2025 Season
the violin maker
April 23 - May 11, 2025
based on the stories from the violins of hope
By Lisa Pearl Rosenbaum and Ronda Spinak; Music curation by Dr. Noreen Green
Directed by caryn desai
Previews $44
Thu, Fri, Sat: $56
Sun: $59
Opening Night: $59
Dinner Package: $99
Subscribers Dinner Package: $52
Post-show talkback with the cast May 4!
...a sensitively written script that is evocative of the time as well as the personalities of the Weinstein family, the people who bring their violins to the workshop and the folk whose stories the violins reveal.
SUMMARY
AN AMERICAN PREMIERE |
The Israeli violin maker, Amnon Weinstein, founder of the Violins of Hope collection, restored violins played during the Holocaust. He died in 2024 at age 84, but his extraordinary story, and the true stories of the violins are masterfully interwoven with music in this powerful and uplifting play.
Lisa Pearl Rosenbaum
Playwright
LISA PEARL ROSENBAUM is a writer and dramaturg at The Braid, the Los Angeles based theater and arts company, where she also develops and moderates programs that give voice to diverse and compelling Jewish voices. Her award-winning novel, A Day of Small Beginnings (Little, Brown & Co, 2006), a multi-generational story set in Poland, was inspired by her family history, and that of her in-laws, Polish Holocaust survivors. Stories from the Violins of Hope, her play about the remarkable Israeli violin maker who restored instruments that survived the Holocaust, drew from her lengthy interviews with Amnon Weinstein himself. A video of the Braid’s production was created during the pandemic in 2021, with actors performing from scripts, without sets or costumes, accompanied by musicians from the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony. It was shown globally, and at the United Nations. A full stage production of the play, written with Ronda Spinak, was performed in 2023 at the Bondi Beach Pavillion Theatre in Sydney, Australia. Lisa is delighted The Violin Maker, based on Stories from the Violins of Hope, is having its American premiere. She is a proud member of The Dramatists Guild.
Ronda Spinak
Playwright
RONDA SPINAK is the Artistic Director and Founder of The Braid, a global nonprofit theatre company, dedicated to amplifying contemporary Jewish stories. She creates and produces the Salon Theatre Series, curating more than 80 original Jewish-themed programs and adapting many of the pieces performed. Salons have toured in 50 states and nearly 50 countries. She also has been instrumental in creating The Braid’s “StoryNosh” storytelling series, by and for emerging artists. Spinak has developed 6 one person shows, including Not That Jewish, that played 16 months in Los Angeles, then went to Off Broadway for nearly a year. Her plays include Stories from the Fringe, about women rabbis - with its accompanying historic art exhibit, Holy Sparks - and festival-winner Oscar Wilde’s Wife, a favorite at the Ashland New Play Festival. She also co-wrote The Violin Maker with Lisa Pearl Rosenbaum, which debuted in Australia in 2023. She has written for the Emmy Award-winning children’s show Rugrats. She is a graduate of Stanford University, and holds degrees from UCLA (MBA) and USC (Masters in Writing). Spinak is on the board of the Alliance for Jewish Theatres and is a member of the Dramatists Guild.
Dr. Noreen green
Music Curation
Dr. Green is the Artistic Director and Conductor of the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony, which she founded in 1994. Known worldwide for her knowledge and skill in presenting music with Jewish themes, she has served as guest conductor in the United States, Israel, South Africa, Australia, and Canada. In 2017, Dr. Green was honored by Musical America, the oldest and most prestigious American magazine on classical music, as one of the Top 30 Musical America Professionals of the Year.
In February 2020, Dr. Green’s life and career was the subject of a Spotlight Series documentary by the Milken Archive of Jewish Music, which was featured on the Archive’s website and YouTube. After many years of collaborating with local choirs, in 2020 Dr. Green founded the Jewish Community Chorale, a program of the LAJS. While the pandemic prevents live performances, the JCC functions as a virtual choir and made its debut on Jewish Life Television (JLTV) on July 3, 2020.
Dinner Package at L'Opera
We offer this affordable package in conjunction with L’Opera Ristorante one of Long Beach’s finest restaurants. For only $99 a person, you will receive a 3-course prix fixe dinner and a ticket to a production. Dinner and a show – does it get any better than that?
Dinner Package at Michael's on Naples
Don’t forget ICT’s scrumptious dinner package! We offer this affordable package in conjunction with the wonderful and delicious Michael's on Naples. For only $99 a person, you will receive a 3-course prix fixe dinner and a ticket to a production. Dinner and a show – does it get any better than that?
Ticketing Policies and Information
Contact the box office
Tickets may be purchased online, but feel free to call or stop by to purchase your tickets too - we're happy to help! Call us at 562.436.4610 or visit the ICT Box Office, available Monday – Friday from 9:00AM through 5:00PM. You can also email us with inquiries at ict@ictlongbeach.org.
Group sales
We offer attractive discounts for groups of 10 or more individuals. Groups get a minimum of $10 off each individual ticket, so prepare to SAVE 20-41% off regular ticket prices. Awesome! (We know.) Student groups save even more! Good seats, personalized service, plus an opportunity to add a dinner package to your fun evening or afternoon on the town. Call or email Denis for more details at (562) 495-4595, extension 106 or denis@ictlongbeach.org
Discounts
Chamber Discount
All Chamber of Commerce members receive $5 off each ticket, limit 2 tickets.**Student and Senior Discounts
Full-time students 24 and under and seniors over the age of 65 get $5 off each ticket.**Please note that all discounts are only available in advance through the ICT Box Office. Discounts are not available in combination with any other offer. Other restrictions may apply. Special Offers do not apply to Season Subscription prices.
Theatre Location and parking
ICT in the Beverly O'Neill Theater
at the Long Beach Performing Arts Center
330 East Seaside Way
Long Beach, CA 90802
(at intersection of S. Hart Place)Parking: $15
Seating Chart