Nick Cassenbaum Leads Final Performances Of Acclaimed BUBBLE SCHMEISIS

Acclaimed writer and performer Nick Cassenbaum will present his hit solo show Bubble Schmeisis, for the final time, with a limited run at Soho Theatre this May. Fresh from a sell-out extended run of his Fringe First-winning show, REVENGE: After the Levoyah, at the Yard Theatre; Nick invites us to join him in East London's last remaining authentic bath house for one last splash.

A show Nick has performed more than 150 times, Bubble Schmeisis - directed by Danny Braverman (Wot? No Fish!!) - has not changed, but Nick has and so has the world. Now, to celebrate 10 years and to officially retire the show, he's bringing the schvitz back to Soho.

Bubbemeises is Yiddish for a grandmother's story, a tall story, an old wives' tale. A schvitz is a Jewish steam bath where old men go to wash, relax, complain and rejuvenate - to exchange jokes, gossip, and to swap bubbemeisis.

Nick Cassenbaum has been trying to make sense of his Jewish identity ever since he was a young boy. He tried everything: Spurs games, summer camps, barbershops, even religion. All, alas, to no avail. 

It wasn't until his blind grandfather took him to the schvitz in Canning Town, East London, that he found what he was looking for. Here men enact the ancient washing ritual of schmeissing, and, as he lay naked being schmeissed by his grandfather, he knew he had found what he was looking for, but above all, he knew he had to make a show about it.

In Bubble Schmeisis, Nick and his accompanying klezmer musicians invite us to join them as they conjure the enveloping warmth of this last remaining authentic steam bath house in East London. Amongst the steam and ritual, Nick schleps on a journey of questioning and celebrating his identity, providing an insight into a fading community and the folk history of a once vibrant culture.

First presented to acclaim at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2016, Bubble Schmeisis has since toured the length and breadth of the UK, as well as to a real-life schvitz in Detroit; and visits The Brick Theater in Brooklyn from 20 - 29 March, before returning home to London for a farewell run at Soho Theatre this May.

Writer and performer, Nick Cassenbaum, commented: “I'm so excited, if a little bit sad, to be performing Bubble Schmeisis again to celebrate its 10th anniversary, before officially retiring it. It's hard to overestimate the impact that performing in this towel has had on my career as it exemplifies an exploration and celebration of my identity which remains central to my work today. Having performed it over 150 times across the country and even in a Detroit schvitz, taking it back to the States - performing at Brooklyn's Brick Theater in March - before returning to Soho, where I first performed the show almost a decade ago, feels like the perfect way to finish schmeissing on stage.”

Bubble Schmeisis performs in Soho Theatre Upstairs from Tuesday 6 - Saturday 10 May.