“Why is this seder different from all other seders: ‘Maggid’ (re-telling): Analyzing the Living Theatre’s Passover Performances”
Cindy Rosenthal, Hofstra University
The unique hybrid form of the Living Theatre’s Passover seder is performed every year, no matter where the group tours or what production they are rehearsing or running. The event, “curated” by company director Judith Malina, includes ritual practices and objects that reflect the pacifism and anarchism of the collective. The Haggadah, a playscript for the seder, is a ‘telling’ of the story of the Exodus from Egypt, from Slavery to Freedom. Malina describes her version as a “re-telling,” because it is “not always in the model of the past.” Vegetarianism is part of the LT’s long-lived dedication to non-violence; hence, the Living Theatre’s seder is meat-free. On the seder plate, instead of the traditional lamb shank bone representing animal sacrifice, the Living Theatre substitutes a tiny carved lamb made of marzipan. This practice began in 1979 when Italians who were celebrating Easter joined the company on tour and gifted the group with this playful object.
In April 1986, at Milan’s Jewish Festival, the LT performed their seder in front of a (non-participatory) paying audience. When they were asked to present a performance on a Jewish theme all they had ready “to do, to behave, to show” was their seder event. This paper analyzes the performance history of the Living’s Passover seder and why some traditions are rejected but others (such as the group’s annual production of a hundred matzoh balls) are not.
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