As Uncle Boris, Morgan Spector is up to no good in “Russian Transport.” (Monique Carboni)
The new family drama “Russian Transport” isn’t edgy or groundbreaking. Rather, it’s a good old-fashioned delicacy: a solid yarn, well told.
Playwright Erika Sheffer can be guilty of using broad strokes, but she also succeeds in anchoring her story in a specific milieu: Russian-Jewish immigrants trying to eke out a lower-middle-class living in Brooklyn’s Sheepshead Bay.
The parents, Diana (Janeane Garofalo, in her off-Broadway debut) and Misha (Daniel Oreskes), still speak in heavily accented English, but their kids are fluent in New Yorkese. At 14, Mira (Sarah Steele) is a nerdy achiever coveting a school trip to Italy; her older brother, Alex (Raviv Ullman), acting cool in his baseball cap and baggy pants, works at a phone store while finishing high school.
Money is tight — Misha’s car-service business isn’t doing well — but things aren’t too awful for the family. And there’s real affection going around, even if it’s expressed through put-downs in a mix of English and (untranslated) Russian.
As to Diana’s self-flagellation, it’s classic Jewish-mother humor. “I don’t suffer because of my husband,” this world-class kvetcher says. “I suffer because I’m breathing.” Moving from stand-up to theater with greater ease than Chris Rock, Garofalo milks these lines with poker-face restraint.
The delicate balance is thrown off-kilter by the arrival from Russia of Diana’s younger brother Boris (Morgan Spector). He couldn’t be any nicer or more accommodating, but there’s something just a little off about him. With his muscular frame, close-cropped hair, heavy-lidded eyes and lazy smile, Spector’s Boris radiates sexy-scary danger.
He certainly makes an impression on young Mira, and there’s even a vague unsavory vibe to his relationship with his sister, Diana.
Dropping allusions like warning flares, Sheffer slowly lets offhand remarks and glances sink in. After Alex starts running errands for his uncle, we figure out what’s going on at the same time as the boy, and get horrified right along with him.
This New Group production benefits from a nimble staging by Scott Elliott, who draws fine contributions by the cast. Even when navigating the Russian dialogue, the actors all look believable as an immigrant family facing tough choices. Garofalo and Spector are particularly good at suggesting ruthless determination under a friendly enough facade. You’d think twice about sharing a vodka with these two.