The Sisters Rosensweig (Plot Summary)

Plot Summary

Act 1

Act 1 marks the beginning of the Rosensweig sisters' family reunion in London. "Blame it on Jesse, Jesse the Sikh," explains Pfeni, the forty-something, eccentric world traveler, of her tardiness. Tess shares with Pfeni that she is listening to her mother's college singing group as part of a school summer project. The project requires Tess to write a biography on her mother's "early years." Says Tess of the project, "It's pretentious. I can't wait to leave London and go back home to school."

When Pfeni asks her niece why she has not asked her mother if she can return to the United States, Tess replies that her mother is "the only American who is convinced that Harvard and Yale are second-rate institutions," stating that "she [Sara] won't even discuss it." Tess confides that Sara worries she will become like Pfeni, an emotionally defensive woman, who compulsively travels to avoid her fear of commitment.

"I just don't know what you have in common with someone who dreams of selling radio parts," declares Sara to Tess. Tess argues that "Tom comes from a perfectly balanced and normal family," something her mother has "never managed to maintain," and that Tom is desirable company compared to Sara's dinner guest, "the socially acceptable, racist, sexist, and more than likely anti-Semitic Nicholas Pym." Dismayed by the sense of determination Tess demonstrates to create a life in opposition to hers, Sara concedes by quietly extending an invitation to her daughter's boyfriend. Pfeni points out that Tess is no different from either Sara or herself, in that, as justified as Sara was in her act of rebellion, "so maybe is Tessie."

Both Merv and Geoffrey plan to meet up with a "homeless delegation" to discuss the possibility of putting on a homeless benefit at the National as "a sort of story theatre." When Geoffrey leaves Merv behind to meet up with the group at the Savoy Hotel, Pfeni also exits to find Tom and Tessie, and Merv settles into a conversation with Sara. They exchange personal histories, Merv pointing out to Sara that she's "the first Jewish woman I've met to work in a Hong Kong bank." Sara corrects Merv's assertion, stating that she is "the first woman to run a Hong Kong bank, Mr. Kant." Merv acknowledges her intention to avoid any reference to ethnicity by pointing out that his name "used to be Kantlowitz" and asks her if she would prefer him to leave.

Despite initial attempts to hide her discomfort, Sara challenges Merv's increasing interest in her, particularly when he announces that Geoffrey has invited him to Sara's birthday/dinner party. When she asks Merv just how intimate he is with Geoffrey, Merv coolly responds that he met Geoffrey when he was a show biz and novelty furrier and has maintained a friendship with him since. In an attempt to exclude Merv and "scare [him] away," Sara takes yet another tack, mentioning the intimacy of the occasion and the less-than-kosher dish she is serving. Merv continues to talk, even after Sara has moved into the kitchen, commenting on her book collection and her musical tastes, impervious to her subtle manipulations.

"It's just like my mother to have a dinner party on the night the Soviet Union is falling apart," remarks Tess. This statement becomes a pivotal point of the dinner conversation, as Tess attempts to goad Nicholas Pym, Sara's dinner guest, into a discussion of the Lithuanian resistance. Whereas Nick is apt to dismiss the convictions of both Tess and Tom, Merv is quick to point out that the Lithuanian city was home to sixty-five thousand Jews. When Merv asserts that anti-Semitism has formed the core component for European nationalism, Nick responds in protest, but Sara surprisingly has no opinion. "I thought Tessie was Jewish," interjects Tom. Sara again sidesteps the issue by replying, "She is. But Mr. Kant is really talking about families in Russia and Eastern Europe who are unable to practice their religion."

Merv continues to press the topic of ethnicity on Sara after the guests have departed that evening. A discussion of cooking provides the perfect segue for Merv, who asks her if her mother is Jewish. Sara responds coolly, "for a supposedly intelligent man you have a persistently narrow perspective." Merv has unwittingly pressed several buttons as a result of his inquiries. The interest he shows in Sara triggers her, and she begins to cry suddenly after asking him to "just go home." Vulnerable once more, Sara once again recoils from Merv's advances by telling him she is not his type. "You weren't a nice Jewish girl," says Merv, and again Sara notes that Merv "always comes back to that," that is, her heritage.

Act 2

It's 6:12 a.m., and Pfeni, who has just emerged from her apartment, takes a moment to dance playfully with Geoffrey. Geoffrey then informs her that he is taking his former male lover to the country. This sparks jealousy in Pfeni. Geoffrey exclaims, "What is it you want angel, that you're not getting? Do you want to get married?" Pfeni sidesteps ideas of children and matrimony by telling Geoffrey to get dressed. Geoffrey then takes his lover to task on a book project she has failed to complete. He calls the friends he's lost "too many lights that never had their chance to glow and burn out overnight." Taking a different tack, he concludes that children, country homes, and domestic bliss are better left to others. Geoffrey informs her that, as artists, "Pfeni, you and I can't idle time."

Both he and Pfeni are intercepted by Gorgeous just before Geoffrey excuses himself to dress for his breakfast meeting with Gorgeous's group of ladies. He is subjected to a grilling from Gorgeous, who is interested in his intentions with Pfeni, before making his exit. Pfeni criticizes her sister for the obvious intrusion into her personal life. Gorgeous hints at possible infidelities in her sister's relationship. She inquires if Pfeni's lover is still interested in men, before making some observations of her own. She tells her sister that "eccentric women in their forties" aren't interesting to men and that, in "wandering around the world at forty," Pfeni is wandering herself "right out of the marketplace." Of Geoffrey, she remarks, "I know you can't judge a book by its cover, sweetsie, you're at the wrong library altogether."

Sara cannot escape a prying Gorgeous. As the family surfaces for breakfast, she is the only member willing to mention Sara's amorous night with Merv. Sara again dances around any questions until Tess speaks up, saying, "Mother you slept with that furrier last night. Everyone here knows that." Gorgeous seizes the opportunity to sway Sara into settling down with a nice man. Sara then attacks Gorgeous, claiming she is in no need of mothering. Further, Sara goes as far as to say the mind of her sister is cluttered with nonsense; Gorgeous responds and, clearly hurt and defensive, decides to exit. Tess indicates to Tom that it is also time for them to leave: "Let's go, Tom. Just because it's not important to her [Sara] to have any passion in her life doesn't mean we can't."

Sara turns to Pfeni to remark that "maybe Gorgeous is the smartest one of us all." She pleads with her sister to speak with Tessie. She further shares that it frightens her how much Tess is like Pfeni. "How can I tell Tessie not to go to Vilnius," replies Pfeni. "In some crazy way I wished I could be there." Sara expresses how sad she is to see Pfeni avoid her true calling as a journalist. Pfeni takes her sister's hand and tells Sara she relies on her input the most, expressing her deep gratitude for her sister's insights. "Pfeni, don't and I won't," answers Sara, pulling away from a moment of intimacy between siblings.

She pulls away from Merv as well. "I've never met anyone like you, Sara. You're warm and cold all at the same time," says Merv, perplexed by her reaction after their night together. He pours his heart out to Sara, telling her she is a beautiful, remarkable woman. Merv tells her he wishes to know her better and would like to spend more time with her in the company of his own children. A war with words ensues between the two, Sara sidestepping Merv's intimations that they enter into a relationship. Defeated, Merv concedes to Sara's argument and leaves.

Later in the day, Pfeni's attempts at work are interrupted by Geoffrey's return. He appears to Pfeni to be highly agitated in their conversation, and she questions his "manic" mood. Despite claiming to love and care for Pfeni deeply, he admits to missing men. Geoffrey then attempts to smooth over the sudden break with Pfeni. He defends his actions based on his instinctive personality, stating simply, "Today this is who I am. I have another choice. I miss men," to which Pfeni tartly replies, "it's alright Geoffrey. I do too."

Geoffrey has just left with his lover when a rain-soaked Gorgeous arrives. When Sara stops Gorgeous to ask her what has happened to her shoe, Gorgeous explodes in anger. "Thanks to both of you," Gorgeous says to her sisters, "this has not been an especially enjoyable trip for me. I've spent two days schlepping around London with the sisterhood and two nights having my own sisters tell me everything I do is wrong." Sara finally hits a nerve with Gorgeous by suggesting she call her husband to buy a replacement pair of shoes. Consequently, both Sara and Pfeni are shocked to find out that their Harvard-educated brother-in-law has not worked as an attorney in two years.

As their emotional walls begin to come down, tensions dissolve amongst the sisters. Gorgeous learns that Geoffrey has left Pfeni for his former male lover and that Sara was "big and mean and nasty" enough to chase Merv away and any chances for a relationship. "Aren't you supposed to be on the road to Vilnius?" asks Pfeni of her niece early Sunday morning. Tess says that after a night of handholding and singing Lithuanian folk songs she realized the resistance movement had no personal meaning for her and asks, "Aunt Pfeni, are we people who will always be watching and never belong?"

Pfeni says that waking up at forty in her big sister's house cleared her own head; she now knows she must return to Tajikistan to continue her work. Moments later, when the doorbell rings, both Gorgeous and Pfeni are delighted to discover Merv, responding to a call from Sara instructing him to pick up his shirt. He presents Gorgeous with a box, left on the doorstep by one of her "ladies." Gorgeous exclaims, "It's the real thing! A genuine Chanel suit! And a purse! And earrings! And even shoes! They got me the shoes!"

Pfeni also makes her departure, and Tess excuses herself with a wink to Sara, telling Merv she will get his shirt. Sara confides to Merv that she called him because she "can't seem to come up with a good answer for what's wrong with [him]." Merv points out the difficulty both he and Sara have had consummating a relationship and then remarks, "but difficult can be engaging. Even surprising." Accepting the Shiva from Sara, Merv leaves, but not before reminding Sara that she has his shirt, evidence of his future return.

Tess shares with Sara that she has decided, independent of Sara's wishes, to tell Tom to go to Vilnius without her. She also tells Sara that she must find a life independent of Sara's life, saying, "I don't even know what mine is." Sara tells Tess how much her daughter resembles her own mother, Rita, in spirit, assuring Tess, "you are smart enough, and brave enough, and certainly beautiful enough to find your place in the world." The scene then closes as Tess interviews her mother for her paper.