03/12/2010 - 7:30pm to 03/12/2010 - 9:30pm

Location:
Lewis And Clark College
Lewis And Clark College
Fir Acres Theatre


Class Description:
Vilna’s Got A Golem by Ernest Joselovitz
Directed by Professor Stephanie Arnold, performed by Students of Lewis & Clark College.

The Theatre Department presents Vilna’s Got A Golem by Ernest Joselovitz on the Main Stage of Fir Acres Theatre the first two weeks of March. The play, written in 1997, draws on the Yiddish theatre tradition and the legend of the Golem to address complex issues related to the resistance to oppression and the proliferation of violence, both historically and in our contemporary world.

At first the play appears to be a comedy, and comic elements continue throughout. A troupe of actors from Vilna in 1899 are putting on a play that supposedly takes place in 1540. Written by a company member, the “play within the play” tells of the creation of a Golem by two poor Jewish cobblers to avenge a family death perpetrated by a mob. But a darker undertone grows stronger, first as the story of loss becomes more apparent, and then as the Golem becomes an out of control force of random violence.



Discussions Following Performances
Saturday March 6: Professor Natan Meir, Portland State University
Friday March 12: Rabbi Jonathan Seidel, Lewis & Clark College , Portland State University , and the University of Oregon
Lecture by Jonathan Seidel

“The Golem: From the Talmud to the X Files. Reflections on the kabbalistic, magical, and artistic representations of the Golem in Jewish culture.”
Date and Time TBA

More Info:
March 5, 6, and 11, 12, and 13, 7:30 pm
Box Office: 503-768-7495. For Assistance or Group Tickets: Joyce Beeny, 503-768-7491