Beyond NY: The Midwood Miracle with Deborah Karpel at the Jewish Heritage Series in Philadelphia, PA

One-woman musical memoir tells a moving story about discovering cultural roots through twists of fate and grandpa’s Yiddish song collection. The performance is on Sunday, March 17, 2019 at 1:00 pm

Lyrical, alluring and disarming, Deborah Karpel’s performance in The Midwood Miracle is a delicious treat and a familial story at the same time. Premiered in New York City in 2017, the show on Sunday, March 17 at 1:00 pm is part of the Jewish Heritage Series at Congregations Shaare Shamayim Synagogue in Philadelphia, PA.

The show performed by Deborah Karpel with Michael Lewis Smith at the piano and directed by Aimee Todoroff tells a family story about a Jewish girl growing up in coal mining Appalachia, VA. Some details of the script are fictional, some are taken from family archives. Vivid elements of life in Appalachia, where Karpel’s mother grew up, are followed by the urban tales set in Brooklyn, NY. The scenes of how the character’s parents met, their ideals and a mixup of quirky twists are wonderfully delivered by Karpel’s amazing performance and singing. The original compositions co-written by Karpel with Ted Kociolek and Rachelle Garniez are perfectly mashed along with traditional Americana, western swing, operatic arias, improvised art songs, and Yiddish songs. Come and see the miracle that could have only happened in Midwood.   BUY TICKETS

 

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Karpel’s early influences include a long list of singers from Liltin’ Martha Tilton, Mildred Bailey, Danny Kaye, Dinah Washington, Peggy Lee and Billie Holiday to Charlotte Rae, Joni Mitchell, Laura Nyro, Sandy Denny, Victoria De Los Angeles, Patsy Cline, Sam Cooke, Dinah Shore. She also devotedly listened to the soundtracks of the musical theater from the 1950’s singling out Marc Blitzstein’s version of Three Penny Opera and the first version of Bernstein’s Candide.

In her biography, Karpel points out that through her work with several Klezmer bands, she became acquainted with Yiddish language and music. She combined this growing interest with her passion for opera to create a concert, entitled Songs My Mother Never Taught Me, for the National Yiddish Center in Amherst, MA. The resultant CD with the same title features lesser-known Yiddish songs culled from her paternal grandfather’s sheet music collection.

In 2008 Karpel released her second CD, La Promessa. That selection also includes songs with a personal connection for the singer.

The Midwood Miracle had premiered in the Fall of 2017 at Emerging Artists Theater’s New Works Festival to rave reviews and warm support by the audience.

The Midwood Miracle will surely delight the audience!

 

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Date: Sunday, March 17, 2019 at 1:00 pm

 

 

Venue: Congregations Shaare Shamayim Synagogue, 9768 Verree Rd, Philadelphia, PA 19115