Episode #41: NEXT @ The Braid presents Santa Monica Speaks Pt. 1

Join us on a little experiment from our Emerging Artists of NEXT @ The Braid! In this episode, you will hear 3 stories that materialized out of a writing exercise that took place during a recent meeting of the council. The stories are loosely inspired by the theme of NEXT’s upcoming Salon, For Goodness’ Sake which will debut in June. Are you an artist in your 20s/30s with a story to tell?? CLICK HERE to find out how you can submit your story to For Goodness’ Sake by March 6th!

Quick note: the Fellows did not read their own stories so as to anonymize the content.

Don’t miss JWT’s Second Salon of the season: Sex, Addiction & Love in the 21st Century! CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS <–Some dates are already selling out!

The 2019-2020 NEXT @ The Braid Fellows are Leenie Baker, David Chiu, Amanda Horowitz, Charles Volk, Rachel Minkoff, Isaac “Izzy” Salant, Sara True Rosenthal, and Sophie Stern Greenbaum. Daphna Shull serves as NEXT Literary Manager and Ora Yashar serves as NEXT Literary Consultant. NEXT Council Coordinator is Andrew Fromer.

For more information on NEXT @ The Braid, JWT’s Emerging Artists Fellowship, click here.

Episode #41: NEXT @ The Braid presents Santa Monica Speaks Pt. 12020-02-23T21:30:14-08:00

Episode #31: The Way Home with NEXT @ The Braid

CLICK HERE to get your tickets to The Way Home

What happens when you bring together the next generation of Jewish theatre artists under one roof? You get an incredible, compelling and uniquely original theatrical production! Hear from the Writers, Producers, Directors and creative Artists that make up this year’s cohort of NEXT @ The Braid Fellows as they get ready to share with you THE WAY HOME – performing June 8-18 all over Los Angeles at a Thrift Store, Fabric Shop or Art Gallery near you!

Wondering which venue is near you? Click here for all days, times and locations!

June 8th – Downtown LA *Come Early for a Special Art Gallery Viewing*
June 9th – Santa Monica *Come Early for an Art Talk with our Artists*
June 11th – Reseda
June 12th – Fairfax/Melrose
June 13th – Venice *Come Early for a tour of this unique Fabric Shop*
June 15th – Santa Monica *Come Early for an Art Talk with our Artists*
June 16th – Studio City *Come Early for 10% Off Shopping…Dad’s Like to Thrift Too!*
June 18th – Silverlake

ABOUT NEXT
Now in its third year, NEXT is a professional development fellowship program from JWT. Each year, a group of emerging artists are selected from a competitive applicant pool. The fellows then select a theme and invite the Los Angeles community to submit stories, poems, plays, musical works and art around that theme. NEXT fellows then collaborate to curate, cast, direct, and produce an original show and companion art exhibit over a nine-month period.

WHO ARE THE NEXT FELLOWS?

JUDITH GOLDSTEIN (Producer & Art Curator) Calling herself a modern day gypsy, Judith has lived in four countries, four states and countless cities- absorbing the culture, art and traditions from every place she’s had the pleasure of experiencing. Judith has worked in food industry as a cook, food writer, and historian. In 2014, she graduated from the University of Gastronomic Sciences with a Master’s in Food Culture and Communications. In addition to her passion for gastronomy, Judith immerses herself in photography, writing, and dance.  Her love and enthusiasm for art and food has always been the anchor that united her dynamic journey and she hopes to bring her passion, world experience and love for the humanities to the NEXT @ The Braid community.

CHANDLER TURK (Literary) is a writer for film, television, and theatre. He is currently the writers’ production assistant for Disney’s upcoming series “High School Musical: The Musical” which will premiere on their new streaming service Disney+ in late 2019. Turk earned his BFA at NYU Tisch’s Department of Dramatic Writing in 2018.  He has previously worked for the Inkwell Theater as the associate producer of Chickenheads (September 2018) and Journey to Alice (January 2018).

AYSHA WAX (Director & Marketing) is a writer, director and comedian. She is fun, witty and unintentionally the loudest person in the room. Aysha loves creating stories that are fun, festive, and feminist. Her webseries Wannabees that was co created by Marian Bruno was sold to Fox Digital in 2014.  Aysha has also had her sketches featured on Buzzfeed, Funnyordie, Wifey TV, and WhoHaHa. Aysha has performed improv and sketch around Los Angeles at iO West, the Upright Citizen’s Brigade, Westside Comedy Theater, The Pach Theater and the Groundlings.  Aysha also spent eight years teaching Hebrew School around Los Angeles, which inspired her one woman show Hebrew School Horror that she toured around LA and NYC. When Aysha is not creating things she moonlights as a dating consultant with her partner Rebecca Leib. Their dating classes are known as “Feeling It” dating. Aysha can help you level up dating wise while enjoying the process and maybe finding a partner in the process. In essence, Aysha is here to make your life a little better and more fun!

ARNON Z. SHORR (Marketing & Director) is an Israeli/American modern-Orthodox Jewish filmmaker who lives and works in Los Angeles. His award-winning shorts and features have screened in festivals around the world. His most recent short film about Jewish pirates, “The Pirate Captain Toledano”, an official selection at 48 film festivals and competitions, is now available on Blu-Ray, DVD and streaming on Amazon.com

KYRA MORLING (Producer & Art Curator) is an actor, writer, and artist recently graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles with a B.A. in theater. She’s split her time between Los Angeles and New York City working at The Hammer Museum, Gagosian Gallery, Royce Hall, Bowery Poetry Club, The Hole, and Marciano Art Foundation. As a performer, she has trained with Atlantic Theater Company, Upright Citizen’s Brigade, Second City, and has been featured in both Hollywood and Edingburgh Fringe. Her heart lies with Project Nongenue, an LA- based theater company in which she was a founding member. Find out more at kyramorling.com.

ORA YASHAR (Literary) is the Showrunner’s Assistant on the Netflix series ATYPICAL, a show which empathetically and humorously explores what it means to be “normal”. Further nourishing her love of storytelling is Ora’s ongoing involvement as a Script Consultant for Sundance’s Episodic Lab. Through a collaboration with Women In Film, Ora wrote an Emmy nominated PSA for the Santa Monica Museum of Art and directed a 2x Telly Award winning PSA for the ALS Association. Her short script ICE CREAM was a 2017 Austin Film Festival Semi-Finalist, Kansas City Film Fest Finalist and a 2018 Screencraft Film Fund Semi-Finalist. In order to say thank you to all those who have come before, Ora enjoys volunteering her time at the Motion Picture and TV Fund which supports the aging entertainment community in living with dignity and purpose. She earned her MFA in Directing from Chapman University.

JULIE LANCTOT (Director & Marketing) a graduate of UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television, has participated in the LA theater community as an actor and assistant director. Most recently, she played Rosaline in Chase What Flies’ production of Love’s Labor’s Lost and Isabella in Method and Madness’ production of Measure for Measure. Julie assistant directed Dangerous Liaisons at Antaeus last Fall and is currently assisting on a staged reading of the Jacobean tragedy Women Beware Women. Now dipping her toes into the world of writing, she is developing an original web series with some of her closest friends. Julie is enjoying the process of becoming a hyphenate and looks forward to continuing her journey with JWT.

DAPHNA SHULL (Literary Manager) is a three-time NEXT Arts Council Fellow, literary manager, and writer, born and raised in Tampa, Florida. She received her bachelor’s degree in media production from Florida State University. After graduating in 2014, she headed west to pursue a career in screenwriting and the arts. Today Daphna works as JWT’s Artistic Associate and as a museum educator for the Zimmer Children’s Museum.

ANDREW FROMER (Council Coordinator), a Los Angeles native, grew up as an active member in the Jewish community through Stephen Wise Temple. He attended Windward School in Mar Vista, where his acting career began in plays and musicals. After completing his BFA in theater at UC Santa Barbara, and an exciting year of living in Israel, Andrew took a dive into filmmaking and has since branched into production by helping prepare for distribution two feature films he has acted in: AMP Creative’s Highway to Havasu (dir. Jeff Janke) and Mockingbird Pictures’ The Sweet Life (dir. Rob Spera). Andrew also edits, directs, and is very excited to be coordinating this year’s iteration of NEXT @ The Braid, JWT’s Emerging Artists Fellowship.

This show is made possible with generous support from the Department of Cultural Affairs of Los Angeles, Erwin Rautenberg Foundation, Y&S Nazarian Initiative, a program of The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles and Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, and Gail Solo.

Thank you to our Community Organizational Partners for your commitment to Jewish Women’s Theatre and presenting our Salons in your communities.

National Council of Jewish Women, Los Angeles
Patricia Torkan Art Studio Gallery
Eretz Synagogue Cultural Center
Fabric Planet
Silverlake Independent Jewish Community Center

Episode #31: The Way Home with NEXT @ The Braid2019-05-28T09:45:06-07:00

Episode #15: Guilty Parties (Abridged)

Listen in on the guilt of a new generation!  From the things we should have done to actions we regret.  No one is safe from this moral dilemma as we navigate the expectations of society, family, and relationships.

The pieces featured in this episode are:

CONFESSIONS
Compiled by Vicki Schairer
Performed by the ensemble, Nadége August, Nathan Bock, Chelsea London Lloyd, Rosie Moss and Judy Carter.

I TRIED TO ORDER COFFEE DURING A DATE, BUT HAD A CRISIS ABOUT SYSTEMIC BIAS INSTEAD
Written by Elana Spivak, from the blog McSweeney’s Internet Tendency
Performed by Chelsea London Lloyd, Nathan Bock and Nadege August

THE NUMBER
Written by Barbara Blumenthal Ehrlich
Performed by Nathan Bock and Chelsea London Lloyd

BEWARE
Written, performed and recorded by the Rosannah Sisters
Check out the Rosannah Sisters on Soundcloud

FINDING LOVE BEFORE YOU’RE DEAD
Written and performed by Judy Carter

Guilty Parties is this year’s salon from NEXT @ the Braid, JWT’s emerging artists fellowship. The fellows for 2017-2018 are:

Julie Gumpert
Sarah Resnick
Devan Liljedahl
Vicki Schairer
Andrew Fromer
Daphna Shull
Monique G. Lopez
Lisa Cirincione

For more info, visit NEXT @ The Braid’s page.

JWT Artistic Director Ronda Spinak
Executive Producer of NEXT at the Braid Abbe Meryl Feder
Additional Producing Liz Altman & Carol Kirsh
JWT Producing Director Susan Morgenstern
JWT Managing Director Sharon Landau

Episode #15: Guilty Parties (Abridged)2018-06-27T08:08:26-07:00

Episode #12: United Colors of Jews

Yes, Jewish people come in all different colors! Back in January NEXT @ The Braid, our emerging artist fellowship, partnered with Jews of Color to produce a night of stories highlighting Jewish diversity. Attendees were encouraged to bring family photos and introduce the audience to their “multicultural mishpacha” through a great story, and the night did not dissapoint! In this episode, we bring you three of those stories told on stage that night, hosted by the award-winning performer Joshua Silverstein (see bio below). We hear from Emily Bowen Cohen about her Native American heritage, Benny Lumpkins Jr.’s life-changing experiences growing up in Detroit, and Courtenay Edelhart’s generously donated Hannukah shopping spree in Bakersfield. Have a listen and join us for this incredibly eye-opening episode!

JOSHUA REUBEN SILVERSTEIN is an award-winning actor, comic, writer, beatboxer, and educator. His various performances and productions throughout the country have received admiration from such creative geniuses ranging from Norman Lear to Prince.

He is an original member of Norman Lear’s DECLARE YOURSELF ROAD TRIP SHOW, a 3-year spoken-word/musical performance tour encouraging the American people to register to vote.

Beatboxing since the age of 5, Joshua has become the West Coast’s most sought-after beatboxer, named by the Jewish News Service as “one of the best beatboxers in the world.” His various collaborations with artists such as Slash from Guns and Roses, poetic icon Ursula Rucker and Improv legend Wayne Brady have earned him the title of “the hardest-working performer in L.A.”

His solo show, “The Joshua Silverstein Show,” has been receiving rave reviews since its preview at the Greenway Court Theater in Los Angeles in 2014. An early version of the show, titled “Tell Me I’m Pretty” (directed by Diana Wyenn), was presented at the Bootleg Theater in Los Angeles in 2016.  Backed by a three-piece band, Joshua playfully weaves through personal narratives pertaining to race and gender constructs in America. Using devices including pantomime, beatboxing, rapping, and spoken word, Joshua has created a show that continues to inspire, challenge, provoke and motivate. For more info, please visit Joshua’s website.

Episode #12: United Colors of Jews2018-05-23T12:31:13-07:00

Episode #11: Guilty Parties Update with Daphna Shull

On this episode, Vicki and Andrew chat with fellow member of NEXT at the Braid, Daphna Shull (see bio below) before Monday night’s performance at the Braid in Santa Monica of this year’s NEXT salon, Guilty Parties. They talk about their work together on the council, all the different areas that Daphna contributes to JWT and you’ll get to hear some bonus music written by Daphna that didn’t quite make it into the final show.

DAPHNA SHULL is a two-time NEXT Arts Council Fellow, literary manager, and writer, born and raised in Tampa, Florida. She received her bachelor’s degree in Media Production from Florida State University. After graduating in 2014, she headed west to pursue a career in screenwriting and the arts. Today, Daphna works as a museum educator for the Zimmer Children’s Museum and recently joined the JWT staff.

Episode #11: Guilty Parties Update with Daphna Shull2019-02-20T09:55:52-08:00

Episode #10: Happy Mother’s Day!

On this very special Mother’s Day edition of the JWT podcast, we quickly jump back to 2013 and the performance of Oh, Mother! a smash-hit of ours that was crafted to set the record straight about Jewish mothers, and there was nothing cliche about it! The piece featured in this episode is Evolution Without Me written and performed by Carol Schlanger.

Oh, Mother! was…

Produced by Ronda Spinak
Directed by Ellyn Gersh Lerner
Dramaturge Lisa Rosenbaum

Associate Produced by Susie Yuré and Abby Freeman

Episode #10: Happy Mother’s Day!2018-05-10T14:42:00-07:00

Episode #9: Guilty Parties

Vicki Schairer and Andrew Fromer are two young artists making their way through the Los Angeles entertainment industry. They also happen to be original members of JWT’s cutting edge fellowship known as NEXT @ The Braid, a program through which JWT gives voice, support and resources to emerging artists thanks to a very generous grant from the Jewish Community Foundation. Now in its second year, the fellowship culminates in a JWT-signature salon-style show that’ll showcase the writings, artwork and acting of other emerging millennial artists. This year’s show is entitled Guilty Parties and is sure to leave audiences wow-ed as they follow along on a wild ride through the guilt of a new generation.  From the things we should have done to actions we regret.  No one is safe from this moral dilemma as we navigate the expectations of society, family, and relationships.

In today’s episode, Lisa and Maureen sit down with Vicki and Andrew to chat about how NEXT got its start, what the creative process has been like as they work with the JWT leadership and a couple of teasers as to what juicy pieces await in Guilty Parties.

Find out more about NEXT @ The Braid

VICKI SCHAIRER is a director for film and theatre and a television producer. She has directed several short films and is currently in development for a handful of new projects.  She works as a television producer with credits on shows for Amazon Prime, TLC, the History Channel, and Fullscreen. She worked as a theatre director, production manager, and arts administrator in the greater Boston area prior to moving to Los Angeles in 2014. Vicki directed dozens of projects for the Boston stage and collaborated closely with playwrights to develop new work through workshops and readings. She worked in the artistic department of the Huntington Theatre Company and co-founded the collaborative devised theatre ensemble Project: Project, for which she co-wrote and co-directed original plays. She received her undergraduate degree in physics and theatre from Brandeis University and completed the Summer Institute in Film Production at UCLA.

ANDREW FROMER is a Los Angeles native and grew up as an active member in the Jewish community through Stephen S. Wise Temple. He attended Windward School in Mar Vista, where his acting career began in plays and musicals. After completing his BFA in theater at UC Santa Barbara and an exciting year of living in Israel, Andrew took a dive into filmmaking and has since branched into production by helping prepare for distribution two feature films he has acted in: AMP Creative’s Highway to Havasu (dir. Jeff Janke) and Mockingbird Pictures’ The Sweet Life (dir. Rob Spera). Andrew also edits, directs, and hosts his own podcast on the entertainment industry, SideKickBack Radio, which can be found at www.sidekickback.com. He is very excited to be on board for an exciting year with NEXT@theBraid.

Episode #9: Guilty Parties2019-02-20T10:00:40-08:00

Episode #4: The Space Between (Abridged)

The Space Between explores humorous, heartbreaking and surprising stories that cut to the heart of what divides us and illuminate the yearnings and struggles, successes and failures of reaching out to find common ground. In this episode, we are bringing you a selection of pieces from the show.

To hear the show in its entirety, check out our very first episode!

This is a groundbreaking new show created by the first generation of NEXT @ The Braid, JWT’s Emerging Artists Fellowship. These 12 up-and-coming young artists have brought together stories, songs, poems and plays to create a unique theatrical experience that hope to bridge the gap in a time of intense divisions.

The pieces featured in this episode are:

MY FRIENDS TIED BUT I DID KNOT Written by Sigi Gradwohl Performed by Zoe Lillian
Check out Sigi’s original article on the Huffington Post!

LAKEWOOD Written by Rachelle Davidowitz Performed by Kyla Schoer and Zoe Lillian

A MARINE COMES HOME Adapted from an interview with Arturo Alsonso by Vicki Schairer and Lisa Cirincione Performed by Michael Hanson and Donnabella Mortel

NORTH STAR Music and Lyrics by Dan Omelio, Jesse Macht, and Emily Kitter Performed by Jesse Macht

INTERVENTION #2, HOW MAY I CONNECT YOU Written by Max Mondi Performed by Jesse Macht

2017 NEXT Arts Council Fellows: Amirose Eisenbach, Sigi Gradwohl, Abigail Marks, Chelsea London Lloyd, Andrew Fromer, Christian Alexander Prentice, Daphna Shull, Rachel Berney Needleman, Lisa Cirincione, Vicki Schairer, and Vanessa Espino. With Arts Council Producer: Abbe Meryl Feder and JWT Leadership: Artistic Director Ronda Spinak, Managing Director, Sharon Landau and Producing Director Susan Morgenstern

Performed by: Donnabella Mortel, Jesse Macht, Kyla Schoer, Michael Hanson, and Zoe Lillian.

Featuring stories by Rachelle Davidowitz, Adam Rotstein, Kaitlin Mamie, Sigi Gradwohl, Art Alonso, Daphna Shull, Julie Mayerson Brown, Max Mondi, Molly Murray, Vanessa Espino, Vicki Schairer and Abby Marks.

Featuring music by Jesse Macht, Dan Omelio and Emily Kitter.

Recorded in front of a live audience at The Braid in Santa Monica, CA on June 23, 2017.With generous support from the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, Erwin Rautenberg Foundation, and Dennis Schuman Charitable Fund.

NEXT is a program of JWT. Artistic Director: Ronda Spinak; Managing Director: Sharon Landau; Producing Director: Susan Morgenstern.

More information is available at https://www.jewishwomenstheatre.org/showsevents/performances/past-shows-2/the-space-between/

Episode #4: The Space Between (Abridged)2018-02-15T01:39:12-08:00

VIDEO: Meet the Council!

Check out how our first meeting went! Get to know our council members and where they come from.

VIDEO: Meet the Council!2017-02-24T17:23:18-08:00