A Jewish day school in Western Mass, home to Smith College, Mount Holyoke, Amherst, and UMass-Amherst is hosting a very creative havdalah this weekend, after Parsha BO is recited.
It is a family friendly, Jewish Version of a Drag Queen Story Hour.. titled: Sparkle Havdallah: A Drag Queen Story Hour!
The Lander-Grinspoon Academy (@LanderGrinspoon) will host PJ Library author Lesléa Newman along with a local drag queen edutainer Jenayah De Rosario (@Jenayahs). Attendees at this DQSH are asked to wear sparkly clothes to bid Shabbat goodbye and welcome the new week. Ms. De Rosario will read from Newman’s classic children’s book, SPARKLE BOY – the story of a boy, Casey, who likes to wear sparkly clothes. The “Drag Queen Story Hour” captures the imagination and play of the gender fluidity of childhood. Kids can see people who defy rigid gender restrictions and imagine a world where people can present as they wish, and where dress up is real. It is co-sponsored by Lander~Grinspoon Academy, Gan Keshet Preschool, Beit Ahavah, Congregation B’nai Israel, Abundance Farm and (the Grinspoon Family’s) PJ Library of Jewish Federation of Western MA.
Two of Newman’s more famous books are: “Here Is the World: A Year of Jewish Holidays” and “Heather Has Two Mommies.” And don’t forget her “Ketzel The Cat” and “Mommy Mama & Me.” Word on the street is that if prompted, THE PURIM SUPERHERO will be read.
