Storahtelling

COMING HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS, SORT OF


Verse per verse: The Weekly Storah by Sarah Sokolic

By Sarah Sokolic

Last Saturday night, Chana Rothman and I went to The Jewish Center in Princeton, NJ, home synagogue of the Sokolic family for the past 20 years (my "in-law" shul, if you will) to be a part of a Princeton-Mercer-Bucks community-wide Slichot program. Chana and I premiered a new piece which I conceived and wrote with the help of some of previous works from Storahtelling. Entitled "Like A Prayer", and directed by the lovely and talented Annie Levy, the piece retells the collective stories of some of our most cherished archetypes of the season (Aaron, Sarah, Hagar, Chana), focuses on the origins of prayer, and reflects on themes of "birth and rebirth", forgiveness and introspection. "Like A Prayer" was unique for Storahtelling in that it was not a Shultime or Maven program that would take place during the Torah service, nor was it a traditional theatrical piece. This was a "hybrid" model - I chanted in character amidst the dialogue, and Chana translated as part of the storytelling.

This technique resonated deeply with the congregation. During our half-hour long talk balk after the performance, many audience members commented on how moved they were to see characters they have known all of their lives portrayed as "real people", and how the use of chanting throughout made them remember that the stories and the dialogue come right from the text. Following the program Rabbi Adam Feldman, who worked with Storahtelling to put the program together wrote in an email:
"What a great evening. It was everything I wanted and more. Chana and Sarah are both very talented and a pleasure to work with and the performance was thought provoking and very well done. You helped us set the tone for the holidays in a way unlike anyone else can do. I am sure that many of us will think back to the performance as we read these stories in the Torah and Haftorah over the holidays."

Shana Tova.