Student Matinee Series Crossing Delancey Study Guide Created by Hiram High School Language Arts Class of Ms. Karlie Clifton As part of the Alliance Theatre Institute’s Dramaturgy by Students Under the guidance of Teaching Artist Rachel Jones

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Page 1 of 21 Table of Contents

Photo of Crossing Delancey set design for the Alliance Theatre production Set design by Kat Conley

Preparing Students for the Performance 3 Artist Bios 4 Character List 10 Synopsis 11 Dictionary 12 Bubbie’s Song Translated 14 The Lower East Side of Manhattan 15 Food Carts in NYC 16 Food in the Jewish Culture 17 Manhattan, NY 18 19 Classroom Discussion Questions & Writing Prompts 20 Manhattan, NY (printable) 21

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 2 of 21 Preparing Students for the Performance Discuss the story Before you come to the show, consider using the pre-show discussion prompts (pg. 20) to prime the students with various themes and ideas that they will encounter when they view the play. There are also a few historical resources which may be helpful in providing context for the play (pgs. 14-19).

OTHER QUESTIONS Does the theater have a dress code? What is the typical attire? Don’t stress about your dress. In most cases, school dress codes will also represent appropriate attire for visiting the theater. Note that all of our facilities are air conditioned/heated for your comfort — consider layering. How can I know if a particular show will be appropriate for my students? Information regarding content disclaimers and recommended ages for Crossing Delancey may be found by viewing the production page on our website. Can I use my phone/tablet/laptop during a performance? No — using devices with screens (and particularly ones that also make sounds) disrupts the cast and other patrons. (They are very visible from the stage!) The best thing to do in order to avoid distracting others is to make sure your device is powered off before entering the theater. However, we absolutely hope that you text/tweet/Facebook everyone you know after the performance to let them know what a great time you had here! What if I'm late? If you already have your tickets, please arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the show. If your tickets are being held at the Box Office or you need to purchase tickets, we recommend arriving at least 30 minutes prior to the show. After the performance has begun, it may not be possible to seat you in your assigned seat. If there is an appropriate pause in the production, we will do our best to seat you toward the back of the theater in order to avoid disrupting the performance. You will be able to watch the show from a monitor in the lobby until we can sneak you in. However, please note that some productions simply will not accommodate late seating.

Theatre Etiquette: 1. Do not talk during the show. You can hear the actors, and they can hear you. 2. Unwrap all gum and candy wrappers before the performance begins or during intermission. 3. Avoid wearing strong perfumes or cologne — some patrons may be allergic. 4. No photography of any kind is allowed inside the theater.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 3 of 21 Artists

Writer

Susan Sandler (Playwright) is a playwright, screenwriter, teacher and mentor. Screenplays include the Golden Goble-nominated “Crossing Delancey” and “Friends At Last” as well as projects for Entertainment, Twentieth Century Fox, Disney, TNT, Columbia Pictures, Jersey Films and Interscope. Her work for the stage has been produced in New York and at major theatres across the country and world. Plays include Crossing Delancey, Under the Bed, The Renovation, The Moaner, If I Were A Train, Hokey-Pokey, The Find, The Burial Society, The Lovely Just So and Kinfolks and Mountain Music. Member of Ensemble Studio Theatre, HB Playwrights Foundation and Writers Guild of America. Sandler’s work is published by Smith & Kraus, Vintage Press and Samuel French. Her plays have been produced for “Playing on Air: Great American Short Plays with Great American Actors” on Public Radio and related podcasts. Currently directing & producing a documentary film on comedian Julia Scotti. Sandler is on the faculty of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts in The Kanbar Institute of Film and Television. She has passionately guided NYU’s Fusion Film Festival since its inception, celebrating the work of women behind the camera and mentoring the next generation of female change-makers in film, television and new media.

Performers

Andrew Benator (Sam) Alliance: Troubadour, Disgraced, One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest, Vera Stark, Good People, August: Osage County, Eurydice, Tennis In Nablus, . Atlanta: Between Riverside And Crazy, RACE (True Colors Theatre), Seminar, Becky Shaw (Actor’s Express), Freud’s Last Session (Theatrical Outfit), ( Shakespeare), Women In Jeopardy, Boeing Boeing (Aurora Theatre). Off-Broadway: Things You Shouldn’t Say Past Midnight, Valparaiso, Flu Season. Regional: Hartford TheaterWorks, Pittsburgh Public Theater, Sacramento’s B St. Theater, San Jose Rep, ’s Magic Theater. Film & TV: The Founder, Million Dollar Arm, Last of Robin Hood, “Stranger Things,” “Being Mary Jane,” “House of Payne.” 2016 Lunt- Fontanne Fellowship recipient. www.andrewbenator.com

Joanna Daniels (Hannah) An Atlanta native, Joanna is thrilled to be home, and in this production with these talented folks! : Ethel Mertz in I Love Lucy (Broadway Playhouse & National Tour). LA: Becky’s New Car, When They Speak of Rita, Happy End, A Delicate Balance, (Pacific Resident Theatre), Valsetz, The Foreigner (Pasadena Playhouse), Sketch Comedy (ACME). NYC: On the Verge, What the Butler Saw, The Roadblock (Uta Hagen). TV: “Mad About You,” “HBO Sketchpad,” “Mad TV,” “Wings,” “Home Improvement,” “Coach,” “Ellen,” “Home Team,” “Crystal Empire.” Film: Perfect Game, Something Wild, Jerry Maguire, Doublewide. Training: B.F.A. Acting (FSU), Uta Hagen (NYC), RADA (London).

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 4 of 21 Artists, cont.

Sochi Fried (Izzy) is thrilled to be making her Alliance debut. She grew up in New York City and Ottawa, Canada, and is currently based in . Recent stage credits include Blood Weddings (Modern Times/ Aluna Theatre, Dora Award nomination), The Queen's Conjuror (Circlesnake), Up The Garden Path (Obsidian Theatre) and King John (Shakespeare Bash'd, MyTheatre Award nomination). TV/Film: “Condor,” “The Girlfriend Experience,” “Murdoch Mysteries,” The Drawer Boy, Loretta’s Flowers and Leila. Training: Ryerson University Theatre School and The American Musical and Dramatic Academy. She was named one of NOW Magazine's Top 10 Theatre Artists of 2015.

Daniel Thomas May (Tyler) is a native of Atlanta, where he successfully juggles performances in film, television, stage and narration. A professional stage actor for more than 20 years with credits at the Alliance Theatre, Marin Theatre Company, Georgia Shakespeare, Chicago Shakespeare, Actor's Express and Synchronicity Theatre, Daniel is now most often recognized as Allen on AMC's “The Walking Dead.” Film and television: “Nashville,” “Sleepy Hollow,” “Being Mary Jane,” “Powers,” Killing Reagan, “The Vampire Diaries” and others. Daniel also has over 200 credits as an audiobook narrator, among them his Audie Award-nominated performance for CJ Cherryh's ongoing Foreigner science series of novels.

Mary Lynn Owen (Bubbie) is delighted to revisit Crossing Delancey after playing the role of Izzy in a Theatrical Outfit production in 1992. Past productions at the Alliance: Medea, Elliot: A Soldier’s Fugue and A Christmas Carol. Atlanta credits: Wit and 4,000 Miles (Aurora Theatre), Kimberly Akimbo and Six Degrees of Separation (Actor’s Express), The Glass Menagerie (Georgia Shakespeare Festival), Third (Horizon Theatre), The Last Night of Ballyhoo (Georgia Ensemble Theatre), The Little Foxes (Theatre in the Square). Faculty member of ’s Theatre Studies Department, two-time Suzi Award winner for Lead and Supporting Actress, recipient of the Alliance Theatre’s Reiser Lab Grant for her play Knead.

Shannon McCarren (U/S Izzy) is delighted to be understudying her first role at the Alliance Theatre! Shannon's credits include Steel Magnolias (Theatre Raleigh), Grease, The Secret Garden, The Snow Queen, The Sleepy Hollow Experience, Evita, Carousel, A Streetcar Named Desire (Serenbe Playhouse). Shannon graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a B.A. in Theater, and was a member of the 2015-2016 Serenbe Playhouse Apprentice Company. She extends gratitude to the Alliance Theatre for this unique opportunity, and to her family, friends, and fellow artists for their endless love and inspiration.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 5 of 21 Artists, cont.

Pat Bell (U/S Bubbie) is delighted to return to the Alliance, having previously understudied roles here for Frame 312, Bluish, Doubt and August: Osage County. Her most recent on stage includes The Miracle Worker (Gypsy Theatre), Six Dance Lessons in Six Weeks and The Unexpected Guest (OnStage Atlanta) and The Crucible (Atlanta Shakespeare Co. at the ). She is also a Standardized Patient for the Emory School of Medicine. Love and hugs to Lily and Melody from Nana!

Suzanne Jordan Roush (U/S Hannah) is delighted to be part of this lovely production. Suzanne joined the Atlanta theatre community back in 1986, when she moved to Atlanta to be a member of the Alliance Theatre Acting Intern program. Since then, she has been seen on stages at the Alliance Children’s Theatre, Horizon Theatre, Marietta Theatre in the Square, GA Shakespeare Tavern, GA Shakespeare Festival, Jewish Theatre of the South, GA Ensemble, and Theatrical Outfit. Most recently she appeared at ART Station in The Dixie Swim Club and Ravens and Seagulls at the Essential Theatre. Love to Steve and Lili.

Michael Vine (U/S Sam/Tyler) is thrilled to make his Alliance Theatre debut! Atlanta credits include The Glass Menagerie (Marietta's Theatre in the Square), A Midsummer Night's Dream, All's Well That Ends Well (Shakespeare on Draught). Other regional credits: Peter and the Starcatcher, I'll Be Back Before Midnight!, and the Hound of the Baskervilles (). Proud graduate of the University of Alabama. Love and thanks to the Players, his family, WO, OF, and HQ. Twitter: @MichaelJVine. Roll Tide Roll!

Actors' Equity Association, founded in 1913, represents more than 45,000 actors and stage managers in the . Equity negotiates wages and working conditions, providing a wide range of benefits, including health and pension plans. Equity seeks to foster the art of live theatre as an essential component of our society.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 6 of 21

Artists, cont.

Directors, Designers, & More

Leora Morris (Director) was the Yale Directing Fellow at the Alliance Theatre for the 2016/17 season. Select directing credits include The Dancing Granny (Alliance Theatre), Orphans (Coal Mine Theatre, Toronto), He Left Quietly (2014 SummerWorks Best Production Award, Toronto), Amy and the Orphans, Women Beware Women, The Troublesome Reign of King John, Riverbank: A Noh Play for Northerly Americans (Yale School of Drama), The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant, love holds a lamp in this little room, He Left Quietly (Yale Cabaret). Leora was the recipient of Toronto’s 2012 Ken MacDougall Award for Emerging Directors, served as co-artistic director for Yale Cabaret’s 48th season, and was co-awarded the Julian Milton Kaufman Prize in Directing upon graduating with her M.F.A. in Directing from Yale School of Drama. She is honored to be an O’Neill/NNPN National Directing Fellow. Upcoming: Spring Awakening (Connecticut College), Virginia Wolf (Carousel Players). www.leoramorris.com

Kat Conley (Set Designer) is ecstatic to be returning and going “On the Road” with the Alliance. Kat has designed over 25 productions for the Alliance including last season’s Cinderella and Fella and Courtenay’s Cabaret. Based in Atlanta since 2000, Kat has designed scenery for Arena Stage, Orlando Shakespeare, the Kennedy Center, Georgia Shakespeare, Marin Theatre Company, the Atlanta Ballet, The , 7 Stages, Theatrical Outfit, Theater in the Square, The Springer Opera House and the Aurora Theater. She is an Associate Artist with Actor’s Express and the Charge Scenic Artist for the Alliance Theatre. Whether dramatically challenging, visionary or escapist, all theater and art is important. Thank you for supporting it in our community.

Sydney Roberts (Costume Designer) has spent her working life creating costumes and transforming actors into characters on the stage for 40 years. Based in Atlanta, she has designed for the Alliance Theatre (Atlanta, recipient of the 2007 regional Tony Award), Geva Theatre (Rochester, NY), Portland (Portland, OR), the ARACA Project (New York City) and most of the theatre companies in Atlanta. She recently served as costume designer for the Alliance Theatre/Tectonic Theatre Project world premiere production of Bombing. She was an Associate Artist at Georgia Shakespeare and is a member of United Scenic Artists 829. She has taught at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Emory University and Oglethorpe University. www.sydneyrobertscostumedesign.com

Joseph A. Futral (Lighting Designer) is excited to once again work with this fantastically talented Alliance team to bring some amazing work to the stage for your enjoyment. 30 years of production and lighting. Lighting credits: ’s True Colors Theatre, Theatrical Outfit, Aurora Theatre, Moving in the Spirit, Saiah International, Horizon Theatre, Great Lakes Theatre Festival, Jomandi Theatre, Blake Beckham and Lucky Penny, Ballethnic Dance, Lee Harper, Room to Move, Charleston Ballet, Augusta Ballet, Martha Clarke, and events for Amherst College, Yale University, Saab, and Buick. Production manager credits: Gallim Dance, Vail Dance Festival, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, American Dance Festival, Pilobolus, Fred Garbo's Inflatable Theatre Company and Ohio Ballet; lighting supervisor for Jose Limon Dance and master electrician for Spoleto Festival, USA. Board of Directors for Full Radius Dance in Atlanta. Many thanks to Leora and the whole design team for looking for the truth in the work!

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 7 of 21

Artists, cont.

Kate Marvin (Sound Designer) is a New York-based sound designer, composer and musician. Recent work: Grounded (Westport Country Playhouse), Somebody’s Daughter (Second Stage), Richard III/Measure for Measure (Trinity Shakespeare Festival), Happy Days (Theatre for a New Audience), Orphans (Coal Mine Theatre), Porto (Bushwick Starr), Sotto Voce (Portland Stage Company), Ugly Lies the Bone (Alliance Theatre), Now is the Time (Little Lord), Happy Days, Elevada (Yale Repertory Theatre), He Left Quietly (Toronto Summerworks), The Tempest, Uncle Vanya, Second Language (Target Margin Theater), How to Hamlet, Faustus, Set in the Living Room of a Small Town American Play, Three Seagulls or MASHA MASHA MASHA (Theater Reconstruction Ensemble). Kate is an Associate Artist with Theater Reconstruction Ensemble, Target Margin Theater, and Little Lord. M.F.A.: Yale School of Drama. www.katemarvinsound.com

Elisa Carlson (Dialect Coach) Off-Broadway: The Mint, New Dramatists; 40 productions at the Alliance including The Temple Bombing, Harmony, Good People, Arcadia, Medea; 30 productions at the Guthrie Theater including Disgraced, Major Barbara, M. Butterfly, Intimate Apparel and world premieres by ; 30 productions for Georgia Shakespeare (Associate Artist), Oregon Shakespeare, American Players Theatre, many others. Film coaching: Baby Driver; Selma; Southside with You; Coat of Many Colors; The Good Lie; Sweet Land. Directing: Assistant Director for Shakespeare in Love (Alliance), world premiere of Moxie (Alliance Reiser Artists Lab/Theatrical Outfit); The Guys (Theatrical Outfit); Orestes (Guthrie Theater B.F.A.); Love’s Labor’s Lost (Theater Emory) and multiple productions for the Gainesville Theatre Alliance. Acting: Alliance, Guthrie, The Shakespeare Theater, Georgia Shakespeare, Actor's Express.

Jayson T. Waddell (Stage Manager) is proud to return to the Alliance Theatre for his 8th season! He has had the pleasure of working on many productions such as Troubadour, Moby Dick, Born for This, Tuck Everlasting, The Geller Girls, A Christmas Carol, Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, Broke, Sex and the Second City, Next to Normal, Holidays With the Chalks, and Bike America; (Atlanta Lyric Theatre) Jesus Christ Superstar, The Full Monty and Young Frankeinstein; (Illinois Shakespeare Festival) I <3 Juliet, Hamlet, Q Gents, Antony & Cleopatra, , , and A Winter's Tale. Jayson is a graduate of the Gainesville Theatre Alliance and a proud member of Actors’ Equity Association.

lark hackshaw (Stage Manager) Although lark has been stage managing at the Alliance Theatre for more than 25 years, she also has worked at such regional theatres as the Play House, Indiana Rep, Metro Stage, San Jose Rep, Arizona Theatre Company, Maltz Jupiter, Trinity Rep, Arena Stage, MUNY and North Carolina Black Rep, and has taken out several major tours. Favorite shows include Broadway’s Stick Fly plus Proof, Smart People, Anne & Emmett, Black Nativity, Kandi Burruss’ A Mother’s Love, The C.A. Lyons Project, Maurice Hines’ Tappin Through Life, The Tall Girls, The Geller Girls, ’ da Kink in My Hair, Bring It On: The Musical, Zorro, The Nacirema Society, Broke, Dreamgirls, Sheddin’, Duke Ellington’s Sophisticated Ladies, Good People and Wit. lark is a line producer/executive assistant for Winston- Salem’s National Black Theatre Festival and the proud recipient of Howard University’s 2012 Distinguished Howard Player Award.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 8 of 21 Artists, cont.

Jody Feldman (Producer and Casting Director) began her theater career as an actress in Atlanta before moving into administration as the assistant general manager at Frank Wittow’s Academy Theatre. Jody is the Producer and Casting Director at the Alliance, where she started in 1991 as casting director. While at the Alliance, she has cast and produced more than 200 LORT B, D and TYA productions encompassing a wide range of world premieres including The Last Night of Ballyhoo by , What I Learned in Paris by Pearl Cleage, Broke by Janece Shaffer, In the Red and Brown Water by Tarell Alvin McCraney and more than 10 years of Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition-winning plays, plus such world and regional premiere musicals as Tuck Everlasting, , The Color Purple, : The Musical, Bring It On: The Musical, Ghost Brothers of Darkland County and Harmony, A New Musical. Jody is most proud of the thriving Alliance engagement activities and partnerships that recognize theatrical work as a catalyst for community conversation and connection.

Susan V. Booth (Jennings Hertz Artistic Director) joined the Alliance Theatre in 2001 and has initiated the Palefsky Collision Project for teens, the Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition, the Reiser Atlanta Artists Lab, local producing partnerships and regional collaborations as well as commercial partnerships such as Tuck Everlasting; The Ghost Brothers of Darkland County; The Color Purple; Bring It On: The Musical; ’s Come Fly Away With Me; Sister Act: The Musical; Bring in ’da Noise, Bring in ’da Funk and Jesus Christ Superstar GOSPEL. As a director, she has worked at such theaters as the Goodman, La Jolla Playhouse, New York Stage and Film, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Northlight Theatre, Victory Gardens, Court Theatre and many others. She holds degrees from Denison and Northwestern universities and was a fellow of the National Critics Institute and the Kemper Foundation. She has held teaching positions at Northwestern, DePaul, and Emory universities. She is a past president of the board of directors for the Theatre Communications Group, the national service organization for the field, and is a trustee of Denison University. Susan is married to Max Leventhal and is the proud mother of Moira Rose Leventhal.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 9 of 21 Characters

Bubbie, a feisty, sharp-witted woman in her eighties who immigrated to the United States as a young girl and has lived ever since in the shrinking community of New York City known as the Lower East Side.

Isabelle, “Izzy,” Bubbie’s granddaughter, in her late twenties, a bookish dreamer

Hannah, a very large woman in her fifties, a professional matchmaker, a wheeler-dealer

Tyler, a well-known fiction writer, handsome, exceedingly charming and self-involved, in his early forties

Sam, a pickleman and a poet, an inhabitant of the Lower East Side, in his early thirties, gentle, intuitive, appealing, and very wise for his years

Sochi Fried and Daniel Thomas May in the Alliance Theatre’s 2017/18 production of Crossing Delancey at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. Photo by Greg Mooney.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 10 of 21 Synopsis

Izzy is an intelligent, beautiful, single young woman who is happy in her career and simple life. However, her 80-year-old Bubbie is determined to see her granddaughter get married before she dies. Giving Cupid a nudge, this irascible granny hires a matchmaker, Hannah, and sets out to find her granddaughter the perfect mate. Together Hannah and Bubbie decide that Sam, the neighborhood pickleman, would be a perfect match for Izzy. Izzy, however, has her sight set on a charming writer who visits her bookstore regularly. Which beau is really her soulmate?

Sochi Fried and Mary Lynn Owen in the Alliance Theatre’s 2017/18 production of Crossing Delancey at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. Photo by Greg Mooney.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 11 of 21 Yiddish Words and Phrases in Crossing Delancey

Alta cockers - old people (derogatory) A-main - Amen Shabbos - the Sabbath Brocha - prayer Bubbie - grandmother De hugeleh song - title of the song about kugel Der alta mahn - title of a song, "The Old Man" F'shtast - (You) understand? Gelt - money Hassid - a member of the orthodox Jewish Hasidic sect Hocking me a chineick - annoying me (literally: banging a teapot at me) Hundred ts-vansig - 120 Koot-sehs - turds Kugel - pudding Kush mir in tuchas - "kiss my ass" L'chaim - to life Machers - big shots Meshugah - crazy Mine ainical - my grandchild Mitzvah - good deed Nachas - pleasure felt through pride in a loved one Nem - take Nu? - So? / What do you think? Ofen pribitzik - title of a song Oy gevalt - exclamation of surprise Oy! - exclamation of alarm Pas-kootz-vehs - despicable people (female) Schmataz - rags Schmendrick - poor soul Shadkhn - marriage broker Shidah - marriage arrangement Shleps - drags Shule - synagogue Tagelah - pastries that are honeyed balls of dough woven with raisins and nuts Tzimis - (to make a) fuss, a big deal Vas - what Vays mir - woe is me Vilde chi-ah - literally, wild beasts - in usage has come to mean the young criminal population that preys on the urban elderly Vus tuht she - "What's happening?" Or "How's it going"

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 12 of 21 Yiddish Words and Phrases in Crossing Delancey, cont.

Yentas - gossips Ze hut mir ein g'vegelt - She persuaded me through flattery. Zees kite - sweetness Zere gut - very good Zi ge zunt - go in good health; be well Zine alain - live alone

Mary Lynn Owen, Sochi Fried, and Joanna Daniels in the Alliance Theatre’s 2017/18 production of Crossing Delancey at the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. Photo by Greg Mooney.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 13 of 21 Bubbie’s Song Translated – Kugel Song

In act 2, Bubbie sings a song about a kugel while she’s cutting the kugel for Sam to enjoy. This is the translation for the song.

HOT A YID A YIDEL (Has a a Jewish woman?)

HUT ERR FUN IR TSURIS (Has he trouble from her?)

MACHT TSIE OIS A KUGELE (She made him a pudding)

TAIG ISS OYF KAPOR-RES! (so awful it could only be used as a sacrifice!)

OY! MEIN MAN! AZ OI VIEL DER MA-CHES (Oh, my man, you should have so many boils)

VIF’L DE KUGELE (as this pudding)

KOST MIR KAPOKES (cost me in kopeks.)

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 14 of 21 The Lower East Side of Manhattan By Celise Kalke, Director of New Projects, Alliance Theatre

I remember my own life as a small boy, son of Jewish immigrants, in a janitor's flat on Orchard and Stanton streets on the Lower East Side of New York City. My father made pants and doubled as janitor of a tenement - before he made janitoring at $30 a month, plus rooms, a career. - K. Javits, US Senator

Everybody ought to have a Lower East Side in their life. -, composer

The arrival of over a million East European Ashkenazi in New York over a forty year period, 1880-1920, transformed New York Jewish life and led to the expansion of Jewish communal life, particularly in New York City. In 1880 approximately 60,000 Jews lived in New York City. y 1914, the Jewish population of the city exceeded 1.5 million. Hundreds of thousands of these immigrants initially settled in New York City’s Lower East Side. [From New York Jewish History by Lance J. Sussman, Department of History, Binghamton University State University of New York (New York State Archives)]

Manhattan’s Lower East Side grew out of a widening of Manhattan Island into the East River. In the 19th Century, the area’s single family homes were abandoned for more elegant homes as the city expanded north. Because of the bump into the river, the Lower East Side was an inefficient commercial hub slightly disconnected from the island’s North/South vertical arteries. The result was the creation of street after street of tenement housing, which became home to waves of immigrants.

Delancey Street is the commercial hub of the neighborhood with connections to both Williamsburg in Brooklyn to the east and the commercial buildings of SOHO to the west. It’s wide and dangerous to cross on foot. From the 1920s to the 1950s, it was a thriving business district that by 1980 had become home to shops serving a dwindling but still vibrant Jewish community.

Usually portrayed as a launching pad or a point of departure, the Lower East Side is represented in Crossing Delancey as a place to come home to. In the 1980s, 1.6 million Jewish residents of New York had spread out throughout the city helping to define New York culture for the rest of the country. In the play, the neighborhood symbolizes unique American-Jewish traditions formed from the combination of many Jewish Ashkenazi traditions blending together in close geographic proximity. From lunches at the deli, pushcarts, pastrami and rye, pickles, the infiltration of Yiddishkeit into the essential New York vernacular, the Marx Brothers and the music of George and , the Lower East Side’s distinct culture came to define New York.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 15 of 21 Food Carts in NYC By Will Walker, Hiram HS Student

Being a food vendor in the Big Apple is not a walk in the park. In Crossing Delancey, Sam owns a brick-and-mortar pickle shop, but the trend in 2017 in New York City is food trucks and carts!

Not only is there a crazy amount of regulations that these vendors must follow, there is a lot of harsh criticism towards the vendors. According to the article, “Why Street Vendors Are Vital to NYC Food Culture,” many of the patrons of NYC do not approve of the street vendors and make various rude comments. “Among the most disturbing: ‘Disgusting food, served by disgusting people to disgusting people’” (Falkowitz par.3).

Of course, the food isn't gourmet. However, even though it is made on a food cart in the middle of the street, it tastes better than fast food because it’s actually fresh. Also, you can stop at one of the many food carts and get yourself a quick meal on the go. Missed breakfast this morning? Or just didn't have enough time? Well, on your way to work, you could pick up a taco, or a slice of pizza, or a hot dog.

The possibilities are endless. There's such a wide variety of different foods that it's hard not to find something that you want to eat, and it can't be too disgusting. There’s a bunch of regulations and rules to not only run a food cart but to get your food vending license. (68 pages of them in fact!)

Food carts also bring a sense of life to public spaces - everyone crowding around to get a taco, a burger, a hotdog, or a gyro. Sure, it’s not guaranteed that much talking will occur, but it is more likely than if you were just walking on a lifeless street with a bunch of zombies. As the article “Why Street Vendors Are Vital to NYC Food Culture” explains, “That kind of culture is important, especially in New York. Street food helps transform sidewalks and public spaces from transit ways to destinations.” (Falkowitz par.11)

Falkowitz, Max. "Why Street Vendors Are Vital to NYC Food Culture | Serious Eats." New York | Serious Eats, newyork.seriouseats.com/2012/06/street-vendor-hot-dog- brooklynheights-nyc.html.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 16 of 21 Food in the Jewish Culture By Yanisbel Urbina, Hiram HS Student

Kosher Law is a set of food dos and don’ts that the Jewish people follow. For example, pork and shellfish are forbidden. Meat and dairy may not be combined, and “meat must be ritually slaughtered and salted to remove all traces of blood.” Jews can eat meat of any animal that chews its cud (food which has already been partly digested) and has split hooves (i.e. cows, sheep, deer, and goats) Some believe that food is the glue that ties the Jewish people together. “Food is so important in Judaism that one Orthodox rabbi told me that each time we bless and eat our food, that we elevate the spirit of the food itself. Eating then becomes a form of worship as we give thanks to the Creator and lift the energy up as an offering of live and humility” (Bowen).

(Challah bread)

Jewish cuisine is the food associated with specific holidays and observances. One of these staples is challah bread which appears on most Jewish tables every Shabbat. Challah bread, which has a braided design, is special to the Jewish bakers and kitchens all over the world. The braids represent a labor of love in the Jewish home, “as each loaf is painstakingly formed to be served to others. This reminds me of God’s creative hand during the six days prior to Shabbat, before he offers the world for mankind’s care and enjoyment” (Bowen). Other holiday foods include the Passover-matzah, the kosher wine, and latkes. There are potato pancakes with tangy apple sauce for Chanukah, but there are also many other foods for the year.

Bowen, Andrew. “Food: The Glue of Jewish Culture.” Project Conversation. http://projectconversion.com/food-the-glue-of-jewish-culture/

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 17 of 21 Manhattan, NY By Brooklin Santos, Hiram HS Student

The most well-known, densely populated, borough in New York City is Manhattan. The word “Manhattan” is translated as “island of many hills” in the Algonquian language, the language spoken by Lenape Native Americans who used to be the inhabitants of the area. Manhattan is NYC culture at its finest. It’s one of the greatest cities in the world. From food trucks to subways, there’s so much to do and encounter. Take a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and admire nearly 2 million works of art from 5 millennia of human history. Visit the historic St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Go to the One World Observatory if you want to see as much of NYC as possible. 46th street is food galore if you’re looking for a bite!

In 2014, the population of Manhattan alone was estimated at 1.6 million, and it is still growing today. Manhattan is considered the cultural, financial, media, and entertainment capital of the world. Manhattan’s most well-known neighborhoods are Harlem, the Upper East Side, Times Square, and Greenwich Village. Besides plenty of things to do, there is also a lot you can learn by just being there and witnessing everything around you. There is a certain aesthetic about Manhattan that makes it significant and unique. The fast-paced walking, commercial ads everywhere, yellow taxi cabs, the aroma of food trucks - this is the aesthetic of Manhattan.

An article on NYC Tourist called Manhattan “the mecca of American business and luxury” (par 1). Manhattan is filled with companies and businessmen. Companies like 21st Century Fox, A&E, Barnes & Noble, DKNY, and dozens of other companies are Manhattan- based. Manhattan, out of all the 5 boroughs, is easiest to navigate on foot, but yellow taxi cabs and the subway are also readily available to get you where you are going. The education system in Manhattan is very impressive. Most residents over 25 have a Bachelor’s degree, and around 25% have a graduate degree. Manhattan is one of the most educated counties in the country. In every way, Manhattan is a jewel in the crown of the United States of America.

“Manhattan New York.” New York City, www.nyctourist.com/manhattan.htm.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 18 of 21 Red Buttons By Dwight McKissack, Hiram HS Student

. In the play, Bubbie mentions Red Buttons, but many people alive today have not heard of this talented actor/comedian. Buttons’ career started slowly. In 1941, Buttons was cast in his first Broadway show called The Admiral Had a Wife, a play set in Pearl Harbor which was scheduled to open December 1941. The show never opened because the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor made the farce seem ill-timed and insensitive. Then, in September of 1942, Buttons was drafted in WWII to provide entertainment to the troops. Buttons appeared in Broadway shows during and after the war. A year after the war ended, Buttons was featured in a movie called Winged Victory, based on the Broadway show he was in. In 1957, Red Buttons was in a new half-hour variety program where he was ranked number eleven on the primetime rankings. People enjoyed his sketch comedies and the characters he played. Red Buttons later won an Academy Award for his appearance in the film Sayonara where he played an airman who is stationed in Kobe, decides to marry a Korean woman (played by Miyoshi Umeki who won Best Supporting Actress), and is barred from taking her back to the U.S. Red Buttons’ last greatest achievement was starring on a comic tribute series, “The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast,” before he died on July 13, 2006 due to vascular disease and high blood pressure complications.

“Red Buttons.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 2 Apr. 2014, www.biography.com/people/red-buttons-179185?_escaped_fragment_. “Red Buttons.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Sept. 2017, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Buttons. Rothstein, Mervyn. “Comedian Red Buttons Dies at 87.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 13 July 2006, www.nytimes.com/2006/07/14/arts/14buttons.html.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 19 of 21 Classroom Discussion

Pre-Show Questions:

1. How will you know that you have chosen the right person to be with? 2. Would you allow your family to choose your spouse? Why or why not? 3. What is more important for a successful long-term relationship – a good personality or physical attractiveness? 4. Do you believe in love at first site? Defend your position. 5. Does a person need to be in a relationship to be happy?

Post-Show Questions: 1. Did any of the characters in Crossing Delancey reflect the way you act or remind you of someone you know? Which character and why? 2. How did Izzy’s attitude toward relationships and marriage change over the course of the play? 3. What does the grey Stetson in Crossing Delancey symbolize? Elaborate. 4. If Tyler were an article of clothing, what would he be and why? 5. Why did Izzy go out with Tyler knowing she had a date scheduled with Sam?

Creative Writing Prompts: 1. Write a scene from Tyler’s book Freefall. 2. Write the conversation between Izzy and her mother when she calls to share the news about Sam. 3. Design a promotional poster for the theatrical production of Crossing Delancey.

Crossing Delancey produced by the Alliance Theatre at MJCC of Atlanta Page 20 of 21

Crossing Delancey at the Alliance Theatre