Nothing captures the dilemma of being a Jew in America as starkly as “The Jazz Singer,” the paradigmatic tale of a cantor’s son caught between the two worlds of immigrant Jewish life and success as a blackface entertainer on Broadway. Most know the story from the three film versions — Al Jolson’s electrifying 1927 “first talkie,” Danny Thomas’ 1952 Academy Award-nominated remake (co-starring Peggy Lee) and Neil Diamond’s flag-waving 1980 pop music version.

‘In dreams,” the title of Delmore Schwartz’s classic short story goes, “begin responsibilities.” The protagonist of Misha Shulman’s surrealistic new play, “Deathscape,” would certainly agree. The playwright’s stand-in, Me (Matthew Cabbil), undertakes a mission to find the Drug Man, who is in possession of a narcotic that brings the user in touch with everything that he is in denial of.