Synopsis
The Action Against Sol Schumann
Published by Dramatists Play Service
5 Male 4 Female
Sol Schumann, a devout American Jew and beloved father of two grown sons, in 1985 is accused of unspeakable crimes he allegedly had committed many years earlier
That is all the story you need to know or should know, for part of the strength of Sweet's drama is the surprising twists and turns it takes in its plot, character, psychological and moral development
Like his earlier drama The Value of Names this is a tale, loosely based on a real case, of children and parents. It tells of the bond that links them and of the gulf that separates them. And though Sol Schumann is the title character, the two central forces of the drama are his sons, who in the course of tracking through the maze of legal, moral and personal issues on the sins of their father, also must come to terms with their relationships with him as their father's children
An unusually thoughtful and provocative script, rich in drama (and melodrama). This is a play to remember" ~ The Chicago Tribune
"Jeffrey Sweet over the years has become really a masterful playwright. Always brief, pithy, he has now developed a style of concentrated dialogue in which there is not an extra syllable, and in which the key emotional moments and ideas are punched out almost with a ferocious energy" ~ WBEZ (NPR Chicago)
" one of those deliciously meaty stories with complex characters and a substantial plot that surprises you at every corner" ~ New City