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These women are involved in Shaarey Zedeks 140th anniversary musical production. Standing are producer Melba Winer,' Betsy
Heuer, Vickie Adler, Dorothy Kaufman, Judy Cantor and Dottie Wagner. At the piano are Carole Lasser and Renee Mahler.

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4/12
2002

54

we foresee an even brighter future,"
said Dottie Wagner of West
Bloomfield, chair of the 140th cele-
bration. She's a 25-year member and
past president, the only female presi-
dent in the congregation's history.
In recent years, Shaarey Zedek
women began having bat mitzvahs,
aliyot and reading from the Torah.

Celebrating In Style

The 140th observance began with
Jewish rock and roll singer Michael
HarPaz performing at the Selichot
service just before the High Holidays
last September. But the highlights will
be an original, cabaret-style musical
show called The Producers ... of Shaary
Zedek, Sunday, April 28, and a dinner
honoring Rabbi Irwin Groner's "70
years of life and 40 years of love and
devotion to Shaarey Zedek," to be
held Thursday, June 20.
"It's a tip of the hat to 140 years
" of congregational history through
story, song and music," said Melba
Sklar Winer of West Bloomfield, a
third-generation Shaarey Zedek
member and producer of The
Producers. "It will nostalgically recall
the 'producers' of the synagogue ...
the founders of years ago and the
leaders of today whose names should
be in lights, but instead will be high-
lighted in humorous songs and
sketches."
It will be accompanied by a multi-
media presentation of historic photos.
Winer prepared the narration and

Renee Mahler of Bloomfield Hills,
another longtime Shaarey Zedek
member, wrote the lyrics for the 35-
member cast. Sixty would-be actors
auditioned for the show.
In one connection to the real
Producers, seven past presidents will
sing a parody of one of the Broadway
show's hit songs, Keep It Gay. In
another number, Rabbi Joseph
Krakoff, 31, and his wife, Susan,
Rabbi Jonathan Berkun, 29, and his
wife, Rabbi Lauren Berkun, and
Rabbi Leonardo Bitran, 42, will sing
Getting To Know You.
The young rabbis are part of
Shaarey Zedek's new clergy team,
which includes Rabbi Groner and
Cantor Chaim Najman. Rabbis
Krakoff and Berkun recently pre-
pared and ate sushi with a group of
young members.
More "specialty" nights are
planned. Also under way is an event
called Friday Night Fever, featuring
special services, a Shabbat dinner or
light Kiddush. A once-a-month
group aliyah is held on Shabbat for
everyone celebrating a simcha that
month, and a bookcase full of chil-
dren's books behind the bimah keeps
youngsters busy during services.
"We're going all-out to make a big
synagogue haimish (like home),"
explained Rabbi Krakoff, "so we're
implementing all of these personal
touches, plus obtaining feedback
from members whenever we can.
We're proud of our glorious past and

we have a keen eye on the future."
As part of the 140th anniversary
celebration, members will be able to
sign the Shaarey Zedek Golden Book
of Heritage, starting the evening of
The Producers. The leather-bound
album was first signed by members
in 1931-32, when the congregation
moved into its Chicago Boulevard
sanctuary.
Rabbi Groner said Shaarey Zedek's
growth and development were made
possible by the opportunities that
America offered Jews and all ethnic
and religious groups.
.
"Responding to the challenge of
industrial growth and social change,
this congregation adapted the syna-
gogue to meet the changing needs of
the American Jew," he said. "These
decades reveal the encounter of tradi-
tional Judaism and a free society.
Shaarey Zedek has grown with the
city of Detroit and its suburbs, and it
is known for its commitment to
social justice and concern for the
welfare of the community."

❑

The Producers... of Shaarey Zedek,
a cabaret-style musical show, will
begin at 7 p.m. Sunday, April 28,
at the synagogue's Southfield
location. The show is free, but
tickets must be ordered in
advance. Tickets are limited to
members. only. Call the syna-
gogue, (248) 357-5544.

