World premiere of ‘Tear It Off’ tears it up at con-con Bob Abelman Cleveland Jewish News, The News Herald, The Morning Journal Member, International Association of Theatre Critics A play within a play – that literary device where a story being told by a character closely parallels the life of that character – is nearly as old as literature itself. It’s been used by Shakespeare in “Hamlet,” by Chekhov in “The Seagull,” by Brecht in “The Caucasian Chalk Circle” and by local playwright Mike Geither in a new work called “Tear It Off,” which is getting its world premiere production by convergence-continuum. In “Hamlet,” the play being performed by a troupe of strolling actors mirrors the murder of Hamlet’ father, which the Bard uses to provoke Hamlet’s murderous uncle so as to “catch the conscience of the king." Geither has less lofty goals in mind. He’s going for laughs. Big ones. For the rest of this review, go to www.clevelandjewishnews.com/columnists/