Six Plays Chosen For A Special Night Of Healing At The Festival Of New Jewish Plays At The Berkshire Theatre Group

The Jewish Plays Project and plays2gather have announced the six plays chosen for ON ONE FOOT: 10-MINUTE PLAYS FOR HEALING, a special night of theater and ritual featuring Ritual Musician Shira Kline and directed by Katie Birenboim (The Secret Garden, Annie) and Illana Stein (Hans and Sophie, NYU Tisch).

The six plays and playwrights are:

· Space Laser, In Space! by Jillian Blevins: Crew-mates aboard a laser-armed satellite orbiting Earth face an unexpected and consequential choice about identity, faith, and survival.

· Days of Awe by Alice Eve Cohen: In a strange, empty grocery store, as the Days of Awe begin, Eva and Gabriel gradually peeling away layer after layer of their relationship, until the truth is revealed.

· The Replacement by Morey Norkin: a satirical look at White nationalism and antisemitism and one of the most bizarre right-wing conspiracy theories.

· The Mikveh Lady by Elizabeth Savage: Where the ancient meets the present; The Mikveh Lady is an exploration into the private world and intimate relationships of the mikveh lady.

· Zay Gezunt, Havana! by Marilyn Schotland: On the cusp of immigrating to America in 1965, Dora asks her best friend Zelda to help smuggle her husband's medical school diploma out of Cuba.

· Light the Menorah by Deborah Yarchun: A Jewish woman and her Persian boyfriend navigate the complexities of culture and family expectations during an impromptu Hanukkah on the winter solstice.

These plays were chosen through the JPP's signature Artistic Democracy Process by a 10-member Artist Panel, led by JPP Literary Manager Heather Helinsky, and an 8-member Community Panel led by Mr. Firestone, from a field of 275 plays submitted by writers from 24 states and 4 countries across the English-speaking world.

Each playwright specifically submitted new, 10-minute Jewish plays that feature a moment of healing between two people of different backgrounds. The prompt for the plays - and the title of the series - was drawn from the famous teaching by Hillel the Sage: when asked to summarize the entire Torah while standing On One Foot, he said "That which is hateful to you, do not do to others. The rest is commentary."

Ms. Stein and Ms. Birenboim have conceived of the evening as Friday night ritual evening of theater and healing, and have engaged Ms. Kline, Co-Founder and Spiritual Leader of New York's Lab/Shul to bind the evening together through music, song, breath and intention.

Resident Casting Director Judy Bowman has assembled an amazing cast to perform in the six plays, including David Adkins, Justin Ahdoot, Sophie Belkin, Bonnie Rose, Eva Kaminsky, Rebbekah Vega-Romero and Berkshires teen resident Hayden Hoffman.

Design is by JPP Associate Artistic Director Joshua Benghiat, with BTG Resident Scenic designer Randall Parsons, and Sound design by BTG Sound Supervisor Adam Lewis. Stage Management is by Morgen Doyle and Sydnee Davis, with the support of Intern Shira Holz.

On One Foot is presented in partnership with the Berkshire Theatre Group (Kate Maguire, Artistic Director; Nick Paleologos, Executive Director), one of the nation's premiere regional theaters. Diane Troderman and Harold Grinspoon are lead sponsors of the Festival for Berkshire Theatre Group. Marvin Krislov; Audrey Weiner and Jeffrey Solomon; Meg Mortimer Lloyd and David Lloyd; Judd and Susan Shoval; Dr. Cathy Demain Mann and Frederic Freidman are co-sponsors of the event for Berkshire Theatre Group. The Dr. David Milch Foundation and Gary Zimmerman are lead sponsors of the Festival for Jewish Plays Project, and Stephanie and Andrew Sklover are co-sponsors. Glenda Turner and Michael Halpern are sponsors of The Last Yiddish Speaker.

Tickets can be purchased on the Berkshire Theatre Group website: https://www.berkshiretheatregroup.org/event/oof-on-one-foot-10-minute-play-festival/

Find full information on all of the events in the Festival, visit www.jewishplaysproject.org/festival. Interested producers, agents, and literary managers can email plays@jewishplaysproject.org.