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Nadine Malouf as Penelope, Michaela Watkins as Jane, and Ryan Vasquez as Gabe in The Janeiad, 2025. Photo by Rich Soublet II.
By Eva Trieger
San Diego-Was your first brush with Greek mythology D’Aulaires ubiquitous book featuring entrancing and grotesque creatures such as the hydra, the cyclops or the unfathomable beauty of Aphrodite? Perhaps you found yourself awed by the daunting power and treachery of the powerful Greek g-ds, often directed towards their own children. Or was your first introduction in your teen years, when you were assigned The Odyssey in an English class? Regardless of your induction, chances are good that these tales made a lasting impression on your psyche.
Such is most definitely the case for playwright Anna Ziegler. After seeing her World Premiere The Janeiad, on Sunday at San Diego’s Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park, I was honored to have a phone conversation with Ms. Ziegler to learn about her complex and provocative tale.
Discovering Greek mythology early on, and then expanding on her passion for the ancient culture, Ms. Zeigler studied ancient Greek and Latin. She became “engaged and consumed” by the stories of these g-ds and g-ddesses. After reading The Odyssey, which chronicles Odysseus’ twenty-year journey home following the Trojan Wars, Zeigler found herself resonating with Penelope, his long-suffering wife. Penelope, though sought after by determined suitors, choses to wait for her husband to return home. Despite his constant efforts, Odysseus is besieged and beset by playful g-ds and a temptress or two. In the end, they are reunited when Odysseus makes it home, slays the suitors and reclaims his rightful place beside Penelope.
Using Penelope as a springboard in the wake of 9/11, Zeigler was commissioned to write a play that spoke to the hopeful dream of a woman who’d been widowed by the fateful events of September 11th. For so many families the lack of evidence forced them to face a future with no closure or even the ability to perform burial rites for the missing. This is where Penelope came to Jane’s aide as a succour…at least initially.
The entire one act play takes place in an apartment in Brooklyn, where Jane (Michaela Watkins) sits on her blue chair. The dialogues in which she engages reveal her inner monologue and the questions that haunt her. Through interactions with Penelope (Nadine Malouf), Olga (also Malouf), the therapist (Malouf again!), the rabbi and others, the audience learns that Jane’s entire life has been on hold. She has not truly asserted herself or allowed herself to be known. Her life, which could have been large, given her Harvard education and intellect, is decidedly defined: being a mother, homemaker and wife. Her husband, Gabe (Ryan Vasquez), has spent most of their marriage distracted by his work and focused on providing for the family. This realization is a major turning point in the play.
As Jane begins to formulate her own ideas and comprehension of her past and future, she no longer needs Penelope, it seems. As a supportive companion, Penelope has helped Jane through the acute phase of her grief, and has nudged her toward the brink of self-discovery and reclamation. Zeigler told me that “grief warps time” as the audience may experience in the dreamlike state of the play. Is Gabe actually dead? Could he return twenty years later as Odysseus did?
Zeigler has given us a serious play, and yet, it is not without humor. The dialogue is clever and in parts, funny. The playwright told me that she always likes to find humor in every situation. She writes intentionally to balance the gravity with some levity. She told me that the comedy comes from the character.
Through the use of very clever symbolism and staging, the audience is privy to Jane’s dawning that Gabe is gone and will not be walking through the door, miraculously spared. At this juncture she can dispatch Penelope in a gentle way; not banishing her aggressively. Jane begins to reconstruct her uninhabited life. Rather than continuing to outsource her identity to others, she enters a new phase where she can find out who she is and find the identity that had eluded her since her birth when she was nameless.
The Old Globe’s unique theatre-in-the-round offers audiences excellent viewing of all facets of each character which somehow enhances their vulnerability. With this set we’re able to see the bar mitzvah photo of Jane’s boys each draped in his talit. I wanted to understand if the woman who commissioned the play is Jewish, and though she is not, Ziegler felt more comfortable writing the role that way as it resonated with her own questioning bent and innate curiosity about life and death.
Each actor in this production is highly accomplished and their synergy makes the story compelling, emotional and even hopeful in the face of a bleak historic event. Malouf’s ability to glide into and out of multiple roles seamlessly is nothing short of incredible. Her portrayal of the graceful, almost regal Penelope, the curt, hunched Olga, the loquacious PTA mom are all spot on and appear effortless. Winner of a number of awards and performing coast to coast and in Canada, Ms. Malouf is a truly gifted actress. Michaela Watkins has been seen on television, in films and on stage and is a former SNL cast member! Ryan Vasquez is a gifted Broadway (Hamilton,Waitress, Wicked) song and dance man as well as numerous appearances on television and in film.
Artistic Director, Barry Edelstein, proudly and enthusiastically dubbed Anna Ziegler a “house playwright.” Zielger’s play is an important reminder to live bravely and take your place in the world while you are here. World events may be beyond our control, and who knows what mischief the g-ds and g-ddesses have in store for us. It is all the more critical for us to live with intention, true connection and conviction.
The Janeiad runs through July 13th.
Tickets may be purchased online at TheOldGlobe.org or by phone at 619.234.5623
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