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ejected for certain acting roles by casting
directors who assumed his name made
him "too Jewish," Avi Hoffman ex-
pressed his reaction in personal writ-
ings crafted into a theater piece
saluting Judaism.
To his surprise, the musical revue —
Too Jewish?
has been attracting off-
Broadway crowds for eight months.
Occasionally, Mr. Hoffman takes his
show to other cities, and on Saturday,
Nov. 11, he will perform at the Maple-
Drake Jewish Community Center.
Joined only by his musical director
and pianist Ben Schaechter, Mr.
Hoffman presents songs and
sketches — a tribute to Jew-
ish vaudeville stars, Yinglish
(combined Yiddish and English) versions of classic
theater passages, quizzes about Jewish stars who
changed their names and Broadway show tunes giv-
en an ethnic twist.
To authenticate his routines, Mr. Hoffman did
considerable research, tracing, for example, the roots
of Jewish comedy expressed by today's humorists
like Jerry Seinfeld to yesteryear jokemasters like
Menasha Skulnick.
With a lot of audience participation, the show can
differ from performance to performance.
"What is too Jewish, anyway?" Mr. Hoffman wants
to know. "Can people be too Irish or too Italian or
too Vietnamese? I've found that it's the Jews who
usually say, too Jewish.' They're the ones who are
self-conscious.
"Ultimately, I began looking for a way to fill what
I perceived as a need within the Jewish communi-
ty to restore a sense of pride in what it is to be Jew-
ish."
Mr. Hoffman, who has appeared in NBC's "Law
and Order" and the film The Imported Bridegroom,
personalizes his presentation by drawing on his own
background, which he considers more cultural than
religious.
The writer/performer tells about his parents as
Holocaust survivors, his growing-up years in the
Bronx and his favorite traditional songs, translat-
ing Yiddish lyrics into English for the younger
set.
"Jews have provided the world with an
enormous amount of talent," said Mr. Hoff-
man, who takes issue with the continuing
portrayal of Jews as neurotic characters.
"Look at all the great Jewish figures and
influences that have existed over the
years in music, comedy, theater and
art."
Research introduced him to behind-
the-scenes artists, and one of the tal-
ents he celebrates is the late Eli
Basse, a writer for Johnny Carson
and Red Buttons.
"Mr. Basse's daughter and
grandchild came to see the show,
and they loved it because their fa-
ther and grandfather's work sud-
denly was brought back to life for
the first time in many years," Mr.
Hoffman said. "Every show
brings an outpouring of emotion."
Mr. Hoffman's mother, Miriam
Hoffman, has been a special influ-
ence. A Yiddish professor at Co-
lumbia University, she also is a
playwright. Her Songs of Paradise
was produced by Joseph Papp
and directed and performed by
her son.

Avi Hoffman:
A musical
mentsh.

—

00
ewish?'

Writer/pelformer
Avi Hoffman attracts crowds
°flews and non Jews
who can't get enough
of his salute to Judaism.

SUZANNE CHESSLER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

.1 AI' +6

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