A Splintered Soul at ICT in Long Beach

LOS ANGELES - Sept. 20, 2018 - PRLog -- "Think of these memories as sharp slivers embedded in the soul." International City Theatre presents a gripping drama about war refugees haunted by the death of their loved ones — and by memories of the things they had to do to survive. A Splintered Soulby Long Beach-based playwright Alan L. Brooks opens Oct. 19 at International City Theatre in the Long Beach Performing Arts Center. Two low-priced previews take place Oct. 17 and Oct. 18.

It's 1947 in San Francisco, home to a group of resettled Holocaust survivors from Poland whose very existence depended on blurring the lines between right and wrong. It's there we meet Rabbi Kroeller and a group of morally starved refugees as they seek to define their existence in this new, tidy post-war America. How can these splintered souls adapt to a new life in a new land, where all the rules have changed?

"The story and the action are heightened," says director Marya Mazor. "It's a parable that asks important questions about immigration, survival and democracy — questions that resonate today. Are refugees who have survived extreme trauma the lucky ones — or the unlucky ones? How do they assimilate into American society, and what does it take for American society to understand and accept them? Now is also an important time to remember the rise of fascism and what led to it."

"The play is a metaphor for the events of today," explains Brooks. "The situations and ethical dilemmas presented have universal applications."

A Splintered Soul was the recipient of the 2005 Moondance International Film Festival Award for the best full-length stage play drama. It premiered at the Odyssey Theatre in 2007, had a successful off-Broadway run at the Mint Theater on 42nd St. in 2011 and received its Midwest premiere at Stage 773 in Chicago in 2016. Backstage wrote, "resonates with a compelling veracity," Theater Mania found it to be "thoughtful drama … worth taking seriously," and Stage and Cinema calls it "searing… exposes a new mutation of a latent cancer."

A Splintered Soul runs Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m., Oct. 19 through Nov. 4. Two preview performances take  place on Wednesday, Oct. 17 and Thursday, Oct. 18, both at 8 p.m. Tickets are $47 on Thursdays and Fridays, and $49 on Saturdays and Sundays, except Oct. 19 (opening night) for which tickets are $55 and include a post-performance reception with the actors. Low-priced tickets to previews are $35.

International City Theatre is located in the Long Beach Performing Arts Center at 330 East Seaside Way in Long Beach, CA 90802. For reservations and information, call 562-436-4610 or go to http://www.ictlongbeach.org