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Holy Blossom Temple Stagecraft Company was founded in 1994 by several Temple members. Our mandate is simple: to produce plays with Jewish themes and content, and to have fun while doing them. It’s a challenge to produce high-quality theatre, given the demands of time, pressures of family and a scarcity of funding. Nevertheless, we draw upon the resources at Holy Blossom — thanks to a corps of actors, directors, lighting and sound technicians, and carpenters — to deliver entertaining, yet thoughtful productions. The fact we have a faithful audience, that often numbers several hundred, attests to our success.
In this brief excerpt near the beginning of Pillars of Salt, Suzanne recalls to her friend, Naomi, that she had all the worry of organizing the shiva house, but some less-than-helpful family relations “were casing out the joint”. Worst of all, she says, with frequent interruptions from her mother, Tilly, the relatives helped themselves to a special bottle of scotch. It’s an incident that sets the tone for Michael Ross Albert’s unconventional Read more »
“Eight women. One night. A comedy about mourning.” Yes, working with eight women—not to mention a female stage manager, lighting manager and sound manager—can be a challenge. Not always a barrel of laughs. A case of sometimes taking direction, instead of giving it. But I was well-prepared, having directed Women’s Minyan in 2005. That play featured 10 women, who were sometimes at times at each other’s throats, and bitterly divided over Read more »
The last thing my grandfather said to me was, “If I don’t make it, tell my story.” No kidding. When asked about the inspiration for the play, my grandfather’s farewell to me is the only anecdote that comes to mind. Certainly, my grandfather was cavalier in his request. But he didn’t realize that playwrights take last words very seriously. It is both my pleasure and my sad duty to welcome you to Pillars of Salt. It is my sad duty because Read more »
Rehearsals for our Fall production, Michael Ross Albert’s Pillars of Salt, are well underway. Mark your calendars for Thursday December 8 and Saturday December 10 at 7:30pm and Sunday December 11 at 2pm. If you want to help out, we need backstage help, as well as help with box office, ushering and refreshment sales. We are actively soliciting proposals for our Spring 2012 production as well as looking for directors and assistant directors. Read more »
Stagecraft Theatre Company is pleased to present the Canadian-premiere of Pillars of Salt, written by Michael Ross Albert, and directed by Michael Ryval. When eight women gather at a shiva house for the family patriarch, they are in for a night of secrets, lies and revelations. They cry, commiserate, and laugh, as family ties are tested. Join us for this heartfelt study of the ultimate Jewish rite of passage. Eight women. One night. Pillars Read more »
Our January production of Michael Ryval’s The Last Days of Rachel Samuel enjoyed large audiences and was a critical and financial success for Stagecraft. Thank you to all our audience members, and especially our 21 Patron ticket purchasers! We are happy to announce that refreshment sales were also good, and we have donated nearly $400 to Temple’s Out of the Cold program. Stagecraft’s winter season continued with a four evening discussion Read more »