Saturday, march 4th
11am, Megillah Text Study: Empowerment, Resilience, and Solidarity
Join Rabbinical Student Lorin Troderman in an exploration of the Book of Esther focusing on its models of empowerment, resilience and solidarity. With nods to Spiritual activism and Ethnonationalism, how do we wrestle with some of the text's biggest challenges and make this Megillah meaningful to us today? In this 1 hour session we will review this fabulous tale and bring in some additional contemporary and traditional sources to expand our inquiry.
Join Rabbinical Student Lorin Troderman in an exploration of the Book of Esther focusing on its models of empowerment, resilience and solidarity. With nods to Spiritual activism and Ethnonationalism, how do we wrestle with some of the text's biggest challenges and make this Megillah meaningful to us today? In this 1 hour session we will review this fabulous tale and bring in some additional contemporary and traditional sources to expand our inquiry.
1pm, Exploratory Writing Workshop: What Does Liberation Feel Like?
Maya Williams and Elliott Silverstein will lead participants through a thoughtful series of writing prompts aimed at helping us understand who we are, where we come from, and where we would like to go from here. The reflections will also prepare participants to bring their hopes and visions into Sunday's community-built theater experience, the Purimshpiel!
Maya Williams and Elliott Silverstein will lead participants through a thoughtful series of writing prompts aimed at helping us understand who we are, where we come from, and where we would like to go from here. The reflections will also prepare participants to bring their hopes and visions into Sunday's community-built theater experience, the Purimshpiel!
1pm, Making Hamentashen!
Do you love hamentashen? Do you not know what they are? Or maybe you know about them but have never made (or maybe even eaten) them? Whatever you know about hamentashen, the traditional Ashkenazi Purim treat supposed to be shaped like Haman's hat, come schmooze and learn how to make and bake them with baker Lily Joseph on Saturday afternoon!
Do you love hamentashen? Do you not know what they are? Or maybe you know about them but have never made (or maybe even eaten) them? Whatever you know about hamentashen, the traditional Ashkenazi Purim treat supposed to be shaped like Haman's hat, come schmooze and learn how to make and bake them with baker Lily Joseph on Saturday afternoon!
2pm, Flying Shushan: Community Art-making Extravaganza!
Do you want to take part in a daring experiment to construct a cardboard city suspended from balloons? Of course you do! What if this flying city contained pockets of Portland, shadows of Shushan, fragments of factories, and heavy payload of espionage equipment? JK, JK, not that last one. Anyways, there is a Kabbalistic idea that every earthly place, Shushan included, has a heavenly doppelganger - a utopic counterpart without the violence and exploitation of the place we know on earth. Our flying Shushan will hover somewhere between the heavens and the earth, simultaneously reflecting the problems of our reality while illustrating an aspirational future. But what are these problems, and what could this future hold? That’s where you come in! Join the Flying Shushan workshop on either Saturday or Sunday to help brainstorm and illustrate a redemptive urban vision for Portland, sorry, SHUSHAN. Perhaps most importantly, this flying city will become the stage set for the PURIMSHPIEL!!! OK see you there!
Do you want to take part in a daring experiment to construct a cardboard city suspended from balloons? Of course you do! What if this flying city contained pockets of Portland, shadows of Shushan, fragments of factories, and heavy payload of espionage equipment? JK, JK, not that last one. Anyways, there is a Kabbalistic idea that every earthly place, Shushan included, has a heavenly doppelganger - a utopic counterpart without the violence and exploitation of the place we know on earth. Our flying Shushan will hover somewhere between the heavens and the earth, simultaneously reflecting the problems of our reality while illustrating an aspirational future. But what are these problems, and what could this future hold? That’s where you come in! Join the Flying Shushan workshop on either Saturday or Sunday to help brainstorm and illustrate a redemptive urban vision for Portland, sorry, SHUSHAN. Perhaps most importantly, this flying city will become the stage set for the PURIMSHPIEL!!! OK see you there!
4pm, Shabbat Walking Meditation
Through this slow, purposeful, mindful practice you’ll deepen your relationship with Jewish ritual, yourself, and the land you inhabit. After some guided breathing and gentle movement, we'll amble along the trail, awakening our senses to the living Earth in this present moment and enjoying the gift of rest in the final moments of Shabbat. No previous meditation experience is necessary, all are welcome!
Please reach out to Davinica at [email protected] with any questions or accessibility needs.
Through this slow, purposeful, mindful practice you’ll deepen your relationship with Jewish ritual, yourself, and the land you inhabit. After some guided breathing and gentle movement, we'll amble along the trail, awakening our senses to the living Earth in this present moment and enjoying the gift of rest in the final moments of Shabbat. No previous meditation experience is necessary, all are welcome!
Please reach out to Davinica at [email protected] with any questions or accessibility needs.
4pm, Radical Yiddish Songs
Want to learn to sing “fuck the patriarchy," "screw my landlord," or “solidarity forever" in Yiddish? Okay, you might not learn exactly those phrases in this class, but you will learn a few rad Yiddish songs from Jeyn Levison's vast repertoire. One of these songs will even show up in the Purimshpiel on Sunday night, so it's a good chance to learn it early! Come learn and sing songs in the language of our Jewish Ashkenazi ancestors and contemporaries. Yiddish knowledge welcome, but not required. Musical training welcome, but not required (all music learned by ear). The only rule is — everybody sings! (You might think you can't carry a tune, but it's the tune that carries you.)--
Want to learn to sing “fuck the patriarchy," "screw my landlord," or “solidarity forever" in Yiddish? Okay, you might not learn exactly those phrases in this class, but you will learn a few rad Yiddish songs from Jeyn Levison's vast repertoire. One of these songs will even show up in the Purimshpiel on Sunday night, so it's a good chance to learn it early! Come learn and sing songs in the language of our Jewish Ashkenazi ancestors and contemporaries. Yiddish knowledge welcome, but not required. Musical training welcome, but not required (all music learned by ear). The only rule is — everybody sings! (You might think you can't carry a tune, but it's the tune that carries you.)--
5:30pm, Havdallah - join us for a ritual to end the day of rest and start the new week!
6pm, Dinner!
7pm, Going For it: Experimental/Amatuer Talent Show (see Going For It page!)
sunday, march 5th
9am, Avodat Lev (Jewish affinity space - open to anyone who identifies as Jewish)
Wake up with the sun (more or less) and a simplified version of the shacharit morning service, with shorter blessings and repeating melodies that are easy to pick up. Lillie Pearlman leads the space to make room for each of us to ground in our whole selves, and to witness for ourselves or as a group whatever we are bringing with us in our bodies that morning. No previous experience necessary.
Wake up with the sun (more or less) and a simplified version of the shacharit morning service, with shorter blessings and repeating melodies that are easy to pick up. Lillie Pearlman leads the space to make room for each of us to ground in our whole selves, and to witness for ourselves or as a group whatever we are bringing with us in our bodies that morning. No previous experience necessary.
11am, Rise into the Day: Movement Meditation
Kei will guide attendees through a meditation practice that holds space for individual expression and spiritual common grounds. Together, we will submerge into a deeper intention that explores our shared relationships with vitality and sacredness through breath, sound, and movement. We strongly encourage you to bring a yoga mat or personal blanket to this session.
Kei will guide attendees through a meditation practice that holds space for individual expression and spiritual common grounds. Together, we will submerge into a deeper intention that explores our shared relationships with vitality and sacredness through breath, sound, and movement. We strongly encourage you to bring a yoga mat or personal blanket to this session.
11:30am, Mizrahi & Sephardi Purim Foods
In this workshop, we'll go over the many traditional Purim foods of Sephardic & Mizrahi communities of the Mediterranean, Middle East, and North Africa. We'll learn how to make homemade ma'moul (Arabian date-filled pastries), use our hands to shape the pastries, bake them, and savor the flavors!
Note: The ma'amoul will be prepared and made in a non-kosher kitchen. The pastries will be vegan/pareve and free of nuts, sesame, vinegar, or wine.
In this workshop, we'll go over the many traditional Purim foods of Sephardic & Mizrahi communities of the Mediterranean, Middle East, and North Africa. We'll learn how to make homemade ma'moul (Arabian date-filled pastries), use our hands to shape the pastries, bake them, and savor the flavors!
Note: The ma'amoul will be prepared and made in a non-kosher kitchen. The pastries will be vegan/pareve and free of nuts, sesame, vinegar, or wine.
1pm, Session on community challenges and future visioning: details are on the way soon! Feel free to email us at [email protected] with questions.
2pm, Community Dance Jam
Dance is a living experience of creation and legacy. Kei and Lillie will share movement prompts that give us permission to feel joy and connection with our bodies, each other, and the stories we carry. This session will also include a one-of-a-kind circle dance that celebrates our inner child and the gathering of multiple cultures. No previous dance experience is needed.
Dance is a living experience of creation and legacy. Kei and Lillie will share movement prompts that give us permission to feel joy and connection with our bodies, each other, and the stories we carry. This session will also include a one-of-a-kind circle dance that celebrates our inner child and the gathering of multiple cultures. No previous dance experience is needed.
2pm, Flying Shushan: Community Art-making Extravaganza!
Do you want to take part in a daring experiment to construct a cardboard city suspended from balloons? Of course you do! What if this flying city contained pockets of Portland, shadows of Shushan, fragments of factories, and heavy payload of espionage equipment? JK, JK, not that last one. Anyways, there is a Kabbalistic idea that every earthly place, Shushan included, has a heavenly doppelganger - a utopic counterpart without the violence and exploitation of the place we know on earth. Our flying Shushan will hover somewhere between the heavens and the earth, simultaneously reflecting the problems of our reality while illustrating an aspirational future. But what are these problems, and what could this future hold? That’s where you come in! Join the Flying Shushan workshop on either Saturday or Sunday to help brainstorm and illustrate a redemptive urban vision for Portland, sorry, SHUSHAN. Perhaps most importantly, this flying city will become the stage set for the PURIMSHPIEL!!! OK see you there!
Do you want to take part in a daring experiment to construct a cardboard city suspended from balloons? Of course you do! What if this flying city contained pockets of Portland, shadows of Shushan, fragments of factories, and heavy payload of espionage equipment? JK, JK, not that last one. Anyways, there is a Kabbalistic idea that every earthly place, Shushan included, has a heavenly doppelganger - a utopic counterpart without the violence and exploitation of the place we know on earth. Our flying Shushan will hover somewhere between the heavens and the earth, simultaneously reflecting the problems of our reality while illustrating an aspirational future. But what are these problems, and what could this future hold? That’s where you come in! Join the Flying Shushan workshop on either Saturday or Sunday to help brainstorm and illustrate a redemptive urban vision for Portland, sorry, SHUSHAN. Perhaps most importantly, this flying city will become the stage set for the PURIMSHPIEL!!! OK see you there!
3-5pm, Costume Making & Clothing Swap
Bring clothes to trade and build your costume for the night of PURIMSHPIEL shennanegans! There will be open sign-up for roles in the Purimshpiel during this time, and scripts available for folks to start checking out their lines. More details on the PURIMSHPIEL page.
Bring clothes to trade and build your costume for the night of PURIMSHPIEL shennanegans! There will be open sign-up for roles in the Purimshpiel during this time, and scripts available for folks to start checking out their lines. More details on the PURIMSHPIEL page.
5-6:30pm, Dinner
7:30pm SHVITZ Dance Party!
Finish out our weekend by dancing our tukhuses off with all our friends - new and old. The first half hour will be 80s music - then open to the cravings of the crowd!
Finish out our weekend by dancing our tukhuses off with all our friends - new and old. The first half hour will be 80s music - then open to the cravings of the crowd!