ASHKENAZI SEANCE: A GROUP RITUAL Begins Performances At Union Temple This Month

The Neighborhood: An Urban Center for Jewish Life and Brooklyn Jews will present ASHKENAZI SEANCE: A GROUP RITUAL, written by Sarah Sanders (Queer||Art Mentorship Program; BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop), directed by Daniel Krane (Princeton Summer Theater's FALSETTOS), with music by Sofia Geck (PBS's WORK IT OUT WOMBATS), from July 20-23.

ASHKENAZI SEANCE will be performed in a site-specific production at Union Temple House of CBE (17 Eastern Parkway, Brooklyn, NY 11238) on Thursday, April 27, at 8pm, Friday, April 28 at 8pm, and Saturday, April 29 at 8pm. Tickets are $20 - $40 and can be purchased here. The performance runs approximately 70 minutes with no intermission.

Sarah Sanders can't decide what to do with a treasured family heirloom, and she's getting desperate - so desperate, she's turning to her dead Latvian Jewish ancestors for advice.

Ashkenazi Seance is a 70-minute solo theatre work and group ritual that mixes the spooky, kooky Jewishness of "Tevye's Dream" from Fiddler on the Roof, with the intimate storytelling and audience participation of What the Constitution Means to Me. Through comedy, music, and rituals, Ashkenazi Seance explores American Jewish identity and legacy while searching for direction in the face of loss. As Sarah looks to the past, she must decide how to hold tight to familial traditions while adopting relevant customs of her own.

After a successful world premiere at The Brick in Williamsburg, Ashkenazi Seance was programmed at the Bronfman Fellowship's Young Alumni Retreat in Maryland. On April 27, 28, and 29, this show will find residence at Union Temple House in Prospect Heights, presented by Brooklyn Jews and The Neighborhood: An Urban Center for Jewish Life.

This piece was developed, in part, at Fresh Ground Pepper's BRB Retreat in August 2021. An earlier version of the piece was developed through the Queer|Art Mentorship Program, with guidance from Mashuq Mushtaq Deen.

BIOS

Sarah Sanders (Writer/Performer) is a queer, Jewish, Montana-raised and Brooklyn-based writer and performer. She has a postgraduate degree in acting from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and a BA from Williams College. Sarah has developed new theatrical work with Abrons Arts Center, Dixon Place, Fresh Ground Pepper's BRB Retreat, Mind the Art Entertainment, Undiscovered Countries, and the Hearth. Her pilot "Script(ure)" was a semi-finalist for the 2022 OUTFest Screenwriting Lab. Most recently, Sarah was the writers' room assistant for the upcoming FX television show Dying for Sex, and a Performance Fellow with the Queer|Art|Mentorship program. Sarahesanders.com

Daniel Krane (Director) is a Brooklyn-based director, producer, and writer. His work has been seen at The Brick, Abrons Arts Center, The Tank, Dixon Place, Theatre for One, and Princeton Summer Theater. His writing has been published in The Brooklyn Rail, American Theatre, and Exeunt NYC. As a director, Daniel makes theatrical parties where people meet the best versions of themselves, by confronting the worst sides of themselves. Danielkrane.com

Sofia Geck (Composer/Accompanist) is a Filipino-American, Brooklyn-based writer, composer, and music director. She has written songs and scripts for Sesame Studios and PBS Kids, as well as composed and music directed work featured at The Brick, Dixon Place, and Abrons Arts Center. Her most recent work as a GBH Kids Scriptwriting Fellow premiered in the 2023 PBS animated series "Work It Out Wombats!". Sofia is an alumni of Columbia's annual musical satire The Varsity Show. sofiageck.com

The creative team also includes Cate McCrea (scenic design), Jacqueline Scaletta (lighting design), and Michelle Navis (stage manager).

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