Queen Esther: A Heretical Play from Early Modern Spain

Content

In this Illuminated Lecture, a form that weaves theater and music into an academic lecture, UMass Professor Harley Erdman, with the support of five student actors, shares his research on a play from 1613 that landed its playwright, Felipe Godínez, in jail for heresy. What made the play so dangerous to the Inquisition? Erdman delves into the playwright’s crypto-Jewish background and shows how some extraordinary choices in the play might have held a hidden meaning for audience members who were of Jewish heritage but forbidden from practicing their religion or expressing their culture in public. Join us for an entertaining and memorable take on an academic lecture, on a fascinating subject.

Queen Esther: A Heretical Play from Early Modern Spain
by Harley Erdman
Directed by Aaron Henne
Nov. 18 at 4:30 p.m.

The Rand Theater
Free, no registration required

A co-production of UMass Theater and theatre dybbuk.

This event is made possible in part by Comparative Literature, the Department of Judaic and Near Eastern Studies, and Spanish & Portuguese Studies.

about theatre dybbuk

In an era of short-form videos and social media, immediate response is often encouraged over mindful engagement. theatre dybbuk seeks to be a counter-cultural force by fostering a thoughtful relationship with the complexities present in our world. Through its original productions, Illuminated Lectures, and performance events, theatre dybbuk asks people to consider the various forces at play at any given moment in history and the ways in which art and other examples of cultural production can be vessels for the beliefs, concerns, and prejudices of the times in which they are created.