THE HOLY ROSENBERGS National Theatre/Cottesloe

Ryan Craig’s play is a domestic drama with a political agenda. The Rosenbergs are Jews living in London and they are under enormous pressure. Dad’s catering business has collapsed. Dad also has a guilty secret. (Arthur Miller, if he were alive, would, undoubtedly, guess what it was immediately.) His eldest son has just been killed fighting for the Israelis against Hamas. His wayward son wants to start a gambling site on the internet. Dad (played by Henry Goodman) wants his daughter to speak at the funeral. The local rabbi thinks it would be better if she did not attend at all. She is human rights lawyer working for the UN and is investigating war crimes in Gaza. The Jewish community sees her as a traitor and there are threats of a demonstration. The chairman of the local synagogue reneges on a promise, not wishing to have his name tarnished by association. The daughter’s boss, who drops by in a singularly unlikely manner with some vital information, agrees with him that International Law is unfair to Israel but argues the actions of the UN are for the greater good.