Broken Glass

Set in Brooklyn during the Depression, Broken Glass explores the psychological fragility of the human condition through the story of Phillip and Sylvia Gellburg, a Jewish couple whose marriage fractures under the weight of historical trauma and personal anguish. When Sylvia becomes mysteriously paralyzed following news of Nazi violence in Europe, her husband's inability to acknowledge the gathering darkness abroad mirrors his emotional distance at home. A visiting psychoanalyst attempts to uncover the roots of her affliction, uncovering layers of denial, shame, and the couple's struggle to maintain dignity in an increasingly hostile world. The play examines how collective catastrophe reverberates through intimate relationships, and how the failure to confront external evil can manifest as internal collapse.