Susan Sandler’s 1985 play “Crossing Delancey” is a sweet romantic comedy currently having a short run at Lewiston’s Public Theatre.

As the play begins, Jewish grandmother Bubbie has decided to enlist the services of Hannah, a “shadkhn” (marriage broker), to find a potential spouse for her granddaughter Isabelle. Izzy, as she likes to be called, insists she wants no part of it and would rather follow her own path, which currently leads in the direction of a stylish author who frequents the bookstore where she works. Undeterred, Bubbie has Hannah line up pickle merchant Sam from the old neighborhood as a prospect.

Deanna McGovern takes the lead role of Izzy, a 30-ish young woman who lives alone but spends regular time at Bubbie’s apartment on the Lower East Side of New York. Sharing asides with the audience, McGovern established her Izzy as having just the right combination of shy uncertainty and second-generation American determination to make her being “wooed” a challenge for both the dashing author and the more down-to-earth pickle man. Her scenes with Bubbie had warm affection constantly vying with consternation as to who’s way would prevail.

Carole Schweid earned many of her laughs inhabiting the comically rich combination of old-school wisdom and determination that brought her Bubbie to life. The Yiddish words and phrases she occasionally employs may elude some. But most can be figured out from the context in which they are spoken. Though there are references to some darker past events for Bubbie, Schweid succeeded at revealing her character’s emphasis on the pleasures of the old days when, she claims, she was romanced by numerous “schmendricks” (poor souls), one of which she eventually married.

Marina Re also scored many laughs at Friday’s opening. Her slightly larger-than-life Hannah offered kitchen-table advice with a delightful insistence as she simultaneously wolfed down Bubbie’s tagelah and kugel.

Peter Simon Hilton made the most of his self-absorbed writer Tyler, a laughably hiss-able cad. Ben Rosenblatt’s Sam, who earnestly washes his hands in vanilla and milk to remove the pickle smell, sturdily embodied his character’s tenacity in trying to connect with Izzy.

The set by Judy Staicer efficiently has the apartment and the bookstore at opposite ends of the stage with a park bench meeting place in the center. The lighting by Bart Garvey effectively focuses the attention from one of these three locations to another while also highlighting moments such as one particularly steamy dream sequence. The costumes by Kathleen P. Brown subtly define who’s who in the competing spheres of the play.

Director Christopher Schario and all involved have done, as Bubbie might say, a “mitzvah” (good deed) in finishing the Public Theatre’s season with such a charming production.

Steve Feeney is a freelance writer who lives in Portland.

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