From the title, one wouldn’t guess that Handle with Care is a bilingual, bicultural romantic comedy which can work as a Jewish holidays celebration. That it takes place at Christmastime is basically irrelevant, though snowy weather outside a Goodview, VA motel room sets time and atmosphere nicely. Why is Ayelet, a young Israeli traveling with her grandmother, railing in Hebrew at inept delivery man Terrence? A box that may contain a grandparent’s body is missing! Because Ayelet speaks moderate English and Terrence speaks no Hebrew, he calls on friend Josh, a Jew (but not actively so), to interpret. From then on, the connection between Josh and Ayelet grows beyond just language. Between Josh and Ayelet’s getting together and her learning from grandmother Edna why she insisted on visiting small towns in Virginia instead of the usual big cities, there’s a lot to show why family and friends’ connections are important and affect everyone’s lives. Jewish cultural practices, shown sensitively, should strike a resonant chord with Jewish audiences and pleasantly solidify or teach knowledge of them to others. Anat Cogan as Ayelet seamlessly handles both Hebrew and English linguistically and emotionally. Marina Re as her grandmother Edna takes on the difficult job of hiding her motives and then finally speechifying about them. She looks much too young for the role, though, especially if one follows the script about when she had the first love she’s never gotten over. Michael Zlabinger conquers the difficulties of Josh convincingly recalling his youthful faith and rituals. He rightly underplays being made by the playwright to meet the play’s central conflict. Mat Leonard’s Terrence is a likable clod, though some will balk at him being so much so as the only Gentile. Handle with CareJason Cannon’s direction of the action is all it can be, especially considering the difficulty presented by Ayelet’s linguistic abilities. He gets maximum performances possible from what strikes me as a script whose basic intention is to gain commercial success.
