Have you ever traveled to a foreign country and tried out a few quick-studied phrases from Duolingo in an attempt to blend in with the locals? No matter how hard you study, native speakers can peg you as an outsider after just a few syllables.
In Sanaz Toossi’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 2022 comedy-drama “English,” the effort to acquire a foreign language isn’t just for vacation fun. For the students in a TOEFL test-prep class in protest-wracked 2008 Iran, the stakes are much higher. Passing the test for these language-learners could mean a green card, a medical school admission or the chance to reunify with family abroad. But if they achieve these goals, will it be worth the price of losing their home country, culture cherished native tongue?
The tightly packed and gripping 90-minute play is cleverly crafted with a device that makes it easy for an English-speaking audience to know when the characters are speaking in their native Farsi (articulate, soft-spoken and comfortably paced English) and when they’re attempting to speak in English (loud, slow, awkward and often hilariously mispronounced).
Although the play’s five multilayered characters have their own unique journeys, they’re all outsiders whose identities and self-respect are intricately tied to the language they speak. They’re stuck in between the words and world they know and those they don’t.
Tara Grammy and Ari Derambakhsh in The Old Globe’s production of “English.”
(Courtesy of Rich Soublet II)
Marjan, played with wistful restraint by Pooya Mohseni, is the teacher, who is gradually losing her facility with the English she nearly perfected during a nine-year stay in England. Elham, played with fierce resentfulness by Tara Grammy, is smart and determined to pass the test, even if she hates the English language and the idea of living overseas. Roya, in a tender, heartbreaking performance by Mary Apick, is a grandmother who plans to move to Canada to join her son and granddaughter, but the ground is shifting beneath her feet.
Omid, subtly played by Joe Joseph, is the ace student with surprisingly good English skills, but in his eyes, he’s not good enough. And Goli, played with sweet innocence by Ari Derambakhsh, is an optimistic 18-year-old in love with the “floating” quality of English words and the prestige her language skills give her among her peers.
In the Old Globe’s intimate Sheryl & Harvey White Theatre, director Arya Shahi thoughtfully moves the actors around the classroom set designed by Sadra Tehrani, ensuring the audience on all four sides can see all of the actors’ faces at key moments. He also helps make the acting and humor feel natural, the romantic tension between Marjan and Omid sizzle, and the ferocity of Elham’s outbursts hit the mark.
The production features costumes by Afsaneh Aayani, lighting by Amanda Zieve and sound by Meguma Katayama, with dialect coaching by Ana Bayat.
“English” keeps the audience guessing to the end, including a brief untranslated conversation in Farsi. This gives teacher and student the chance to exchange kind words of comfort as their journeys diverge. It also gives the audience a taste of just how hard it is to learn and embrace a language that’s not your own.
‘English’
When: 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays; 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Through Feb. 25.
Where: Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, The Old Globe, 1363 Old Globe Way, Balboa Park
Tickets: $49 and up
Phone: (619) 234-5623
Online: theoldglobe.org