Lost in Yonkers

Synopsis

When Eddie Kurnitz has to leave 1942 New York in search of work, he sends his teenage sons Arty and Jay to live with their fearsome German grandma and the simple but good-natured Aunt Bella. The passing months turn into a battle of wits between the boys and grandma, with added intrigue when the boys' mysterious Uncle Louie comes to stay. Neil Simon's witty and touching story of family ties is about growing up - and growing wise.

Our Review:

Anne Morley-Priestman - 19 September 2012

There can be few better build-ups to a character’s first entrance than that afforded to Grandma Kurnitz in Neil Simon’s Lost in Yonkers. You know that this German-Jewish New York-resident is going to be a matriarchal force not just to be reckoned with but also the lynchpin of the whole story well before Bernice Stegers sets foot on the stage, and Stegers doesn’t disappoint.

Mrs Kurnitz rules her surviving family – who sons, two daughters and two grand-sons – as well as the convenience store she and her late husband originally set up with the proverbial rod of iron. Her other children died young, and she’s clear-sighted about the fate of her extended family left behind in Poland and Germany. You can’t love her, even like her, but you can understand her and (as the story unfolds) respect her. It’s a superb part and Stegers matches it superbly.

The catalyst for the action is the financial scrape into which Eddie K...

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Latest User Review

Steve Feasey - 3 October 2012:

I felt some of the cast struggled to really come to grips with the complex characters Neil Simon created in this interestingly un-Simon play. The exception to this was the stand-out Laura Howard, who was simply mesmerizing at times, and had the ability to completely dominate the scenes she was involved in. A good solid production, but I think the casting could have been tighter....

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