CORNED BEEF (AND OTHER ARGUMENTS) Debuts at Theater For The New City This April

It's 1890-ish, and two immigrants aboard a ship headed to Ellis Island are about to have beef. Major beef. They just don't know it yet.

That's the conflict that ignites CORNED BEEF (AND OTHER ARGUMENTS), a new darkly hilarious, shamelessly silly, and surprisingly heartfelt play written by Robyn Kimmel and Brian Martin, coming to Theater For the New City on April 23.

Directed by Sofia Pastena, the production runs from April 23-May 10, featuring Robyn Kimmel and Brian Martin in leading roles.

The 19th-century romp follows Ruth, a Jewish immigrant from a European shtetl, and Phineas, a down-on-his-luck Irishman, who left everything behind for a chance at the American Dream. But chaos erupts when they discover that they're both coming to New York City with the same mission: To bring corned beef to the New World. Their incessant quarreling and quick banter explores unlikely friendship, belonging, and generational anxiety through biting satirical wit, Katz's Deli sandwich-sized laughs, plus a few surprisingly tender moments thrown in for good measure.

"It's 'The Odd Couple' meets Mel Brooks meets 'Fiddler on the Roof,'" says Kimmel. "A dishonest history with an honest look at the anxiety that exists both within the Jewish and Irish Catholic experience."

Kimmel adds, "The character of Ruth is loosely inspired by my own great-grandparents. She brings a heightened level of anxiety to the stage that I have always felt is deeply and intrinsically Jewish. Despite coming from different countries, cultures, and religions, both the characters and the audience realize they're more similar than different."

The creative team behind Corned Beef (and Other Arguments) includes stage manager Sofia Pastena, set design by Olivia Taylor, and lightning design and board operator Zoe Tevyaw.