Richman, Surdyke, Throne Photo by Michael Lamont

Norma is about to change her surname; she assures her father—a once popular actor named Benny Silverman—that it is not because it sounds "too Jewish." Norma (the lovely and canny Stasha Surdyke) simply wants to avoid comparisons to her Dad's acclaimed career. Nevertheless, Benny (a credibly affective Peter Mark Richman) is defensive on this topic. But that's not the biggest issue to be revealed here in Jeffrey Sweet's slice-of-life dramedy, The Value of Names—continuing at the Pico Playhouse in Los Angeles, through November 22. What looms even larger than Norma's purported name change is the fact that she's been hired to portray a character in a play directed by Leo Greshen (a formidable Malachi Thorne).

If Norma's announcement of the dropped moniker is an insult to Benny, her work with Leo adds the injury, if not the final blow, to this 1983 encounter at Benny's Malibu cottage (an evocatively pastel set design by Jeff G. Rack). After all, it was Leo subpoenaed 30-years earlier to testify before the House on Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)—who listed his friend Benny's name as a communist or "fellow-traveler" in order to save his own Hollywood career. Leo's actions resulted in Benny being ostracized from showbiz. Moreover, Leo's long ago trespass is an assault Benny stubbornly refuses to forget, much less forgive. When the two men meet again for the first time in three decades, tension rises high.

Under Howard Teichman's mirror-to-life direction, The Value of Names plays as if we are observing reality unfold. Sweet's intelligent dialogue is made the most of by Teichman's actor-centered helmsmanship. In one instance, Benny explains the etymological roots of the word testify (it's related to the term testicle). The lucid history of the verb and then the noun is both comical and informative.

Indeed, The Value of Names is a modern day morality tale wherein the real value of this one hour and forty-five minute staging lies in the self-examination that audience members are bound to undergo after seeing it. Discussions, disagreements, and catharsis are all likely to result among theatergoers during the ride home—and that's valuable, if not priceless.

The Value of Names, a West Coast Jewish Theatre Production, continues at the Pico Playhouse—10508 West Pico Boulevard, Los Angeles—through November 22. Show times are at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and Sundays at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. For reservations, dial (323) 506 – 8024. For online ticketing and further information, visit www.wcjt.org.