After a successful run in Seattle, Mississippi Summer is coming to these Landmark Manhattan locations in November:

Actors’ Temple Theater, 339 West 47th Street, Monday, November 4, 7:30 p.m.

All Souls NYC, Unitarian Church, 1157 Lex. Ave. Sunday, November 17, 2:00 p.m.

Brotherhood Synagogue, 28 Gramercy Park S., Sunday, November 10, 2:00 p.m.

FOR TICKET INFORMATION SEE VENUE FLYERS BELOW:

NEW YORK PREMIERE AT THE OFF-BROADWAY ACTORS’ TEMPLE THEATER

For tickets to the November 4 premiere performance at the Off-Broadway Actors’ Temple Theater: https://theactorstemple.ecwid.com/#!/ARTS@AT-Mississippi-Summer-a-play-by-Art-Feinglass-Mon-Nov-4th-2024/p/701736223/category=6745248

For tickets to the November 10 performance at Brotherhood Synagogue: https://www.brotherhoodsynagogue.org/event/missippi-summer

Staged Readings in February were a hit at The Lambs Club

Mississippi Summer premiered in at the Langston Hughes Theater in Seattle in Fall 2023 and toured to packed houses throughout the Puget Sound area.

From Mississippi Summer

“I’m not afraid of you!”

“Mississippi Summer” Highlights Jewish Role in Civil Rights Struggle

“Mississippi Summer,” a new play written and directed by Seattle/New York playwright Art Feinglass, looks at the role of Jews in the civil rights movement in the 1960’s South. Based on actual people and events, the play focuses on two idealistic Jewish volunteers who traveled to Mississippi in 1965 to fight for civil rights, the Jewish lawyer who defended them and the heroic local rabbi who played a key role in the struggle.

In the summer of 1965 Feinglass was a young civil rights worker in Jackson, Mississippi, where he and his fellow SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) workers Stokely Carmichael, James Foreman and John Lewis were beaten and jailed by police for their part in the bloody battle to end segregation. The play is based on his personal experiences and on the journal he kept at the time.

The premiere performance was presented by the Seattle Jewish Theater Company on October 21 and 22 at 2 p.m. at the Langston Hughes Theatre. The production is a joint project of Jewish and Black community groups in Seattle, including the Washington State Jewish Historical Society, the City of Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute, the CD Forum for Arts & Ideas, and the Black Heritage Society of Washington State.

“Mississippi Summer” was awarded a 2023 Arts Project Grant from 4Culture and had a successful fall 2023 run in the greater Seattle-Tacoma area followed by staged readings to full houses in February at The Lambs Club in Manhattan.

Following the premiere, Mississippi Summer toured the Seattle-Tacoma area with performances at Temple Beth Am in Seattle, Temple Beth El in Tacoma, the Stroum Jewish Community Center on Mercer Island and the Shalom Club at Trilogy in Redmond,

Mississippi Summer video clips – SD 480p

Temple Beth Am, Seattle

Temple Beth El, Tacoma
There is another Pacific Northwest aspect to the story. The civil rights lawyer portrayed in the play is based on the late Dennis Seinfeld a lifetime member of Temple Beth El in Tacoma, who, in the summer of 1965, was a young lawyer working on civil rights in Mississippi. He was the lawyer who bailed the author and his fellow civil rights workers out of jail in Jackson, Mississippi, nearly 60 years ago. (At the time, authorities in Mississippi frowned on people helping African-Americans register to vote.) The author is grateful to Karen Seinfeld, Dennis’ widow, who very generously made his files from that summer available for the writing of “Mississippi Summer.”

Stroum Jewish Community Center

Shalom Club at Trilogy in Redmond, WA

“Black power!”
“Stop the war!, Peace now!”

REHEARSAL PHOTOS

Playwright/Director Art Feinglass and Cast of “Mississippi Summer.”Left to right, Mark Abel, Sonja Rose Usher, Mira Marie Goins, Sam Neer, Patrick Tolden, Madison McVeigh, Joshua Graves and Jim Quatier.

“Segregation is the Law in the State of Mississippi”

Assistant Director Lauren Marshall, right, confers on the script.

Art directs understudy Joshua Greene in the marching scene.

Seattle – King County’s 4 Culture grant agency has awarded a 2023 Arts Project Grant to the Seattle Jewish Theater Company for the production of “Mississippi Summer” this fall.

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STAGED READING, MARCH 27, 2023

A staged reading of “Mississippi Summer,” was presented at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute in March in cooperation with the Washington State Jewish Historical Society, the Black Heritage Society of Washington State and the Central Distinct Forum for Arts & Ideas, where it was well-received. Preparations are underway for full performances of the play in Seattle and Tacoma this fall.

**The cast** of the “Mississippi Summer” staged reading, front row, **Lauren Marshall** who read the stage directions, **Madison McVeigh**, who read the role of Judith Rosen. civil rights worker from New York, and **Juliette Jones**, who read the role of Marybeth Johnson, civil rights worker from Denver. Standing, **Mark Abel,** who read the role of Jackson Police Officer Bob Graham, **Chandry Abreu**, who read the role of Ruby Simmonds, civil rights worker from Jackson, Mississippi, **Art Feinglass**, the play’s writer and director, **Randy Alverenga**, who read the role of civil rights leader Stokely Carmichael, **Fox Matthews,** who read the role of Steve Liebowitz, civil rights worker from New York, and **James Quatier,** who read the role of Jackson Police Officer Caleb Prince

Scenes from the Staged Reading (Photos Matt Walller)

Marybeth tell the police, “We’re not afraid of you!”

Officer Prince at the Jackson City Jail with Steve.

Stokely launches the Black Power movement. Steve takes another path.

For more information about the play and/or the production, contact SeattleJewishTheaterCompany@gmail.com

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“ARRIVALS” A Hit in New York, Fall 2022

Following the success of its week-long Off-Broadway run, Arrivals written and directed by Art Feinglass ,will have an Encore Performance, at the Center for Jewish History, 15 W.16th Street, Sunday, November 20, 6:00- 7:30 p.m.

“What if he’s just pretending to be a Jew?” Left to right, Amelia Bell, Mariana Mott Newirth, Coren Rhodes, Paul Lutvak and Edoardo Miranda. Photo by Karen Feldman.

Tickets at Arrivalsnyc22.eventbrite.com. Art has arranged a friends and family discount, use promo code, ARTNYC22.

“Tu mansanas, your apples.” Left to right, Amelia Bell, Lynn Diamond and Edoardo Mirandai. Photo by Karen Feldman.

A hit with audiences in Seattle and New York , Arrivals is a Jewish Romeo and Juliet story about a Sephardic man from Turkey and an Ashkenazi woman from Russia who meet and fall in love in 1902 Seattle but find their love forbidden.

“I want that we should marry.” Left to right, Amelia Bell and Edoardo Miranda. Photo by Karen Feldman.

The historically based story is presented with drama, warmth and humor as it explores issues of diversity and inclusion at the turn of the twentieth century, issues that resonate today.

“Get out of my store!” Left to right, Paul Lutvak, Mariana Mott Newirth, Amelia Bell and Edoardo Miranda. Photo by Karen Feldman

An Arrivals musical is currently in the works. A video of the New York production will be available shortly.

From The Program

Stage Manager Mark Gordon. Due to Covid, the role of Anna was also played by Lynn Diamond, The role of Rose Moscowitz was also played by Mariana Mott Newirth. The role of Hershel was also played by Ben Culpepper.

Fall 2022 New York

ARRIVALS was a hit with audiences in Seattle and Tacoma in the spring. This Fall the Seattle Jewish Theater Company is partnering with the American Sephardi Federation and the Sephardic Jewish Brotherhood of America to present ARRIVALS at the Center for Jewish History in New York.

Information and tickets at, americansephardi.org/events

Written and directed by SJTC artistic director Art Feinglass, and based on historical events, ARRIVALS is a Jewish Romeo and Juliet love story. The year is 1902 when Marco Cordova, a poor, young Jew from Turkey, comes to Seattle, the first Sephardic Jew to arrive in the city, determined to make his fortune. He soon meets Bayla Keigelman, a fragile Jewish girl from Russia who is haunted by memories of a vicious pogrom. Despite the cultural gulf between them, they fall in love but find they must confront forces that declare their love forbidden.

ARRIVALS will be performed at the Center for Jewish History in New York, October 30 – November 6, 2022.

“ARRIVALS” A Hit in Seattle and Tacoma, Spring 2022

Seattle Jewish Theater Company performances of “ARRIVALS” have been enthusiastically received by audiences in Seattle and Tacoma.

The ARRIVALS cast and playwright engage in a post-show Q&A with the audience.

At post-show Q&A’s the cast came in for high praise at Temple Beth Am and Congregation Ezra Bessaroth in Seattle and at Temple Beth El in Tacoma.

Next up is a performance for residents and friends of The Shalom Club at Trilogy in Renton on Saturday night May 7 and the Microsoft Auditorium at the Central Library in downtown Seattle on Sunday afternoon, May 8 at 2:30 for which admission and parking are free and no reservations are necessary.

Spring 2022 Performance Schedule

Sunday, April 10, 2 p.m. Temple Beth Am & Congregation Beth Shalom, Seattle. Tickets at: https://templebethamseattle.shulcloud.com/form/alovestory2022

Sunday, May 1, 2 p.m. Congregation Ezra Bessaroth, Seward Park, Seattle. Tickets at: givebutter.com/WSJHSArrivals

Monday, May 2, 7 p.m. Temple Beth El, Tacoma

Saturday, May 7, 7 p.m. Shalom Club at Trilogy, Redmond

Sunday, May 8, 2 :30 p.m. Central Branch, Seattle Public Library, Downtown Seattle

The SJTC presents plays that explore aspects of the Jewish experience.

The cast of ARRIVALS, left to right, Fox Matthews, Grace Madland, Mark Abel, Shelby Skienna, Maren Patrick, and Rolando Cardona.

Written and directed by SJTC artistic director Art Feinglass, and based on actual events, ARRIVALS is a Sephardic-Ashkenazi love story that unfolds against the backdrop of early 1900’s Seattle and the arrival of the first Sephardic Jewish immigrants to the city.

The year is 1902 when Marco Cordova, a poor young Jew from Turkey, comes to Seattle, the first Sephardic Jew to arrive in the city, determined to make his fortune. He soon meets Bayla Keigelman, a fragile young Jewish woman from Russia, who is haunted by memories of a vicious Russian pogrom. Despite the cultural gulf between them, they fall in love but find they must confront forces that declare their love forbidden.

New York Workshop, Summer 2019

ARRIVALS was workshopped at acting studios in New York in summer 2019 and performed as a staged reading that was enthusiastically received by the audience.

The New York cast of “Arrivals” with the playwright, center.

As part of the work shop process a table read of the script for “Arrivals” was held at Polaris North Studios.

Director Bob Kalfin and playwright Art Feinglass, center, presided over a table read of “Arrivals” at Michael Howard Studios in Manhattan that included New York actors Allen Rickman in straw hat and Yelena Shmulenson-Rickman.

Thank you!

I am grateful to the many people who generously shared their knowledge and personal experiences in the creation of ARRIVALS. The play is the culmination of several years of research aided by historians of both the Sephardic and the Ashkenazi immigrant experience in America as well as extensive interviews with people from both communities.

Much gratitude is due to Howard Droker, co-author with Jacqueline Williams and Molly Cone of the wonderful and very helpful history, Family of Strangers, Building a Jewish Community in Washington State, who took me on a personal tour of the historically Jewish areas of Seattle.

Key to telling the story of the Sepharadim in Seattle has been Cantor Ike Azose, a great font of wisdom on Sephardic history and culture, who met with me numerous times and coached cast members on the Ladino vocabulary and songs in the play.

I am also grateful to the wonderful members of the Ladino study group the Ladineros, who shared their personal stories and memories with me, including, Luis Antezana, Sol Azose, Ralph Adatto, Jack Altabef, Victor Amira, Regina Barkey Amira, Kathy Barokas, Leatrice Gutman, Al Cordova, Jack Cordova, Lilly DeJaan, Morry Mochkatel, Cheryl Lundgren, Al Shemarya and Marlene Souriano Vinikoor.

Thanks is due, as well, to the many people whose shared stories and insights were invaluable in creating the play, including, Beth Alhadeff, Emily and Ty Alhadeff, Stuart Eshkanazi, Cynthia Flash, Jane Isenberg, Albert Israel, Michael Israel and Paula Podemimski.

And thank you to Simcha Kruger in New York and to Wendy Marcus in Seattle for their generous help with the Yiddish vocabulary and for coaching cast members on the Yiddish dialog and song in the play.

Lisa Kranseler and the staff at the Washington State Jewish Historical Society and the Washington State Jewish Archives were especially helpful with the historical research for the play, as was Dr. Devin E. Naar, Chairman of the University of Washington Sephardic Studies Program.

For their invaluable help in the workshop development of Arrivals in New York I am very grateful to Bob Kalfin, Alexa Kelly, Yelena and Allen Rickman, Gabrielle Berberich and the actors at Michael Howard Studios, and Leslie Lynn Meeker and the actors at Polaris North Studio.

And a very special thank you to Lynn Diamond who was been encouraging and supportive, as always, in the Arrivals project.

Art Feinglass, Artistic Director, Seattle Jewish Theater Company

Hot Off The Press

I’m pleased to announce that a short story of mine, “Arieh Paz”, written during my days as a member of Kibbutz Lahav in the Negev in the 1970’s, has been published in Fig Tree Lit, Here’s the link conta.cc/3uKNx6c Scroll down to see the story.
It appears in my forthcoming memoir/collection of fiction and nonfiction, “Kibbutz Stories.”

This photo appears with the story. I’m the guy driving the tractor.

For more information contact, SeattleJewishTheaterCompany@gmail.com.

The Seattle Jewish Theater Company, now in its tenth year, presents plays throughout the Seattle area that explore aspects of the Jewish experience .

Previous productions have included the musical I Can Get it For You Wholesale, My Name Is Asher Lev, The Dybbuk, Morning Star, Beau Jest, From Door to Door, The World of Sholom Aleichem, Crossing Delancey, The Last Night of Ballyhoo, The Last Seder and the Yiddish classic Mirele Efros for the University of Washington.

In August 2016 SJTC presented From Door to Door and Jewish History Live for some 800 attendees at the 36th annual convention of the International Association of Jewish Genealogical Societies at the Seattle Sheraton.

In September 2014 SJTC entertained 350 people at the Washington State Jewish Historical Society’s gala at the Museum of History and Industry, in a program entitled Shalom, Open for Business, in which SJTC actors portrayed Jewish merchants in Seattle in the early years of the twentieth century.

For more information contact,

Art Feinglass, Artistic Director,

Seattle Jewish Theater Company

SeattleJewishTheaterCompany@gmail.com