Chani Schwartz, though, is another story. Honestly, I can’t understand why she was chosen in the first place

I hate Scene 7.

I hate it because it’s just us: Mindy, Chani, Baylee, me. Mindy and Chani, the two sisters, the starring roles. The scene is an argument, which mushrooms into a fight, which becomes Maria’s betrayal in Scene 9. Baylee and I are there to break the flow of the dialogue, and insert awkward tension, as the sisters try to keep their secret from us.

I slump down in one of the hard, plastic chairs near the stage, and my eyes glaze over as Miss Weller insists on hearing Mindy and Chani practice the same few lines, over and over.

“Come on, girls, bring it to life,” she says, waving her arms dramatically. “Pretend it’s real. Pretend it’s happening. Lucia, you need your sister to listen to you — you’re desperate! And Maria, concentrate on how the world has collapsed under your feet. You’ve just discovered that your parents are Marranos, and you belong to the nation you always hated. Let’s feel it!”

Mindy circles back to the wings, starts the scene again without complaint. Okay, fine, I also wouldn’t complain if I had the main part. But even I have to admit that she’s great, she knows her lines, moves gracefully, and is nice enough not to complain about doing it over and over even though she’s been doing it perfectly all along.

Chani Schwartz, though, is another story. Honestly, I can’t understand why she was chosen in the first place. Maybe because Miss Weller likes her.