Canadian Actor Converts to Judaism

Page 38 T THE CANADIAN JEWISH NEWS July 28, 2011 | cjnews.com Check out our blog @ heebonics.ca Canadian actor converts to Judaism Laura Fixman “I had already made the decision to convert Intern before, but these classes were to make myself more informed,” she said. he star of the Canadian supernatural Silk now wears a gold necklace with a Star of series Lost Girl, Anna Silk, said that con- David on it, and she said that where she got it is Tverting to Judaism brought her closer to significant for her. It had belonged to her grand- her husband, actor Seth Cooperman. mother, who wasn’t Jewish but had gotten it from When she started dating Cooperman, who’s a friend. Her grandmother died more than 10 originally from New York, Silk would frequent- years ago, but Silk feels as if she ended up with ly ask him questions about his religion. They the necklace because somehow her grandmother celebrated Jewish holidays together, and when knew what was going to happen. she made the decision to convert, they decided “I like that it came from part of my family,” to take the classes together. Silk said. “Even though they’re not Jewish, it’s like “It was a really nice experience growing and they were a part of it.” learning together,” Silk said. “It was a very fun She added that she’s very happy to have con- and emotional process for us.” verted to Judaism, and it was an easier decision She added that the conversion was easy for and process than she had expected. her because she wasn’t raised with any or- “It was just amazing,” she said. “It was just ganized religion. Instead of converting from the most obvious and natural thing in the world another religion, she said it was more like for me.” simply becoming Jewish. Silk is from Fredericton, N.B., and moved to “It all felt very natural to me, and it’s an Toronto in 1999 to pursue acting after graduat- important part of his life.” ing from St. Thomas University with a degree in Silk said that she enjoyed the classes she psychology. Her mother is a theatre actor in Fred- had to take before converting because they ericton, so she has been involved in acting for her were not only about learning facts. Question- whole life. ing what she learned was encouraged, and that Silk was nominated for a Gemini award for was something she didn’t expect. her appearances on the show Being Erica. She “I really liked how things could be ques- returned to Toronto for filming Lost Girl. In Lost tioned, and I was surprised to be able to do Girl, she plays Bo, a type of “fae,” or supernatural that,” Silk said. creature, called a succubus, who feeds on sexual Silk converted to Judaism in February of this energy. Although she plays a supernatural charac- year, and she said her husband was very happy ter, Silk said she related to Bo in many ways. about it and her family was very supportive. Since “I relate to her in that she grew up not realizing then, she has celebrated Passover with friends she was part of this world, and now she under- in Toronto, and she has several favourite Jewish stands where she belongs,” Silk said. holidays, which she likes for different reasons. She enjoys playing Bo for many reasons, in- She said that she likes Chanukah because it cluding the fact that she’s a supernatural creature has a very celebratory mood. She likes Passover and she slowly discovers her part in a hidden su- because even though it’s always the same story, pernatural world. she feels like she learns something new every “I love it. It’s such a fun world to play in,” year. She said that Rosh Hashanah and Yom she said. Kippur may be more intense than the other holi- Silk added that she feels that she’s learned days, but they’re the most important. and grown at the same pace as Bo. She said “I feel like they act as a very good reminder that in the second season, which she’s currently to reflect,” Silk said. filming, Bo has grown significantly. In addition to bringing her closer to her “At first she was very scared and vulnerable,” husband, the conversion class allowed her she said. “She’s always been a very tough char- to meet other couples with one non-Jewish acter, but she’s not tough just for the sake of partner, who made up most of the class. Her being tough.” husband would help her with the homework Silk has also appeared in the shows Ghost Whis- she’d get, and she said that he often joked that perer and Billable Hours. She gained some recogni- he didn’t want her to know more than him. tion playing a stressed-out flight attendant trying She added that it was very important that they Anna Silk to quit smoking in a NicoDerm commercial. experienced the conversion together as much Lost Girl returns to the Showcase network for a as possible. second season with 22 episodes on Sept. 4. DOWNLOAD A FREE QR APP @ 2dscan.com.

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