THREE MEN AND A COAT
Frank Rosner plays all three roles in the upcoming production of Uncle Philip’s Coat in Hoboken By Sally Deering
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Frank Rosner of Hoboken plays all three roles in UNCLE PHILIP’S COAT
Page 2- November 26th -December 15th, 2014 River View Observer
ou wouldn’t think a play about a coat could be captivating enough to hold your attention, but with actor Frank Rosner and director Minna Packer, UNCLE PHILIP’S COAT is in good hands. Presented at the Hudson School’s performance space in Hoboken from Dec. 19-21, UNCLE PHILIP’S COAT author Matty Selman based it on his grand-uncle whom he remembers as the ‘King of Coney Island’ who would stand on the boardwalk, play the kazoo and sell bras to women from his suitcase. “My grand-uncle Philip on my mother’s side is described in my play, a
“luftmensch” – someone who lives on air with his head in the clouds and his feet in the sewers,” Selman says. “If he were alive today, he would probably be cast off as a near homeless person, but to me, as a child, he loomed like the King of Coney Island. He would visit us (always around dinner time!) and set out his wares on our coffee table, taking unbelievable amounts of candy, cigars, yo-yos, bras, pens and fly swatters out of his voluminous coat pockets.” Selman had a special relationship with my uncle, he says, which is evident in the play. “I cared for him,” Selman says. “I used to pick him up – literally from the Cont’d on page 5