2024-2025 Theater J Season

FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Dear Friends,

It is with joy and excitement that I am announcing Theater J’s 2024-2025 season. This season, we will traverse time, cities, and emotions to bring you a stunning collection of plays that will take you to new terrains.

We will travel from Berkeley to Berlin and from Seoul to Paris to hear the notes from a piano that reverberates through decades and to ask ourselves where we belong. And, what makes us who we are? We ask: what does it mean to be Jewish today? And what should we consider about tomorrow? And even…. what makes us human? This season’s playwrights are searching for answers from AI bots to diaries, to award ceremonies, to birth certificates. By pushing the boundaries of what we know, these plays grapple with ethical questions of our time and the changing landscape of Jewish identities all through the power of brilliant theater.

Having just completed its successful run on Broadway, we are honored to bring Joshua Harmon’s breathtaking play, Prayer for the French Republic, to Theater J for its regional premiere. I am over the moon to be directing Theater J’s Trish Vradenburg Prize-winning play. Arguably one of the most formidable plays exploring Jewish identity written in the past 25 years, I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I first read it. I knew immediately that we needed to bring it to this community.

In collaboration with Mosaic Theater, we are delighted to bring Tony Award®winning actor Ari’el Stachel and his story, Out of Character. As a Yemeni Jewish artist growing up in California, Ari’el reveals the challenges he experienced navigating the complexities of his identity and how he was perceived by his peers. Though deeply personal and specific, this story resonates broadly.

Your Name Means Dream, by nationally-acclaimed playwright José Rivera, is a beautiful story of an unexpected friendship between an AI robot and a spirited senior. We’re thrilled to welcome Naomi Jacobson back to Theater J, side by side with Sara Koviak, for whom the play was written.

In the spring, we bring you Andrea Stolowitz’s mesmerizing The Berlin Diaries, which opens the page to the past to take us on a third-generation mystery, uncovering a lost family history.

In addition to these new plays, after a sold-out run at Theater J, we are thrilled to welcome back Sun Mee Chomet and her powerful play How to Be A Korean Woman. If you didn’t get a chance to see it during its limited run, now you have another opportunity! And if you did, you know how amazing it is, so please come back and share the experience with a friend.

And we are excited to welcome families back with our Theater Jr. program and are delighted to give you a chance to dive deeper into the making of theater through our Classes for Theater Lovers. We will open our doors for you to see new plays in development and offer bountiful opportunities to discuss this season’s plays through our Creative Connections program.

I am elated to bring you this slate of plays that open the imagination and are sure to prompt illuminating and inspiring conversations.

I look forward to our shared journey!

Hayley Finn, Artistic Director

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SUBSCRIBER BENEFITS

PG. 5

2024–2025 SEASON PLAYS PG. 6–9

ADD–ON PERFORMANCES

EDUCATION

NEW PLAY DEVELOPMENT

ACCESSIBILITY

PG. 10–11

PG. 12–13

PG. 14

PG. 15

CREATIVE CONNECTIONS BACK

ABOUT THEATER J

THE MOST INFLUENTIAL JEWISH THEATER COMPANY IN THE NATION.

THE WASHINGTON POST

Theater J is a nationally-renowned, professional theater that celebrates, explores, and struggles with the complexities and nuances of both the Jewish experience and the universal human condition. Our work illuminates and examines ethical questions of our time, intercultural experiences that parallel our own, and the changing landscape of Jewish identities.

As the nation’s largest and most prominent Jewish theater, we aim to preserve and expand a rich Jewish theatrical tradition and to create community and commonality through theater-going experiences.

Theater J is a program of the Edlavitch DCJCC. The Edlavitch DCJCC embraces inclusion in all its programs and activities. We welcome and encourage the participation of all people, regardless of their background, sexual orientation, abilities, or religion, including interfaith couples and families.

ONGOING SUPPORT FOR THEATER J IS PROVIDED BY:

CATHY S. BERNARD

THE MORRIS AND GWENDOLYN CAFRITZ FOUNDATION

PATTI AND MITCHELL HERMAN

NORBERT HORNSTEIN AND AMY WEINBERG

SARI R. HORNSTEIN

KAY RICHMAN AND DANIEL KAPLAN

THE MARINUS AND MINNA B. KOSTER FOUNDATION

DIANNE AND HERB LERNER

REVADA FOUNDATION OF THE LOGAN FAMILY

THE MORGAN FUND AT THE SEATTLE FOUNDATION

ALFRED MUNZER AND JOEL WIND

NUSSDORF FAMILY FOUNDATION

PATRICIA PAYNE

HELENE AND ROBERT SCHLOSSBERG

SHAPIRO FAMILY FOUNDATION

SHARE FUND

THE SHUBERT FOUNDATION

Theater J is supported partly by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, an agency supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. Theater J and all of the programs of the Edlavitch DCJCC are made possible through the support of the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington.

SUBSCRIBER BENEFITS

DISCOUNTS

• Enjoy priority seating and up to 32% off regular ticket prices.

• 18% off concessions and merchandise.

• No handling fees. The price you see is the price you pay.

• Unlimited free exchanges and “missed show insurance.” Call or email to exchange your tickets. We request that you exchange at least 24 hours in advance, but if you can’t, we’ll exchange your tickets even after your originally scheduled performance. (Upgrade charges apply when switching to a higher-priced performance. Subject to availability. NO refunds).

• Purchase additional tickets at 18% off full price.

Subscribers will always get the lowest available rates on additional tickets. Log in to your subscription account to purchase online, and the discount will appear automatically at checkout.

• Discounts to our popular Classes for Theater Lovers!

• 15% discount on JxJ Year-Round and Festival passes. Call the box office at 202.777.3210 or email boxoffice@edcjcc.org to purchase a pass.

REWARDS

• One free guest ticket for a special someone to accompany you to a show. To reserve your guest ticket (one free ticket per subscription), call or email with your guest’s name and email address so that the ticket can be reserved under that name. Your guest must attend the same performance for which you use your subscription seat.

• Encore Tickets!

After you have seen the show, call or email to book another date for the same show on us. (Free Encore Tickets can only be booked after you have attended the show, and must be in the same price tier as your subscription ticket. Subject to availability. Subscribers must show ID when picking up an Encore Ticket).

• Transfer seats for use by friends or relatives.

EXCLUSIVES

• Keep the same seats for all shows and consecutive seasons.

• Early invitations to subscriber-only events and first notice of classes and other special programs.

Saturdays at 7:30 PM | Sundays at 2:00 PM

Wednesdays at 7:30 PM | Thursdays at 7:30 PM

Saturdays at 2:00 PM | Sundays at 7:30 PM

PREVIEW & WEEKDAY MATINEES

Saturday preview at 7:30 PM | Wednesday at 12:00 PM Friday at 12:00 PM $109 $129

PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC

by JOSHUA HARMON

Directed by HAYLEY FINN

The Benhamou family has lived in Paris for five generations. A visit from their American cousin, Molly, is quickly overshadowed by an antisemitic attack on the family’s son, Daniel. Time bends as their questions of how to move forward awaken the stories of generations before.

A new-play favorite on Broadway and recipient of the 2020 Trish Vradenburg Jewish Play Prize, Joshua Harmon’s Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awardwinning epic family drama Prayer for the French Republic breaks open the global question “Where are we safe?”

PLEASE NOTE: Performance times will be 7:00 PM evenings and 1:00 PM matinees

OUT OF CHARACTER

Written and performed by ARI’EL STACHEL

Directed by TONY TACCONE

A Berkeley Rep production co-presented by Theater J and Mosaic Theater Company

JAN 8–26, 2025

Tony Award®-winner Ari’el Stachel’s one-man show brings to life a full ensemble of characters from his past, availing uproarious laughter, insight, and transformative performance to illuminate what it means to pursue—and accept—our complex identity.

Out of Character weaves an expansive autobiographical tale of Yemeni Jewish mixed ethnicity, mental health battles, and career success –all to the tune of relentless humor and extraordinary talent.

YOUR NAME MEANS DREAM

Written and Directed by JOS É

RIVERA

Starring NAOMI JACOBSON and SARA KOVIAK

MAR 12–APR 6, 2025

Internationally-acclaimed playwright José Rivera directs his profoundly intimate tragicomedy that asks what it means to be human as we embrace the technology of our future – and it embraces us.

Aislin needs constant support in her later years, and her care is placed in the hands of Stacy, an AI robotcaregiver designed to look and sound human.

The unexpected relationship that blossoms between them sparks questions of what it means to have a soul, what defines humanity – and what happens when those definitions begin to shift.

THE BERLIN DIARIES

by ANDREA STOLOWITZ

JUN 4–22, 2025

In The Berlin Diaries, Oregon Book Awardwinning playwright Andrea Stolowitz opens the pages of her great-grandfather’s journal to discover a previously unknown genealogy that propels her on a search for home, heritage, and repairing her own story within the Jewish diaspora.

SUBSCRIPTION ADD-ON

HOW TO BE A KOREAN WOMAN

BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND AFTER ITS SOLD-OUT JANUARY 2024 RUN.

MEE

Written and performed by SUN

CHOMET

Direction and dramaturgy by ZARAAWAR

MISTRY

SEP 12–22, 2024

How to Be A Korean Woman is a hilarious, heartfelt, and personal telling of Korean-American adoptee Sun Mee Chomet‘s search for her birth family in Seoul, South Korea.

This poignant one-woman show – told from the perspective of an adult Jewish adoptee – uses text, music, and movement to explore themes of family, love, adulthood, and the universal longing to know one’s past.

SEPTEMBER 2024

TINY LIGHTS: TALES FOR CHANUKAH

Based on short stories by ISAAC BASHEVIS SINGER

Created by ERIN WEAVER and AARON POSNER

DEC 7–15, 2024

Three masterful storytellers take on more than 40 roles as they bring us into the magical world of Isaac Bashevis Singer’s famed folktales.

Created and directed by award-winning artists and Theater J favorites Aaron Posner and Erin Weaver, this funny and fast-moving show uses simple props and the art of storytelling to transport us to different worlds. Get ready for laughter, surprises, and lots of participation!

EDUCATION

Theater J is dedicated to providing access to world-class performing arts to students of all ages.

STUDENT MATINEES

Bring your class to experience the magic of live theater! All participating schools also receive a study guide and a pre-show workshop at their school.

FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

• Tiny Lights (December 10–11, 2024)

FOR MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOLS

• Prayer for the French Republic

• How to Be A Korean Woman

• Out of Character

SUMMER MUSICAL THEATER CAMPS

Rising 2nd–9th graders sing, dance, and act their way into a show over three weeks of fun!

FOR ADULTS

CLASSES FOR THEATER LOVERS

Ready for a deep dive into theater? These wildly popular online classes for adults continue in Fall 2024. Past teaching artists have included Howard Shalwitz, Holly Twyford, Sharyn Rothstein, and Aaron Posner.

SCHOOL RESIDENCIES

Drawing on Theater J’s 2024-2025 themes of identity and journey, residencies are a way for K-12 students to build confidence and social-emotional skills as they create original poems, costume designs, and theater pieces.

FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

FLYING WITH DRAGONS: ACTING FOLKTALES (1-12 SESSIONS)

Ensemble theater teaches spatial relations, coordination, empathy, and expression while encouraging teamwork and social-emotional learning. This arts residency gives K-6 students a deeper understanding of plot, conflict, and character as the class works together to present a folktale through studentcreated dialogue and movement.

Meets content standards for history, social studies, and theatre arts. A 12-session residency may culminate with an evening performance for families and friends.

FOR MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOLS

SOLO SLAM (3-10 SESSIONS) is an opportunity for students to learn to create and perform a slam poem based on the theme of identity. In this three-part class, students will explore examples of poems and solo movement pieces, discuss the meaning of identity, and choose a story from their own lives that they will present in slam poem form about an identity-defining moment in their lives. The first day will focus on theme, ensemble development, and brainstorming. The second day will focus on creation and development of material. On the third day, students will revise and perform the drafts of their poems. Material will be developed through movement, improvisation, acting, and writing activities.

Meets content standards for middle school and high school in both theatre arts and English.

COSTUME DESIGN: RISE OF THE SUPERHERO (1-3 SESSIONS)

The world’s most famous superheroes were designed by Jewish immigrants after World War II. This residency explores the history of the creation of comic books, the nature of an alter ego, and how superhero stories serve as both allegories and as a way to process events and emotions. In this three-day residency, students learn to identify metaphor and symbolism through the elements of line, color, and texture and discuss how to establish a character and tell a story through costume design. Finally, using a basic two-dimensional form, they work with a professional theatrical costume designer to envision and draw an original comic-book-based superhero costume.

Meets content standards in history, visual art, English, and Holocaust studies.

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND PRICING

Contact Hester Kamin, Education Programs Manager at hester@theaterj.org.

NEW PLAY DEVELOPMENT

Theater J is invested in the future of Jewish Theater by commissioning plays and supporting the development of new work for local stages and around the world. Developing new plays is investing in the legacy of Jewish theatrical tradition, and ensuring we expand and diversify that tradition.

EXPANDING THE CANON

Our Expanding the Canon initiative addresses the need for more plays centering BIPOC Jewish narratives by commissioning seven diverse playwrights to develop new plays. During the three-year program, which kicked off in August 2022, the playwrights will collaborate with leading BIPOC scholars, conduct workshops, and share their work. Not only will this program commission seven BIPOC artists to write original full-length plays, but it will also have positive consequences for years to come as Jews of Color will, in turn, have more representation on stage.

Expanding the Canon is made possible by a Signature Grant from the Covenant Foundation. Additional support is provided by the Jews of Color Initiative, Cheryl Gorelick, Patti and Mitchell Herman, Daniel Kaplan and Kay Richman, Evelyn Sandground and Bill Perkins, Manny Strauss and Betsy Karmin, and Kathryn Veal.

YIDDISH THE A TER L A B

The Yiddish Theater Lab commissions and incubates new English-language works stemming from the Yiddish legacy, producing readings and workshops of new work, adaptations, and translations.

Made possible by the support of The Marinus and Minna B. Koster Foundation, Natalie Wexler and James Feldman, and The Leshowitz Family Foundation, Terry Singer.

PHOTOS:

Cover: (L-R) Jason Cohen, Morgan Morse, and Lauren Jeanne Thomas in Hester Street. A play by Sharyn Rothstein, with original music and songs by Joel Waggoner, based on the film by Joan Micklin Silver. Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography. Page 2: Hayley Finn. Photo by Josh Olson. Page 3: (L-R) Firdous Bamji, Ethan J. Miller, and Dani Stoller in This Much I Know by Jonathan Spector. Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography.

ACCESSIBILITY

As part of the Edlavitch DCJCC, Theater J embraces inclusion in all its programs and activities. We strive to make our productions accessible to all by providing the following to meet the accessibility needs of our patrons and to enhance their experience at the theater.

ACCESSIBLE SEATING

The Edlavitch DCJCC has ramp access from the Q Street entrance and all of our restrooms are ADA accessible. In the Goldman Theater, removable seats provide patrons with the opportunity to be seated with their companions while sitting in their wheelchair.

ASSISTIVE LISTENING DEVICES

Available free of charge and offered on a first-come, first-serve basis at all performances.

OPEN CAPTIONED PERFORMANCES

We are excited to announce that we will be partnering with Verbit AI to offer open captions at any performance. You will be able to use the Verbit AI app on your mobile device or one of our tablets.

LARGE PRINT PROGRAMS

Available at our Ticket Office, located on the first floor.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Our building sits on the traditional homeland of the Nacotchtank (Anacostan), farmers and traders who lived along the banks of the Anacostia River. Beginning in 1608, European settlers decimated the Nacotchtank with disease, warfare, and forced removal. By the 1700s, the survivors fled to join other tribes to the north, south, and west, including the Piscataway Peoples, who continue to steward these lands from generation to generation. We know this acknowledgment is only a small step towards justice, and we ask that all of us learn about the past and present and invest in the future of our country’s Indigenous communities wherever we are.

PHOTOS:

Page 10: Sun Mee Chomet in How To Be a Korean Woman. Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography. Page 11: Emma Wallach in Tiny Lights. Photo by Aryeh Schwartz. Page 15: Grant Harrison in Moses by Michele Lowe.

Photo by Ryan Maxwell Photography. Back: Zack Powell and Em Whitworth Photo by Aryeh Schwartz.

The EDCJCC embraces inclusion in all its programs and activities.

Jesse Bordwin, Chief Experience Officer

Emily Jillson, Senior Director of Institutional Advancement

Jennifer Zwilling, Chief Executive Officer

Daniel O. Hirsch, President

EDLAVITCH DCJCC

David Lloyd Olson, Managing Director

Hayley Finn, Artistic Director

THEATER J

Creative Connections events are free and open to the public. Don’t miss a moment. Grab your subscription – and connect.

Creative Connections is Theater J’s robust, independent series aiming to connect audiences with the artists, artistic processes, the broader DC community –and themselves.

CREATIVE CONNECTIONS