FREE 'Family of Strangers' Exhibit & Paramount Theatre Tour 5/2

Wednesday, April 28, 2010 - Seattle Theatre Group (STG) and Washington State Jewish Historical Society proundly present a special exhibit, Our Village Seattle: Family of Strangers, showing at The Paramount Theatre in Seattle, for free on Sunday, May 2, 2010.

The Paramount Theatre tours, normally held on the first Saturday of every month (free of charge), will hold a special tour on Sunday, May 2 for friends of Washington State Jewish Historical Society. Please meet in front of the main entrance of the theatre - on the corner of 9th and Pine - by 10 am. The tours will last approximately 90 minutes and will be lead by members of our well-versed volunteer staff. A portion of this tour will include Our Village Seattle: Family of Strangers is a series of storyboards highlighting the lives of pioneering Jewish people who made homes for themselves in, what was the time, the remote Pacific Northwest as well as featuring many family businesses that have played a prominent role in the growth of this area. The exhibit will be on display throughout the month with a variety of programming open to the public.

The history of the Jewish community of Washington State is filled with the faint memories of hundreds of people who came from countless shtetls, villages, towns, and cities of Eastern and Central Europe and the Mediterranean Basin. Jews have lived in Washington since the earliest days of Euro-American settlement. Though they came from different lands with different customs and languages, they shared a common belief in the tenets of Judaism and a desire to create a Jewish presence in Washington. They observed a weekly holy day, the Sabbath, starting at sundown Friday night. They maintained traditional religious rituals in their homes as well as temples or synagogues. They valued education and charity. Like other immigrant groups, in time they created a community both distinctive and American.

This exhibit tells their story. The Washington State Jewish Historical Society would like to give credit for the creation of the original Family of Strangers exhibit to the Washington State History Museum in Tacoma and to the co-authors of award-winning book, The Family of Strangers, by Molly Cone, Howard Droker and Jacqueline Williams.

The Washington State Jewish Historical Society is unique in its mission and is dedicated to discovering, preserving, and disseminating the history of the Jews of Washington State. This unique history is shared through publications, exhibits, displays, speakers, and tours.

This exhibit is made possible by the following supporters of the Washington State Jewish Historical Society.
Irwin & Betty Lou Treiger and Family
Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle
Robyn & Sherwin Alpert
4Culture for sustaining support

About STG
STG is the 501 (c)(3) non-profit arts organization that operates the historic Paramount and Moore Theatres in Seattle, Washington. Our mission is to make diverse performing arts and education an integral part of our region's cultural identity while keeping these two landmark venues alive and vibrant. STG presents a range of performances from Broadway, off-Broadway, dance and jazz to comedy, concerts of all genres, speakers and family shows - at both historic theatres in Seattle and venues throughout the Puget Sound and Portland, Oregon.

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