Jewish Ensemble Theatre debuts annual fundraiser.
t had all the mak-
edge," said O'Brien, who
ings of the "ele-
fell in love with the lost
gant party scene"
art as a student at
in any play. About 130
Boston University.
of the Jewish
She has made Yiddish
Ensemble Theatre's
theater her primary
biggest supporters
focus ever since."You
gathered at the
can't over estimate the
Bloomfield Hills
influence of Yiddish cul-
ROBIN
lakeside home of
ture on American cul-
SCHWARTZ
Janie and Michael
ture whether it is theater
Special to the
Roth to mingle, sip
or film or television:'
Jewish News
cocktails, enjoy a
O'Brien said.
gourmet dinner and
"You can trace
hear from an authority on
Seinfeld back to Yiddish culture,"
Yiddish theater.
she added, explaining that the
Enter Caraid O'Brien — an
bickering Jewish parents on the
unlikely figure cast in that role.
sitcom were stock characters in
The 29-year-old Irish Catholic
Yiddish drama.
actress has translated the work of
O'Brien has located a handful
several Yiddish playwrights and
of Yiddish actors left in New
is helping bring them back to life York, many of whom are in their
on the stages of New York City.
90s. She's currently in the process
"She has a wonderful perspec-
of archiving their stories.
tive — she speaks Yiddish flu-
"This was once the theater of
ently and she speaks all over the
the masses:' said Christopher
world," said Eveyln Orbach of
Bremer, JET managing director.
West Bloomfield, JET artistic
"The plays date back to the late
director.
1800s, but the stories are so uni-
"The work they were doing in
versal," he said.
the Yiddish theater was cutting
Spotted among the crowd at
the inaugural Behind the Scenes
Gala were: JET President
Suzanne Curtis, Gail and
Jerome Beale and Joanna and
Jay Abramson, all of West
Bloomfield; Carolyn and Hugh
Greenberg of Franklin; Drs.
Phoebe and Harris Mainster of
Bloomfield Hills; and Barbara
and Gerald Cook, Tracy and
Jeffrey Katzer and Bluma and
Leonard Siegal, all of
Farmington Hills.
Guests paid $150 to attend the
gala, which will be the JET's
annual signature fund-raising
event. Proceeds benefit the the-
ater's main stage, youth educa-
tion services and youth theater
program.
"Ticket sales only pay for 50
percent of the cost of a show:'
said Orbach. "We have to fund
the other 50 somewhere she
said. "Prices have gone up, costs
have gone up enormously so we
need whatever support we can
get."
Bluma Siegal, JET board member and past president, relaxes on the out-
door patio with her husband, Leonard. They are from Farmington Hills.
Jack Liwazer of West Bloomfield and former state
Senator Jack Faxon of Birmingham
❑
The curtain is already up on
the JET'S 17th season. This
year, the theater will present
five productions on the main
stage, including Neil Simon's
Broadway Bound, which runs
through Oct. 15. To order
tickets or for more informa-
tion, call (248) 788-2900. For
show dates, times and ticket
prices, go to
www.jettheatre.org .
Rabbi Marla Hornsten of Temple Israel converses
with Tracey and Jeff Katzen of Farmington Hills.
Right: Director Aaron
Beall and performer
Caraid O'Brien, both of
New York
Jay Cunningham of Bloomfield Hills and Eva Amine of Royal Oak