Stage on Main opens in Orange, exploring the ‘Jewish mother’

ORANGE — A play reading that explores Jewish motherhood – a performance billed as both “comedic and poignant” – will be the premiere event at the Stage on Main. 

The Stage on Main, at 17 South Main St., opens its doors for  “25 Questions for a Jewish Mother,” on March 17 at 2:30 p.m. for a 3 p.m. show.

The reading by Kate Moira Ryan and Judy Gold, first performed in Seattle in 2002, is free although donations are welcome.

Written by female Jewish comedians, “25 Questions for a Jewish Mother” has been performed off-Broadway, and “explores the cultural upbringing and thinking of a wide variety of Jewish mothers. The audience hears actual responses of 20 Jewish mothers who were interviewed,” according to a statement from event organizers. 

The play addresses topics like Jewish identity, the Holocaust and Jewish dietary laws. The key questions are posed: “Is there something genetic or in the Jewish experience that connects Jewish mothers across generations, and is it different from non-Jewish mothers? And if there is a difference, what is it? And where there are similarities, what are they? What values and beliefs of our mothers continue in our lives?”

The Stage on Main’s first program is an adult education initiative featuring the Greenfield Temple Israel Readers Theater reading and discussing plays with Jewish themes. 

The Stage on Main is being prepared and opened by volunteers, supported by organizations like the Orange Revitalization Partnership, a nonprofit founded in 1994 to promote aesthetic and economic development of the downtown area. 

The original proposed name for the Stage on Main was the Orange Community Center. However, the name was changed due to a sign at the Orange Armory that also reads, “Orange Community Center.”

In addition to readings and community events, the Stage on Main will display the work of New Salem photographer Sarah Kohler in its art gallery. 

For more information on the Stage on Main and upcoming events, call 513-226-0043.

Reach David McLellan at dmclellan@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 268.