Long-Running Comedy THE ESSENCE Comes To NYC In January

Long-running comedy smash THE ESSENCE will play this January at Theatre 154.

THE ESSENCE: A YIDDISH THEATRE DIM SUM is a fast-paced comedy with songs which has been playing to sellout crowds for over a decade throughout the Northeast and Europe as well as at the New York International Fringe Festival. At long last, THE ESSENCE is set to play at New York's Theatre 154, 154 Christopher Street (between Greenwich & Washington Streets) in January. This four-performance run is in preparation for an Off-Broadway production of the show later in 2025.

According to its creators, THE ESSENCE is “an introduction to Yiddish language and culture designed for people who don't give a rat's rectum about Yiddish language and culture”. “Guaranteed nostalgia-free,” this irreverent journey through Yiddish theater's legacy has established its success by bringing in audiences of all ages who have had no prior exposure to the language. THE ESSENCE introduces them to the most expressive language in the world via scenes, sketches, and songs in Yiddish (accompanied by English supertitles) along with “oddball detours” about the language itself, all “in 83 New York minutes.”

Actor and Director Allen Lewis Rickman invites New York theatergoers to "see what happens when you sin with a shiksa, come jam to Soviet Yiddish Rock, and hear Einstein's theory debated by imbeciles." Rickman and fellow actor Yelena Shmulenson are better known as the shtetl couple from the Coen brothers' Oscar-nominated A Serious Man, and they are joined on the stage by Broadway veteran Steve Sterner, who also serves as the show's Musical Director.

Beyond A Serious Man, Rickman is familiar from his work on “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (as Red Skelton), Barry Levinson's Emmy-winning “You Don't Know Jack,” and his recurring role on HBO's “Boardwalk Empire.” His NY stage credits include Broadway's Relatively Speaking and Mack & Mabel at Encores! Yelena Shmulenson has appeared Off-Broadway in Tevye Served Raw (co-starring & directed by Allen Lewis Rickman), as well as the film The Good Shepherd and on TV's “Orange is the New Black,” “Blue Bloods,” “Madame Secretary,” and “The Knick.” Steve Sterner has been the resident silent film composer and accompanist for New York's Film Forum since 1987, creating scores and performing for hundreds of films. As an actor and singer, Sterner has appeared extensively on and Off-Broadway.

The playing schedule for THE ESSENCE will be Tuesday 1/7 at 7 p.m., Thursday 1/9 at 7 p.m., Saturday 1/11 at 8 p.m., and Sunday 1/12 at 3 p.m. Tickets are $48 and are available through www.EveryonesYiddish.com.

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