Slam Frank, the controversial play that knows who’s in on the joke ★★★★★

To establish the rules of the universe in the most exaggerated fashion possible, the Franks and Van Daan’s journey through fourth-wave feminism, anti-racism, and transgender acceptance using the language of the annoying and hyper-online, and they do so in the style of identity politics-focused musical theatre.

Hamilton is spoofed in everything from the show’s star-shaped logo to its hip-hop musical style, and “Herstory” — the number about feminism — sounds like a deep cut from Jagged Little Pill. But the show that Slam Frank most reminded me of was Cabaret, particularly the shock line at the end of “If You Could See Her Through My Eyes”, where the metaphor hits the audience at once and makes them reflect on what they’ve been caught up in.

Evident also are influences like David Baddiel’s Jews Don’t Count and Dara Horn’s People Love Dead Jews. Edith preaches that “every woman is a Jew in her own attic” and at one point Anita is so wrapped up in DEI training she says she’s forgotten the Nazis entirely.

As the piece transitions into its most critical juncture, Margot, the one character who is still Jewish, finally gains a voice – and it doesn’t quite align with the woke framework in which she finds herself. The downward spiral of chaos that ensues in the final third of the show is rough to watch, but the closing sequence is deeply vindicating.

Slam Frank has excelled in making inroads with groups—like young people and straight men—that theatrical marketing teams have consistently struggled to attract. Fox told me that one week they had a section booked for a Young Republican society; another week a Palestinian playwright saw the show and told him afterward he now understood why hearing “there is only one solution” is scary.

One reason for this particular success is the show’s hilarious rage bait-y Instagram, which, with almost 100k followers, is how the run has managed to repeatedly sell out. Watching Fox call Auschwitz “fatphobic” and poll viewers as to whether he should disable a cast member in order to increase onstage disabled representation, we the audience know exactly the level of satire we’re in for. But in case that’s not enough, there are a multitude of content warnings throughout the theatre lobby, on social media, and the production’s website.

I would advise seeing the show twice if possible – there are so many clever references that you risk missing the first time around. My favourite is a running bit with updates from Radio Free Europe, summarising the movements of the Allied Forces with disclaimers of “So, who’s the real bad guy here?”.

The crass, hyper-online humour is not for those with delicate sensibilities, but for Jews feeling deserted by the left (which is to say, most American Jews), this show is a thrill ride that is nothing short of cathartic. Slam Frank is a commentary on the political horseshoe theory in action and the left-wing tribalism that leaves little room for the Jewish experience, an even dares to remove Jews from the stories of our own trauma. Most importantly, it challenges us to ask questions like: how did we get here? How did ideas built on tolerance loop back around to ideas that look like Nazi propaganda? How did the rules established in the first two-thirds of the show lead to the twisted mirror at the end?

It is shocking, which is the point, but it definitely is not mocking the memory of Anne Frank. Slam Frank knows very well who’s in on the joke, and I pity the few who aren’t.

Slam Frank is at Asylum NYC until December 28