Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Midwood, Brooklyn (Production Blog)

THE SETTING OF OUR PLAY - Teeth Of The Sons by Joseph Sousa, directed by Nicole Haran

MANY blocks in Midwood, with its rows of orderly detached homes and private driveways, give the feeling of a carefully planned suburb — a serene surprise after turning off a thoroughfare like Coney Island Avenue or Ocean Parkway.


But closer inspection reveals that the landscape has, in fact, been altered: on virtually every block, at least one or two homes have been significantly expanded — built up, built out, even built down.

The larger homes blend in as best they can with their smaller neighbors, but their oversized shadows are hard to miss: they are evidence of the wealth and the larger families that a thriving Orthodox Jewish population has brought to Midwood in recent years.

“Midwood has always been Jewish, but it wasn’t always Orthodox,” said David Maryl, a broker at Jacob Gold Realty. “Now for every family that’s moving out, it’s an Orthodox family moving in.”

Midwood lies south of Flatbush and Brooklyn College, and north of Marine Park. Its eastern and western borders have expanded in recent years, pushing out to McDonald Avenue on the west and Flatbush Avenue on the east. “As people have moved in, they’ve expanded the boundaries,” said Raizy Brisman, the owner of Brisman Realty.

THE HISTORY

Settled in the mid-1600s, the area was forested and got its name from the Dutch for “middle woods.” Subways arrived in the early 1900s.

Famous residents include Woody Allen, who graduated from Midwood High School; Marisa Tomei, a Murrow High graduate; and Gil Hodges, a first baseman for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1950s and a manager of the Mets.

- By VIVIAN S. TOY

(excerpt from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/06/realestate/06livi.html?pagewanted=1)

http://www.telecharge.com/BehindTheCurtain.aspx?ProdID=8498

http://barefoottheatrecompany.org/teeth-of-sons.php


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