HIT COMEDY AT WEST SIDE'S NEWEST PERFORMANCE SPACE

Monica Piper’s one-woman show, “Not That Jewish,” has its world premiere and runs through December 14th at The Braid -- Santa Monica’s newest performance space and art gallery. On stage, Piper’s unique brand of comedy explores the “Things we pass down” generation to generation. While the exhibit in the art gallery, “THINGS WE PASS DOWN,” illuminates the same theme by visual and fine artists. Theatre and art exhibition in dialogue with one another.

Monica Piper snagged a coveted Emmy as the head writer of Rugrats, and was nominated by the American Comedy Awards as one of the top five female comedians in the country. Piper is a simple woman who loves chopped liver, votes Democratic and says things like, “I’ll be doing laundry ‘til Shevuous.” If that’s not Jewish, what is? All right, she never went to temple, had a wasp wedding, and almost slept with Mickey Mantle. Okay, the answer may not be so simple.

Her origins were certainly Jewish enough. Yet, filled with contradictions. Born in the Bronx. But also a Campfire Girl. Piper admits, “You sense your life isn’t normal when you’re sitting on the D train with a bag of marshmallows and a twig.”

In every sense a humorist storyteller, Piper brings a world that “isn’t normal” to the stage in this raucously funny yet deeply poignant journey of a Jew… “ish” woman’s life.

Piper says, when her son asked a question after his Bar Mitzvah, it rocked her world and she finally had to discover what being Jewish really meant. But what Piper discovers goes beyond identity. A larger, more universal theme emerges from this intimate portrait of one woman’s life. New questions arise about how the things we pass down shapes our identity and how the things we pass forward impacts our children.

In “Not That Jewish,” Piper finds the answers to these questions, answers that leave audiences to reflect while being laughed out, a little teary-eyed, and happy to be Jewish ... even for those who aren’t.

“Not That Jewish” was commissioned by JWT, the break out Los Angeles theatre company, which is exploding with raves across the southland. JWT will produce at The Braid. Directed by Eve Brandstein.

“Tugs at the heart strings … wraps the funny bone” THE LOS ANGELES TIMES

“Just like on a Broadway stage, everything is geared to getting you to listen to a story and absorb it.” THE JEWISH JOURNAL

Tickets $35.00. www.jewishwomenstheatre.org or call: 310.315.1400

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