‘Sunset Park’ dramedy director is also an actor

By Eva Trieger

Eva Trieger
Eva Trieger
Eric Poppick
Eric Poppick

SAN DIEGO — Sharing a cup of tea with an old friend is one of those rare gifts that requires such a small investment, but reaps such huge rewards.  There’s a Yiddish phrase that translates loosely to “rattle a tea cup” and this is how we meet Evelyn and Rose, as they begin another morning in their lengthy, intertwined friendship, in Sunset Park.

The director of Sunset Park, currently showing at Scripps Ranch Theater, has many performances to his credit.  Eric Poppick has been seen on local stages, on television, and in movie theaters the world over.  He took the time to give me a phone interview wherein Poppick shared his thoughts about acting, directing and the importance of theater.

Holding degrees in both acting and directing affords Poppick a unique provenance.  As a director he shared that one must “see everything.” A good director is constantly observing all of the actors, their interactions with each other and how they use the set.  As an actor, one is “mainly concerned with his own performance.”

Poppick’s most challenging role to date was Sidney Bruhl in Deathtrap.  This cat-and-mouse mystery conjures an eerie atmosphere of suspense, mistrust and outright fear as the professor (Brulh) toys with the idea of murdering a student to steal his idea for a screenplay.

Another favorite acting adventure was doing Golden Girls.  Poppick reported that for the week of shooting with these four fabulous gals, he felt like a star, even though he was only guesting for the brief stint.  He found his co-starlets “charming, generous, and spirited.”

Sunset Park may be described as a dramedy in that there are dramatic moments in the play, but the comedy and laughter come from the lines.  The Emmy award winning duo, Marley Sims and Elliot Shoenman, best known for their wit and honesty in writing and producing the television series Home Improvement, wrote this script in 2005, and it debuted at the Zephyr Theater in Los Angeles that year.

The bittersweet and often comic story reveals the friendship of two women in their mid-seventies.  Evelyn Horowitz and Rose Ippilito are across-the-hall neighbors. They have lived in the same apartment building in Brooklyn for fifty years and have shared the experience of childrearing, the daily reading of the obits, along with many of life’s triumphs and hurdles.  Now, as the building is being converted to a co-op, Horowitz must navigate her future while her opportunistic children work to their own advantage. Carol and Roger would like to buy the unit, flip it and make a profit.  But where does this leave their mom?

Poppick related that the play is universal.  One need not be from New York, nor Jewish to appreciate the candor and humor conveyed by the dialogue and writing. Each theater goer will see his/her own family members kvetching, kvelling, and kibitzing on stage.  Audiences will share in the frustration, fears and true friendships that unfurl.  Viewers will recognize and recall similar conversations among their own parents and grandparents.

I inquired about the cast, wondering if Poppick had actors in mind when he chose this show.  The director told me that “casting is 75% of the success of a show.  If the actor is just right” the show will come together.  He especially enjoys coaching actors who want to come up with new ideas and are able to “show it to me”.  The creative process is exciting to Poppick and he loves it when someone shows him something and he can say, “I never thought of it that way!”

The actor/director has performed in many venues including New Village Arts, North Coast Rep, Scripps Ranch Theater and finds the local directors very open and eager to let their actors stretch their wings and explore their untested repertoires.  “San Diego is a fabulous theater town,” crowed Poppick and he should know!  His vast experience both on and off the stage have given him a unique and varied vantage point.  He urges young people to become exposed to live theater as it will enrich them in ways far beyond film or video.

When asked about projects in the pipeline, Poppick shared that he’s acting in the 5 Minute Plays competition judged tonight at the JCC and next Monday night at Encinitas Library courtesy of the Center for Jewish Culture.

So, pull up a chair and join the Sunset Park girls for a “glass tea” and some rugelach.

Showing until April 19th. Tickets for Sunset Park are available online at www.scrippsranchtheater.org or by phone 858.578.7728.

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Trieger is a freelance writer who specializes in coverage of the cultural arts. You may comment to her at eva.trieger@sdjewishworld.com, or post your comment on this website, provided that the rules below are observed.

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