Drill- 11
South

A former Detroit dentist has Jewish theater
on his mind in Florida.

SUZANNE CHESSLER
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

ack Lawson has put a lot
of energy into eliciting
bright smiles — first as a
dentist and now as
a musical theater produc-

er.

For many years, Dr. Lawson
organized dental fraternity mem-
bers into the Alpha Omega Play-
ers and country-club affiliates
into the Tam-O-Shanter Players.
Today, he is executive-producing
a more ambitious entertainment
program in Florida.

Working under the banner of
the Jewish Repertory Theater
(JRT) of Boca Raton, Dr. Lawson
has joined forces with Ran Avni,
artistic director of the Jewish
Repertory Theatre of New York.
Together, they are arranging a
tour of That's Life, a musical com-
edy revue that ran for 350 per-
formances off-Broadway.
"This will be a fresh show for
Florida, and it's one that young
people can relate to," Dr. Lawson
said. The production gives audi-

ences a contemporary, humorous
look at Jewish identity, family,
assimilation and tradition. "Even
at this early point, I've got 20 per-
cent of the seats sold."
That's Life will run Jan. 6-21
at the Levis Jewish Community
Center in Boca, Jan. 24-28 at Bai-
ley Hall in Fort Lauderdale and
Jan. 31-Feb. 4 at the Duncan
Theater in Lake Worth.
Helen Butleroff, who directed
and choreographed the 1994 re-
vue, will stage the Florida tour.

Four composers and nine lyricists
wrote the 22 musical numbers.
Lyrical sketches, performed by
a cast of five, lightheartedly de-
pict trends and dilemmas faced
by diverse members of the Jew-
ish community. "Bie Mir Bist du
Rap," for example, updates mu-
sical tastes with an ethnic flair.
"My Calling" pokes fun at shop-
ping sprees.
"I'm making a contribution to
Boca Raton because I spend half
of my time there," said Dr. Law-
son, whose last project was a
1992 production of Oklahoma for
Tam-O-Shanter.
"Just by the strangest of coin-
cidences, I spoke with Ran Avni,
who was looking for someone
with a theater background to help
bring his programs into Florida."
Dr. Lawson first connected
with Mr. Avni to expand topics
for a Yiddish-speaking group, The
Jewish Club, that met in Michi-
gan and Florida. He had been
seeking an English language play
with a Jewish theme that the
group could review and discuss.
Dr. Lawson is retired from
dentistry. He is now employed as
a hospital and medical practice
assessment consultant.
To get the nonprofit theater off
the ground and on a stage, Dr.
Lawson looked for people who
could help behind the scenes and
encourage financial backers. He
formed the Friends of the JRT of
Boca Raton in 1994.
Detroiters on the board of di-
rectors include Dr. and Mrs.
Joseph Cabot, Mr. and Mrs. Jack
Shenkman and Dr. Richard
Williams.

Left:
The cast of That's Life.

Below:
The JRT's Ran Avni and Dr. Jack
Lawson.

Other committee members
from Detroit are Jeanette Aus-
lander, Bev Cricow, Flo Korotkin,
Al and Shirley Legell, David and
Merilyn Schwartz, Bernice
Soskin, Frances Kay Tarter and
Robert and Shirley Willens.
"I consider myself a founder,"
said Dr. Lawson, who has spent
15 winters in Florida with his
wife, Ruby. "I get things start-
ed and then I like to carry an idea
to fruition."
While still a dentist, Dr. Law-
son organized a group,
Swissedent, to promote aesthet-
ics for patients undergoing ex-
tensive procedures. He worked
through Alpha Omega, part of
the time as international presi-
dent, to plan the first dental
school in Israel and launch the
first fraternity chapter in Aus-
tralia.
Dr. Lawson produced infor-
mational records as a sideline and
initiated a lecture series on op-
erating investment clubs based
on his personal experiences.
"I raised money from a lot of
people to get the Florida theater
program started," Dr. Lawson
said. "A lot of my own money is
going into this, not as philan-
thropy but with the objective of
breaking even."
With the first JRT of Boca Ra-
ton season on its way, Dr. Law-
son is projecting two shows for
the next season, tapping into Mr.
Avni's resources and 22 years of
experience with the New York
company.
Among Mr. Avni's many pro-
jects have been Incident at Vichy,
Crossing Delancey, The Grand
Tour and Kuni-Leml.
"The funds generated from
subscriptions, patrons and grants
will secure a cash-flow base vital
to the future of this program," Dr.
Lawson said. Cl