Daddy Issues or What to Do When Your Parents Want GrandChildren

Mary Ellen Ashley, Kate Katcher, Tony Rossi

Daddy Issues, the new comedy by Marshall Goldberg, is a sitcom waiting to happen. Directed by David Goldyn and produced by David Goldyn Productions this show, portrays what a desperate gay man will do to please his overbearing Jewish parents. It is at times laugh out loud funny.

It is 1982 and Donald Moscowitz (Yuval David) overbearing parents (Tony Rossi (Boardwalk Empire) and Kate Katcher) disapprove of all his choice. They hate he is an actor, the fact he decorates his home in pastels and most importantly that he is gay and can not give them the one thing they long for… a grandchild. Feed up and caught in a lie that spirals out of control Donald hires the ten-year old kid (Alex Ammerman (Mothers and Sons on Broadway)) downstairs to play his son. What happens is like a card tumbling, comedy of errors. His grandmother (Mary Ellen Ashley (original Broadway casts of Annie Get Your Gun and Yentl)) brings home the child’s real mother (Megan MacPhee), Donald’s ex from college. His female best friend (Elizabeth Klein) and his drag queen best friend (Levi Strauss) want to play the mother. The show ends in a neatly tied present with a bow.

The acting is uneven with Mr. Givens stealing the show as the Drag Queen best friend. He is so good and Mr. David so amateurish that you wish the show was about Levi. The dialogue by Mr. Goldberg is like a whip and dangerously witty. The direction by Mr. Goldwyn is spot on.

This is a writer and director to watch.

Daddy Issues, David Goldyn Productions at the Davenport Theatre, 354 West 45^th St. until April 24^th.