Sukkot is Here - Get Ready to Shake Your Lulav with Rebbetzin Tap!

With Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur in the rear view mirror, Sukkot is suddenly here. Starting tonight, we'll be spending lots of time in the Sukkah --eating, drinking, and spending special time with family and friends. Some of us may also be sleeping in the Sukkah, weather permitting.

As we head into a seven day period of saying special blessings while holding the lulav, etrog, myrtle and willow branches together and giving them a good shake, let's get the holiday off to a good start with Rebbetzin Tap and her entourage.

Rebbetzin Tap is Kerry Bar-Cohn, the only female chiropractor in Ramat Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem, where she lives with her husband David and four sons.
 
But that's only her day job. As "Rebbetzin Tap," she produces music and dance DVDs for children, as well as online courses and a plethora of YouTube videos, whose goal is to emphasize the “joy” component in Judaism and in life, and to teach self-esteem and empowerment.

Why Rebbetzin Tap? Because tap dancing is part of all her music videos.
She has a background in stage performance, first as a child, then attending the High School of Performing Arts in New York, and subsequently returning to performance ten years ago after making aliyah.

We'll be taking tomorrow and Tuesday off to celebrate Sukkot, and we'll be back with our usual Jewish Humor Central mix on Wednesday.

Chag Sameach!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

A Unique Hava Nagila: No Music, No Words, Just Tap and Clap

We thought we'd seen every rendition of Hava Nagila -- sung in so many languages, danced in so many costumes, until we came across a new contender for the title of most unusual treatment of the universally recognized, much played and much overplayed Jewish song.

This one is a song without lyrics and without music. It's acted out in tap dance and hand clapping by the Chicago Tap Theater. It took us more than one watching to get tuned into the rhythm and follow it closely. But after a few viewings, you can get into it. It helps to sing along to the tapping of the dancers.

Chicago Tap Theatre (CTT) is a young and vibrant dance company with a unique mission to preserve the quintessentially American dance form of tap and to take tap to the next level of creativity and innovation. CTT stands apart from other dance companies by bridging the gap between tap and other forms of concert dance (such as jazz, ballet and modern) by adopting a conceptual, narrative (i.e., story-based) and more emotional approach to its work. 

Under the dynamic direction of internationally renowned dancer and choreographer Mark Yonally, CTT has gained a loyal following in its hometown of Chicago and continues to develop and enhance its reputation nationally and around the world.

Enjoy!

(A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.)