It's the Journey that Counts

On Thursday, January 24, Raise Your Spirits takes to the road and brings its latest production, "ESTHER and the Secrets in the King's Court" to the stage of the new Cultural Center in Kiryat Arba, south of Gush Etzion.
It's the first time this production of ESTHER has left its home stage of the Gush Etzion Community Center. It's an exciting journey that everyone is looking forward to.
But this isn't really the journey that will make ESTHER an unforgettable experience for its cast of more than 60 women and girls. The journey that has been unforgettable has been the one we have taken together since the beginning of the summer, the one that changed each of us from individual talented people :) to a family of performers.
The journey that really counts for our Raise Your Spirits cast is the journey from me to us. Most people think that actors are a bunch of selfish hams (well, hams maybe, but selfish doesn't have a place in Raise Your Spirits dialogue).
The journey that counts has had its milestones - the first time we saw the benefits of harmonizing correctly, the first time we understood that our dance looked best when we pulled together, the first time we each rooted for someone else more than ourselves, the first time we cheered when a cast member "got it right", the first time we saw the shine in the eyes of our little Shushan children, the first time an understudy got on stage and made us proud.
Our journey from a cast of an excellent show to a tight united family has been the one that counts, the one we will always remember. Our cast will always remember it, and so will our audiences.
We've been together on a regular basis for more than seven months now. That's a long time. We've gotten to know one another pretty well, and the familiarity breeds quite a lot of love and laughter. 
To the "Cast of the Queen" as ESTHER's director Toby Klein Greenwald says, or "Queenies" in the words of production manager Eudice Spitz, you will light up the stage in Kiryat Arba and bring tremendous pride to everyone involved in ESTHER, to our audience and even to our Forefathers in the City of Hebron.
Enjoy the journey.
If you'd like to join us on Thursday night, contact 02-996-1666, then dial "0" for the secretary. Tickets are 58 NIS.

Snowing on ESTHER

ESTHER snowperson with little
Dvora Hurwitz tens years ago.
Photo by Hilary Hurwitz.

Ah, snow snow snow snow. Snow blanketed Gush Etzion and Efrat today, in addition to other places around Israel. Families spent the day playing outside and making the most of the white fluff. Smiles and laughter were everywhere.
Our Raise Your Spirits production of ESTHER and the Secrets in the King's Court had a full cast rehearsal scheduled for this evening in order to refresh ourselves in preparation for Sunday night's performance in Matnas Gush Etzion at 8:15 (January 13). But we were snowed-out. The snow accumulation and icy roads have made it impossible for us to get together to sing and dance. We're all pretty disappointed.
But this isn't the first time ESTHER has been snowed out.
In 2003, our original ESTHER and the Secrets in the King's Court was supposed to play in Ra'anana. The theater was totally sold out, and our fans in Ra'anana were very excited that we'd be performing there.
However, it snowed the night before, and we in Efrat and Gush Etzion were totally snow-bound. Even though the weather was lovely in Ra'anana, we couldn't get there.
Our friends in Ra'anana couldn't believe it. "The sun is shining here," they said. "But we're covered with snow here, and no traffic is moving anywhere nearby," we replied.
It was difficult for them to believe that we really couldn't make it to Ra'anana that night.
So I called my Raise Your Spirits neighbors and invited them to my home for some Show and Tell for Ra'anana. We even had the help of some of our kids.
We dressed up in whatever RYS costumes I had in my house. As founder of RYS and producer of JOSEPH and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and ESTHER and the Secrets in the King's Court, I had quite a collection of memorable outfits in my office.
Then we went out into the snow. We snapped a few photos and sent them off to Ra'anana. "This is why we can't come to Ra'anana tonight."
They finally understood. why ESTHER had to be postponed, and we performed in Ra'anana to an appreciative and sold-out audience at a later date.
Back to the Future
Our 2013 cast of Raise Your Spirits takes the stage IY"H on Sunday evening, January 13th, and then again on Thursday evening, January 17th. The snow will be cleared by then, and everyone's invited to Matnas Gush Etzion for our 8:15 PM performance.
These are ESTHER's last two performances in Gush Etzion. Join us.

The photos above include costumes from the 2002-3 production of ESTHER and the Secrets in the King's Court and the 2001-2 production of JOSEPH and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Thanks to Hilary Hurwitz and Izzy Katz for their photography.

Hints of ESTHER in the Weekly Torah Portion

Haman FALLS upon the bed.

This week's Torah portion , Vayechi, is one of the most emotional readings in the entire Five Books of Moses. An ailing Jacob, gathers his strength one more time, blesses his grandchildren, and shows us his a glimpse of his greatness and majesty one last time as he tells his children what awaits them and their ancestors throughout Jewish history.

Its commentaries also include several references to Megillat Esther, the story that Raise Your Spirits has brought to the stage this season.

In Chapter 48:2, a frail Jacob hears that his son Joseph has come to visit him, "So Israel exerted himself and sat up on the bed."

The Torah commentator the Baal HaTurim explains that despite his illness, our patriarch Jacob was able to rouse his strength once more and sit up upon the bed. Yet in Megillat Esther 7:8, we read that after Haman was revealed as the evil nemesis of the queen and her people, "Haman fell upon the bed" of Esther. This teaches us, according to the Baal HaTurim, that "even when they are weak, the righteous can strengthen themselves", but even when they are the peak of power, "the wicked will fall."

May it be so in our days, IY"H.

Further, the Sforno also speaks about the same phrase. Israel strengthened himself on the bed to give honor to the king (the pious Joseph). But the opposite was true in Megillat Esther 5:9, when Haman the king-wanna-be walked before the King's gate, Mordechai would not stand up or move before him.

Mordechai with Esther.

Lastly, it is interesting to note that the great Jewish leader Mordechai is called Mordechai HaYehudi.

That was because of the blessing that Jacob gave to his son Yehuda (49:8-12). Artscroll's commentary says, "So admired will you [Yehuda] be by all your brothers that Jews will not say, I am a Reubenite or a Simeonite, but I am a Yehudi. Thus we find that Mordechai, in the Book of Esther, was known as a Yehudi, even though he was from the tribe of Binyamin.

So often, our Torah portion and our commentators speak about Esther. It's a great feeling knowing that even in our fun production, we are connected to our Jewish heritage.

Sold Out Smash and Other Excitements

Tonight we take the stage again in Raise Your Spirits' smash-hit "ESTHER and the Secrets in the King's Court".
It's exciting to know that our audience members come from (not just all over Israel, but) all over the world - Paris, London, Johannesburg, Los Angeles.
It's even more exciting that they'll be able to purchase our DVD and our newly minted CD to take along with them.
This ESTHER CD is already a classic. We've heard from the pros that this CD is better than anything we've created in the past ten years.
When we created our first ESTHER CD a decade ago, it was instantly so popular that we received a flood of emails telling us that women and girls just COULDN'T STOP listening.
And on Purim, homes from Melboune to Seattle, from Zurich to Buenos Aires were filled with our music. What a great feeling for everyone involved in Esther!
So tonight, not only do we perform live, but we're excited that our audience members will take our performance home with them too.
Friends, as you listen to the CD, think of the women and girls of Efrat and Gush Etzion who send you a hug with every song. Well, my "sons" and I are sending you a "Grrrrr."
If you're not able to get to the theater in Gush Etzion, you can order the CD or DVD on line - www.raiseyourspirits.org.

The Making of the ESTHER CD

We spent our Chanukah, not only vacationing with our families, but working in the recording studio of Amit Benatar in order to create the ESTHER CD.
Raise Your Spirits' "ESTHER & the Secrets in the King's Court" has been such a tremendous success, B"H, audiences have clamored for more and more and more.
One more was added performances. We have just arranged them.
Another more was an ESTHER DVD. It's done and selling amazingly well.
And the latest more has been an ESTHER CD to play in your car, on your computer and while you're going through your busy life.
The ESTHER CD has all the great music of the show, plus all kinds of added touches to make it even more super-terrific.

We had such a great time in the recording studio. We entered, saw Amit's state-of-the-art sound board, plus the headphones (like a pilot wears), and a gated microphone (you've gotta sing to the gate). Suited up in this show biz paraphernalia, we really felt like Taylor Swift or Frank Sinatra (can those two names be said in the same sentence?).
The words to our songs were on a music stand, but it's easier and more natural to sing without them.

B"H, we knew them. Well, I sorta knew them. For some reason (nerves??), I was throwing "s"es all over the place. I only need three takes on those S-mistakes. I needed more for my Haman GASP when the King tells Haman to parade Haman's arch enemy Mordechai through the streets of Shushan. G-A-S-P!! (You get it?)

We sang our songs harmonized with one another, and those disembodied voices that were in our earphones.I even got to do the tap dances I do, as Haman, in the show. To accomplish the tap, I brought my metal-bottom tap shoes, of course, and my own wooden stage. (Well, it's important to always be prepared. :) )
Thanks to talented CD project coordinator Avital Macales, music director and pianist Gayle Berman and music magician Amit Benatar (who arranged composer Rivka Hattin Epstein's music, along with co-arrangers Paul Salter and Mitch Clyman) whose recording studio was our home for the week.
The CD is going to be powerful and packed with joy too. You'll love it. We'll let you know as soon as it hits the streets. POW!

Reviewer Ruth Beloff Loved ESTHER

Thanks to Ruth Beloff of the Jerusalem Post for our latest smash hit review, B"H, bli ayin hara.
http://www.jpost.com/ArtsAndCulture/Arts/Article.aspx?id=295693

Ruth wrote:
12/12/2012 21:26
The thoroughly entertaining English-language musical was sparkled with witty lyrics, dazzling costumes and upbeat music that rocked the house.
The revival of Esther and the Secrets in the King’s Court made a very welcome return to the stage in Gush Etzion. Playing to a packed theater of women only, the thoroughly entertaining English-language musical, performed by the Raise Your Spirits Theater, sparkled with witty lyrics, dazzling costumes and upbeat music that rocked the house.
The classic story of Queen Esther, set to original music and wonderful choreography, with an all-female cast outfitted in 1920s garb, was riveting from start to finish. Under the able direction of Toby Klein Greenwald, the amateur cast – ranging in age from eight to 70 – sang and danced their hearts out as the Purim story unfolded in an array of brilliant song and dialogue.
To ensure that the audience wouldn’t miss a word of the cleverly crafted text, subtitles in English and Hebrew were projected on a background screen throughout the play.
Looking like the crew from Guys and Dolls, the large cast was flawless in their performance – from the regal Queen Esther (Avital Macales), the foolish King Ahashverosh (Elana Kronenberg), the dastardly Haman (Sharon Katz) and the wise Mordechai (Deena Lawi) to the ebullient townsfolk of Shushan and the chorus of delightful little children.
Songs like “Eunuchs in Tunics” and details like the town shoemaker wearing a black apron that read “Shushan shoeshine” affirmed the fact that the play was penned by people who really knew what they were doing.
Written in 2001 by Klein Greenwald, Arlene Chartoff and Sharon Katz in the throes of the intifada to give women some comic relief from the surrounding horrors of the time, the play was indeed a joy to experience.
The singing was superb, the dancing was divine, and the humor was hilarious. Not only did the play raise the spirits of the audience, but it impelled them to rise to their feet after the finale in a sustained and well-deserved standing ovation.
The performance schedule for January will be available at www.raiseyourspirits.org. All Raise Your Spirits productions are performed for audiences of females only.

Photo by Rebecca Flash Kowalsky of wew.imagesthroughtime.com .

Reporter Atara Beck Praises ESTHER

It's absolutely thrilling to be appreciated by the audiences and the press.
Reporter Atara Beck wrote a terrific story about Raise Your Spirits' new production, "ESTHER and the Secrets in the King's Court" for the Jerusalem Post's In Jerusalem. Thanks, Atara.
You can read it here:
http://www.jpost.com/InJerusalem/ArtsAndCulture/Article.aspx?id=293044&prmusr=7JPvVMBR3AfbFpfR%2FYl4SxMAPFNDsxB8J06Dtorwa4QHs5IAk4VSI281Z8%2Bf8acD

InJerusalem

Spirited performances

11/22/2012 11:50   By ATARA BECK

Raise Your Spirits’ first production by and for women was conceived as some light relief from the second intifada.

Photo by: Rebecca Nathan Kowalsky

When Toby Klein Greenwald, Sharon Katz and Arlene Chertoff wrote Esther and the Secrets in the King’s Court, they had Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in mind as today’s Haman. However, the timing of this musical production by Raise Your Spirits – a non-profit theater troupe that women in Efrat and Alon Shvut created in 2001 to cheer people up at the height of the second intifada – seems to have coincided with the recent escalation of hostilities and launch of Operation Pillar of Defense in Gaza.

“We started this project during a bloody intifada,” explains Klein Greenwald, director of educational and community theater and a resident of Efrat.

“There were people killed on the road from Jerusalem to Gush Etzion and elsewhere. People weren’t going out a lot at night. We were looking for something to do to raise our spirits. Some of us brainstormed, and Sharon Katz, also of Efrat, said, ‘Let’s put on a show.’” “It’s totally déjà vu now,” says Katz. “Thursday night [November 15] was the dress rehearsal, and that same afternoon a missile from Gaza had reached the Tel Aviv area. I took my Tehillim [Book of Psalms], asked the [young] girls to come onstage, and I told them that 10 years ago, when we performed Esther, it was a time of terror and fear, and the possibility of destruction was everywhere around us. The [original] story of Esther happened at a time when the Jewish people believed that, God forbid, they could be destroyed.... But God can make miracles, and things can turn around overnight.... So I told the girls: What’s happening now happened 10 years ago, and it happened 100 years ago, and it happened 1,000 years ago. The Jewish people are threatened from every direction. But if we believe in God, then we shouldn’t be afraid.”

The three women, along with musical composer Rivka Epstein Hattin, are all American-born and - raised, though they are longtime Israeli citizens. The dialogue in their current production – which is running at the Gush Etzion Community Center – is in English, and there are Hebrew subtitles to accommodate the many Israelis in the audience.

All Raise Your Spirits productions are performed by women and for women only.

“The idea [since its inception in 2001] was to do it for women, and I volunteered to direct,” Klein Greenwald says. “We would meet every night. We did Joseph [and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat] first because everyone was familiar with it. We licensed the rights from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s company in England, and almost every night in the summer we got together to rehearse.... We thought we would do two performances for our friends. But it was a smash success.”

Since then, Raise Your Spirits has done five original musicals and performed for almost 40,000 women.

“So what began as just a fun thing to do for the community actually became a model for many other women’s groups that mushroomed after us,” she says.

One might assume that such a community initiative would be amateurish. On the contrary: The productions, including the music and costumes, are professionally done by accomplished individuals. Klein Greenwald, for example, is a respected educator, writer, translator and photojournalist, as well as cofounder and editor-in-chief of WholeFamily.com, an award-winning self-help online site for families. In 2008, she received the Yaakov Egerest Award for Jewish Culture, presented by the Education Ministry, for her work in community educational theater.

The benefits of participating in Raise Your Spirits productions – whether it’s adult women who haven’t had the opportunity to express their creativity for a while, or religious women and girls seeking to use their performing talents in accordance with Jewish law – go beyond emotional support in times of war.

The musicals have been an uplifting experience for women and girls with personal challenges as well.

“Because it’s a social experience, it’s educational,” says Klein Greenwald. “My pet project is working with teens.... We tell everyone to read and study the original story in Tanach [the Bible]. They learn responsibility and what it means to give to the community.”

Production manager Eudice Spitz, who plays Bigtan, an adviser to King Ahasuerus, became involved in the spring of 2002.

“Two members of my family were very ill at the time – my mother and a sister,” says Spitz, also an American- Israeli and an Efrat resident.

“I work very hard in business as well. It was a very depressing time for me. I was looking for something that would literally raise my spirits.”

She heard about the audition 10 years ago and tried out.

“It really saved my mental health,” she affirms, stressing the camaraderie among the cast.

Spitz’s 11-year-old granddaughter, Meirav Mann, also appears in Esther. According to Spitz, she is “just one of a number of daughters or granddaughters of original cast members who are carrying on the Raise Your Spirits tradition.”

All children in the cast are Israeli-born, although some of their parents are native English speakers. The cast and crew range in age from seven to 70.

According to Klein Greenwald, performances usually attract a full house. During a typical season, between 5,000 and 10,000 people attend over a period of roughly four months. Usually the shows take place at the Gush Etzion location, although some have been done elsewhere.

In general, however, a lack of official funding from any local or national body is problematic, Klein Greenwald points out. The company is in search of partners. Still, they continue to host terror victims’ families and bereaved relatives of soldiers killed in line of duty at their performances, which is a large part of its raison d’etre.

At the opening night performance of Esther last Sunday evening, the troupe honored Jerusalem Post columnist Barbara Sofer.

“She was one of the first journalists who ever wrote about us and has been supportive from the beginning,” Klein Greenwald says. “We wanted to show our appreciation.”

For more information on performance dates and to reserve tickets, go to raiseyourspirits.org. A special Hanukka performance will take place on the evening of December 9.