by Emily Schwartz, Tiferet Rosh Eidah (Unit Head)

The Star-Spangled Mesibah was a fantastic success! After all the hard work and preparation, it was finally time for the show: Where the Wild Things Are. With the whole camp together, we celebrated American Independence Day. It was an incredible display of talent, and I was so proud of everyone who contributed.

It has been another wonderfully creative week in Tiferet. We have been delving deeper into our limud topic, Midrash Rabbah, with our new segel Rabbi Eric Siroka (Temple Beth El, South Bend, Indiana) and Cantor Shelly Drucker-Friedman (Emanuel Congregation, Chicago).

The musicians have been honing their technical skills, learning by listening, teaching one another during “open studio”, and composing their own pieces. The visual artists are almost finished with their projects that represent Jacob wrestling the angel, and have also spent time experimenting with shadows. The actors are focusing on the connection between midrash and commentary with the creation of a play. They rewrote mini dramas of Joseph from the perspective of minor characters like pharaoh and the baker. The dancers are really studying technique, improvising and trying new ways to move so that they can soon create their own movement phrases based on a story from Genesis.

Emily Schwartz is the Rosh Eidah (Unit Head) of Tiferet. This is her 13th year at OSRUI and second summer as Tiferet Rosh Eidah. She is a graduate of The George Washington University.