Where-To-Go Wednesday - Actor's Temple Theater Tour

We were given a free tour of The Actor's Temple Theatre for review purposes. Any and all opinions expressed here are our own. 

What: Tour of the Actor's Temple Theatre

Where: 339 W. 47th St.

            New York, NY

Who: Teens and Up

When: Tour arranged through Show-Score. Go to www.show-score.com to sign up for a free membership and find out about and/or purchase tickets to a future Actor's Temple Tour or  one of their many other tours, show socials and/or other events.

Me- The Actor's Temple is an Off Broadway theater that is also Temple. We went on a tour and learned about the history of the theater and the Temple. The tour was interesting. They had lot of plaques with people's names. Some of them were the names of famous people who belonged to the Temple. There were also pictures of faomous people who belonged to  the Temple nd/or participated in their yearly fundraisers. These people included Bert Lahr, Hank Greenberg, Milton Berle, and Sandy Koufax. Ed Sullivan hosted the fundraiser every year. I liked learning about the Temple and its history. It was unique because I had never seen a tour in a temple before. They also talked about Jews in  theater in general on the tour. They specifically mentioned Fiddler on the Roof, Cabaret and Rags. I had never heard of Rags before. My favorite part of the tour was looking at all the pictures and the stained glass windows. The stained glass windows were really pretty. The tour guide was nice. People who are interested in learning about Jewish history and theater history will enjoy this tour.

Mom - The Actor's Temple Theatre is both a working theater and a working synagogue. It was founded in 1917 and is now a historic landmark. Tours are given by the current Rabbi /Cantor of the Temple, Jill Hausman. She has been the Rabbi since 2006 and is knowledgable not only about the Temple history since she became the Rabbi but prior to that time as well. Her tours are very informative. She also very knowledgeable about theater history and has a background in acting and singing. She has even performed opera and put out several recordings. The stories she tells of the famous people who have been a part of the Temple congregation over the years or participated in the Temple's fundraising benefits are very fascinating. One of the most prominent people to belong to the Temple in the early days and the one who reallly put the Temple on the map so to speak was Sophie Tucker. Others who either belonged to the Temple or participated in the benefits included  Danny Kaye, Morey Amsterdam. and Harpo Marx as well as agents, producers and others. There are still some actors that belong to the Temple to this day but not as many as previously. In addition to the pictures hanging on  the stairway walls of the famous people who have been a part of the Temple, there are several scrapbooks full of pictures. The Actor's Temple is lucky enough to have not one but 11 beautifully dressed Torahs, and on our tour we were able to see them. We were also able to see some of their lovely stained glass windows. Some of the windows were dedicated to well known people. Others were dedicated to people well known within the Temple or to the Jewish community but not necessarily involved in show business. Some of the stained glass windows including one dedicated to Sophie Tucker were obstructed from view. Young children are not strictly forbidden from this tour, but it probably wouldn't interest them   All in all, it was an interesting tour and one that can be especially enjoyed by anyone who is particularly interested in religious history, theater history and/or how the two intersect.

And that's our view. Tune in tomorrow for Theater Thursday.