OLD JEWS TELLING JOKES Plays Broward Stage Door Theatre, Beginning Tonight

When Eric Spiegelman and his partner Tim Williams asked film and television producer Sam Hoffman if he had any ideas for an internet website, he pitched the concept of Old Jews Telling Jokes. Millions of views, shares, and guffaws later, Hoffman - in collaboration with Peter Gethers and Daniel Okrent, brought his Old Jews to Off-Broadway for an extremely successful run at the Westside Theatre.

Mazel Musicals, Inc. award winning producer Lawrence Toppall in association with Derrelle Bunn and the Broward Stage Door Theatre will launch the Florida tour of Old Jews Telling Jokes at the Broward Stage Door Theater beginning tonight, November 1st.

The show, which has been called a "pickle-barrel full of giggles", showcases five actors in a revue-type production that pays tribute to and reinvents classic jokes of the past and present. It celebrates the rich tradition of Jewish humor "and all the rabbis, complaining wives, fed-up husbands, patience-challenged physicians, gossiping ladies and competitive men" populating it. The humor can be suggestive (sometimes even raunchy) as the 'Old Jews' make fun of themselves as well as followers of every other religion.

"I attribute [Old Jews Telling Jokes'] success to a number of factors," says Hoffman. "It's funny. We launched ...in [2009] the year when the recession was nearly at its worst and I think people really liked having something fun to download.... it celebrates older people with no irony, and I think that's a fairly unusual commodity in popular entertainment."

Toppall and Bunn have chosen Peter J. Loewy to direct the production, which will feature Ashley Brooks, Gail Byer, Adam Chisnall, Ben Prayz, and Michael Small.

Loewy is no stranger to the South Florida Theatre scene, having directed several Broward Stage Door Theatre productions including his own musical The Kid from Brooklyn. "The material, the premise, the humor, and this cast are a terrific combination," he says. "This show is going to appeal to every audience, I guarantee it. Age, ethnicity, attitude - none of it matters - because laughter transcends it all."

Old Jews Telling Jokes will open on November 1, 2014 at The Broward Stage Door Theatre in Coral Springs. The theatre is located at 8036 Sample Road, in Coral Springs.

Tickets for Old Jews Telling Jokes are $44. Tickets may be purchased at the Broward Stage Door Theatre box office at 954-344-7765 or on line at http://www.stagedoorfl.org.

For more information about Old Jews Telling Jokes and/or The Broward Stage Door Theatre, please visit www.stagedoorfl.org.

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