Don't Worry Be Jewish . Part 1.

One in five Jews in New York City is an immigrant from the former Soviet Union, but many Russian Jews are intensely conflicted about their Jewish identity. Jews were not permitted to observe their religion in Russia, and most arrived on these shores with little knowledge of their heritage. A new Off-Broadway musical, "Don't Worry, Be Jewish," aims to change that by focusing on the younger generation of Russian Jews.
Written and directed by Russian-language television producer Mark Kleyner, "Don't Worry, Be Jewish," features a large cast of Russian Jewish children. Kleyner is best known as the creator and director of two Russian-language television shows, "My Song" and "Our Talented Children," as well as the founder of an international entertainment company that brings children

to compete in singing competitions around the world. "Don't Worry, Be Jewish" is sponsored by the Children's Talent Development Fund, which provides free arts lessons for Russian Jewish youth in New York.
"Don't Worry, Be Jewish" focuses on a bar mitzvah boy, Chaim, who has a crush on a girl, Sharianna. Both are induced (rather melodramatically, it would seem) by the Devil to turn their backs on their Jewish identity, but King Solomon intervenes to protect their souls and teach them the value of the Jewish tradition.
The songs, which are written by Alexander Butov and Brian Delany Starr, include the jaunty song of the title ("When you're out of cash and feeling kind of bluish/Don't worry, be Jewish"), the tongue-twisting "What Would Life Be Without Magic?" and the soaring Disney-style pop song, "Light a Candle."
Kleyner told The Jewish Week that many Russian Jewish children find being Jewish "very painful," since they associate it with being victims of anti-Semitism. He was spurred to write the show by an episode involving a friend's son, a Russian Jewish boy on Long Island, whose family was living in a town with a very small Jewish population. When his public school friends came to his bar mitzvah, they ridiculed his family's customs. The distraught boy told his parents that he "didn't want to be Jewish; he wanted to be 'normal.'"
According to Kleyner, performing in "Don't Worry, Be Jewish," has led the young actors to feel that being Jewish is not only "normal," it can actually become a source of great pride. The actor who played Chaim told Kleyner that he knew nothing of what a bar mitzvah signifies other than that it "gives you permission to get married." But now that he is in the play, Kleyner says, he reports that he is "learning loyalty to his family, his beliefs and his faith."

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Don't Worry Be Jewish
• Alexander Butov
• Brian Delany Starr
• Nathan Key
• Jasmin Petraru Mitchell Sapoff

[xxdiogenescynicxx]

Jews are weird people lol.

[DrProctorDoesCoke]

LOL

[nickyglamluvjb]

is that nathan?