Attention all creatives.Jewish theatre needs your ideas

Directors, producers, writers and anyone involved in Jewish performance or keen to be, are being invited to take part in an Open Space event to explore new possibilities in this arena and harness ideas and talent.

The conversation takes place on May 19th at JW3 and is being facilitated by Improbable, a theatre company who specialise in using  Open Space Technology (OST) – a simple way for groups of people to think, work and take action together around a shared interest.

Sponsored by Shoresh Charitable Trust which supports Jewish activities in the UK and Israel, the aim is to bring talented people with ideas together in order to broaden the landscape for a greater variety of Jewish stories to find their way into theatres and performance spaces.

” There is a multitude of talented individuals and companies working across all theatrical forms and there is much ambition yet to be fulfilled,” says Rachel Grunwald  at Improbable and formerly Director of Programming at JW3. “The horrific violence and loss of both Israeli and Palestinian life since 7th October have intensified the complexities of making Jewish work. We want to hear from people who would like to learn or share about getting Jewish-themed productions onto UK stages. What excites them that they haven’t yet explored ? What fears do they have? What hopes? We want to explore all of this.”

The call out for creatives is also to collaborators, partners or producers looking for a project. Anyone with these interests who might like to attend the event is welcome and there is no advance agenda.

“The conversation will be whatever you make it,” says Rachel who stresses that participants do not have to attend for the whole day,but – “if you have never experienced Open Space before we advise that you come at the start, when the process will be explained and the agenda is created.”

You also do not have to be Jewish, or a theatre-maker, to attend as anybody interested in Jewish theatre in the UK is welcome.

“We need to learn about the passions, frustrations and people who make up this exciting landscape and how can we work together,” says Rachel. “We want to hear from you, and we feel that now is the time.”

For more info:https://www.jw3.org.uk/what-next-jewish-theatre