Pulp friction
John David (left) and Edward Claudio in the Vista Players production of The Substance of Fire.
Vista Players—a local group that’s earned a solid reputation for its well-mounted productions of serious scripts dealing with complex social issues—returns this week with The Substance of Fire. The story concerns a Holocaust survivor and his children—he’s a book publisher and he’s taken the family business to the brink of financial disaster by printing important (but commercially marginal) titles about the Nazi effort to exterminate the Jews and others. When the opportunity arises to publish a likely bestseller of dubious literary merit, a tense family conflict ensues. The play is by Jon Robin Baitz; the director is Aram Kouyoumdjian (whose production of Baitz’s Three Hotels last year earned Kouyoumdjian an Elly for Best Director). The cast includes veterans Ed Claudio and Jan Ahders. 8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday in the Actors Theatre, 1616 Del Paso Blvd., through April 28. $12. (916) 498-0477.
