Rosenberg/Strange Fruit Project.
Award-winning actor/playwright John Jiler and clarinetist Sweet Lee Odom tell the remarkable story of the youngest child of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg. Orphaned at six following his parents' execution for espionage, the boy was adopted by the man who wrote the song Strange Fruit, seared into our consciousness by Billie Holiday. To the jazz accompaniment of Odom, Jiler plays a gallery of rogues, heroes and saints and takes us on a journey of American politics from then until now. Directed by Margarett Perry.
“An imaginative tour-de-force that must be experienced.”
★★★★
“Captivating and remarkable. Clarinetist Lee Odom accompanies the action beautifully and sensitively.”
— One4Review
“And so it becomes clear that Jiler did not become interested in this story because something extraordinary happened in 1953, but because the story continues to resonate, and the political cycles that were in play in 1953 continue to repeat.”
— NJ Arts
★★★★★
”In a remarkable performance, John Jiler switches easily from one character to the next, including in his stride Robert at different ages, Abe Meeropol, the black rights historian W E B Dubois, the bigoted right-wing judge at the Rosenbergs trial Irving Kaufman and the singer Billie Holiday among others. Each character is brought brilliantly to life. Jiler is a good deal of the time accompanied by the clarinettist Lee Odom. He explains that ‘the clarinet is the unifying sound between the Jewish (klezmer) and Black (jazz) cultures’. A key theme of the piece is the shared history of persecution and oppression.”
—British Theatre Guide
“The Rosenberg/Strange Fruit Project serves as a stark reminder of the ongoing struggle for justice and equality, highlighting the powerful influence of the Meeropol family on American history.”
— The Edinburgh Reporter
“Jiler’s fertile imagination and compelling, probing script brought me shivers. The evening is underpinned by the gorgeous live clarinet performance of Lee Odom, which makes clear emotional connections between Eastern European Klezmer music and American Jazz.”
- American Theatre Magazine
★★★★★
“Remarkable and Eloquent.”
-British Theatre Guide
“Lee Odom’s clarinet adds unquestionable emotion to the production. She is a major supporting character [and her] musical work makes clear connections between Eastern European Klezmer music and American Jazz.”
-American Theatre Magazine
“Odom’s music is the ‘second actor’ in this one-man tour-de-force, providing emotional balance to intellectual points of view. The use of clarinet and drums calls forth the ‘outsider’ cultures of Jewish-Americans and African-Americans in mid-20th century America.”
-Out in Jersey