Today we’d like to introduce you to Ronda Spinak.
Hi Ronda, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
THE DREAM A kitchen table. A pot of coffee. A plate of bagels. Two women and I come together in an ordinary way to realize the extraordinary dream of creating a new theatre to give voice to Jewish women. Our dream expands into something even bigger and more impactful than anything we could have dreamt.
The Braid starts out as Jewish Women’s Theatre in the spring of 2007 with a group of women who know what it means to be outsiders, to exist in the margins of culture, and to be stereotyped. Until then, no theater company in America had pledged to welcome and encourage contemporary stories by Jewish women and to adapt them theatrically, giving them life in front of a live audience.
We have no space. We have no money. But we have many talented women wanting to share their stories. And this gives us the courage to create a new way of thinking about theatre. “We are a people of the book,” we reason. “What if we focus on the word, the text, the story? What if we revive the age-old tradition of salons: women hosting culture of the day in their homes?”
Sparing the expense of a theater, sets, costumes, and props means we could fully focus on presenting powerful stories in unexpected and convenient locations, reaching many more local neighborhoods across Los Angeles and beyond.
A NEW THEATRICAL ART FORM IS BORN
Out of necessity comes a new way to tell Jewish stories.
We pioneer a new art form and cultural experience that debuted in the backyard of a home in Pacific Palisades, California, fall of 2008 and has grown exponentially since. We launch “Salon Theatre” our signature program creating original shows each with a theme presenting stories, poems, comedic monologues, and songs performed by professional actors.
Our first season starts with 3 shows with 3 performances each, presented in private homes, reaching 482 patrons.
Fourteen years later we have delighted more than 115,000 community members throughout Los Angeles, the South Bay, the San Francisco Bay Area, and beyond, including 47 states, 47 countries, and off-Broadway. We have partnered with over 200 organizations to bring our unique brand of entertainment into the community in synagogues, museums, art galleries, universities, Jewish Community Centers, senior-serving facilities, and even prisons.
Hundreds of stories by writers ages 13-98 are presented as well as over 70 original Salon shows, including seminal ones: “Saffron & Rosewater”—the Persian Jewish experience; “Stories from The Fringe”—the trailblazing stories of women rabbis; “Chutzpah & Salsa”—experiences of having a Latino heart and Jewish soul; “True Colors”—stories about identity from Jews of Color; Israeli Americans–the longing for the Holy land while becoming American, “Sweet Tea & the Southern Jew”–unique stories of Southern Jews, and “Mapping of the Mind”-– exploring mental health in a new light.
Early on, we became a community partner project, the gold standard of non-profit fiscal sponsorship. Some years later, we became our own independent 501(c)3 non-profit supported through ticket sales, a wide patron and donor base, and generous public and private funders.
A BELOVED HOME OF OUR OWN
The Braid: Weaving Performance and Art
While continuing our salon performances in myriad community settings, we open our own performance and arts space in November 2014 to present longer-running shows, writer’s workshops, classes, community events, and special Shabbat events that interweave performance. We also present art exhibits that tie in thematically with performances at The Braid so patrons experience a theme visually and dramatically. This artful and innovative aspect of our work deepens engagement with a topic, setting it apart from other theatres and performance spaces.
The Braid quickly becomes a beloved part of the community, repeatedly voted among the best live theatres by The Argonaut and most loved business by the Santa Monica Daily Press.
THE BRAID TO OFF-BROADWAY
A rare and coveted path for LA Theater.
The Braid opens with an initial production of “Not That Jewish”, our commissioned one-woman show by Emmy Award-winning Monica Piper, an artist-in-residence. The show plays to sold-out audiences, 3-4 nights a week for sixteen months, earning a nomination from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle for the best solo performance in 2015. Due to its resounding success, “Not That Jewish” opened off-Broadway at New World Stages in October 2016 for 200 performances.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Living our values of equity, diversity, and inclusion.
While Jewish Women’s Theatre began by focusing on women’s stories, we evolved to include the stories of all Jews of diverse backgrounds regardless of gender or sexual orientation. So, during our 13th season and Bat Mitzvah year, celebrating our coming of age as an organization and increased responsibility to Jewish values, we change our name to The Braid. This name better reflects the entirety of our programming, who we are, and what we are becoming – the nation’s go-to Jewish story company, braiding together performance, programming, art, and conversation grounded in Jewish culture.
The Braid remains true to its founding commitment of giving voice to Jewish stories that haven’t been heard, stories by all genders, Jews of color, or Jews from other diverse backgrounds. Even as we grow and continue to expand the scope and reach of our performances and programming, our goal continues to be to take previously unheard Jewish stories out of the margins and into the mainstream. We are thus expanding the notion of what it means to be Jewish and how being Jewish fits into the larger American cultural landscape.
THE PANDEMIC TAKES US GLOBAL
Our unique style of theatre provides comfort and entertainment in uncertain times
Two days before opening the second Salon of our season we find ourselves on lockdown. Homebound and uncertain, The Braid quickly responds and launches, “Inside Our Time”–stories written by our community performed and recorded at home by our actors, and released once a day for six weeks. Through the telling of our stories, we make sense of the times and the community is grateful. Our actors also appreciate a reason to take a shower and share their craft! The Braid pivots and releases our season live on Zoom, innovating our art form. Everyone loves having a “front row” seat. We also release “Stories from the Violins of Hope”–integrating live zoom performances with recorded music and telling the story of the famous collection of string survivors. The United Nations Programme on the Holocaust shares it with its global community. It is then translated into Spanish and Portuguese and broadcast to Mexico, Central, and South America. On the success of this show, a theatrical play is being written and will debut in Sydney, Australia in 2023.
OUR FUTURE LEGACY
The show ends. The audience is in tears. Inevitably a patron asks, “How can I share this story with someone not here tonight?” And so we go from page to stage to the digital frontier!
We continue to work innovatively beyond the stage to give voice to and celebrate untold Jewish stories. We give all access to these contemporary treasures via digital formats and platforms, licensing, and tours. With newly created ventures such as StoryNosh, a digital storytelling competition filmed and released free to the public via YouTube, our partnership with the ChaiFlicks, the Jewish Netflix, d live streaming of performances, and our podcast AudioNosh, we are the Jewish Story Company creating a lasting legacy for future generations.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
We started with no money, and no space, and two weeks after the market crashed in 2008. Most arts funding evaporated overnight. Necessity is the mother of invention and we created a new theatrical art form that sits at the intersection of storytelling and theatre.
And of course, every year we must secure funding outside of ticket sales. And though Covid closed our doors it opened a zoom window. Our unique kind of theatre translated to zoom and then we innovate this art form. Now we are looking to bring back in-person attendees and of course, we are working to make the model sustainable.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My work at The Braid centers on sourcing, reading, identifying, editing, and producing stories in a curated themed show, performed by professional actors and taken out to the public in person and virtually. As Artistic Director and Founder, I’m also responsible for strategy–where we want to go and how we get there.
Yes, we’ve created 70 of these theme shows and six one-person shows, and I’m so proud of this legacy of work, but mostly I’m proud of the team of creatives who are on staff, in leadership, and volunteer for The Braid. Their work ethic and uber-creativity stun me every day. I’m so full of gratitude for the many who do so much.
What do you think about happiness?
What makes me happy? Creating a new season of shows–I am in the process currently and we open our new season in January. I also love watching as others fulfill their creativity. Oh, and my dog.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.the-braid.org
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=thebraidstories%2Fstories
