Director Rebecka Smith’s theatre troupe, the Queen’s Players, choose plays that echo many of the relevant topics facing society today. Their upcoming comedy show, Bad Jews, written by Josh Harmon, does just that.

“The idea of tradition, family heritage and how do you preserve that family heritage and what that religious identity looks like and what it means and how applicable it is in today’s standards for those traditions to be held to truthfully,” Smith said.

Smith said the play also deals with issues such as preserving culture versus the American ‘melting pot’ idea.

The show revolves around the struggle of a traditional Jewish family after the death of their patriarch, particularly the issue of who will receive a golden Chai, a symbol of great significance in Judaism.

Smith said she and the Queen’s Players producer, Amy Hollon, look for shows that cover topics and ideas that are both topical and will start a conversation among the audience members.

“A lot of times we do look for things that do have a really big overarching community topics and themes,” Smith said. “The entire point of the Queen’s Players is to be able to present something to the community that they can talk about, that can enrich the community to be able to open up conversations that I think get closed off and don’t get touched upon.”

The other goal of the Queen’s Players, Smith said, is to provide a venue of theater that is more accessible to the general community, to create something a little less formal for the everyday citizen.

Bad Jews is sponsored by the Wyoming Humanities Council and is free to attend. The show will take place March 23 and 24 at 7:30 p.m. Blossom Yoga studio in downtown Laramie. Following the showing, Dr. Clifford Marks will lead a talk-back with the audience, where they can discuss any of the themes of the show.

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