Sandisfield — The Sandisfield Arts Center (SARC), located just off of Route 57 on the edge of a dirt road that quickly disappears into hardwood forest, has made its home in the only known rural orthodox synagogue on record in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. On Saturday evening, April 29 at 6 p.m., SARC will celebrate the rich history of Jewish culture in one of the county’s oft-overlooked enclaves at this year’s Annual Spring Gala and Benefit Auction, the theme of which is “Berkshire Borscht Belt – Catskills in Sandisfield.”
This year’s event will revolved around the “incredibly untold story of the Jewish farm community, resettled from New York City in the early 20th century,” according to event co-chair Alice Boyd. As to its genesis? “It just evolved” Boyd said, adding “we don’t usually have a theme.” She went on to say, “in this day of anti-semitism, [with] new statistics” to show it rising, the celebration of Sandisfield’s rich history is an apropos way to “honor our Jewish residents and forefathers” said Boyd.
Saturday’s event will feature a trio of variations on the Berkshire Borscht Belt theme. Chef and Sandisfield resident, Adam Manacher, will cater the meal. Manacher, who works for a kosher caterer in Cambridge, brings a great spirit of collaboration along with lots of fun to the event. He is planning a menu that will include two types of knishes, potato latkes, smoked salmon and a chocolate covered Matzoh for dessert.
The event will be hosted by Rachel Siegel, well-known actress and comedienne, who will bring her own original sketches highlighting stories from the building’s unique history as a former synagogue. Siegel, who was raised on a former farm in Egremont, hadn’t thought much about why there was a synagogue in the middle of Sandisfield. The invitation to perform at Saturday’s gala “got [Siegel’s] imagination flowing about what kind of people [the Jews in Sandisfield were], and [her] family [who was] part of the influx of Ashkenazi Jews on [her] father’s side.” Siegel remembers her grandparents “loom[ing] very large……[and that she was] fascinated by Yiddish” which she went on to learn in her 20s. This led to an interest in Yiddish music, and she will be singing at least one Yiddish song as part of Saturday’s festivities.
As to her plans, Siegel says she is preparing some “Weird, wacky stuff that I’d never do anywhere else” noting the warm, open community at SARC — and its being in the middle of nowhere — as giving her the courage to do something she’d not tackle elsewhere. She will take the opportunity to impersonate a Jewish farmer and, she gushes, “I get to live out my Tevye fantasy.” In a nod to the role from Fiddler on the Roof, in which she’d never be cast, Siegel is looking forward “to be[ing] an old, Jewish man” — if only briefly.
Finally, guests will get a sneak preview of the Sandisfield Jewish History book project, Soil and Shul in the Berkshires: The Untold Story of Sandisfield’s Jewish Farm Colony by Lorraine German. The Sandisfield Jewish History Committee will publish a book in 2018 about the Jewish immigrant families who moved from New York City in the early 20th century — part of a plan by the Jewish Agricultural and Industrial Aid Society to settle an agricultural colony in the Berkshires. Using newspaper accounts, historical records and firsthand accounts, Lorraine German reveals important insights about the characters and events that defined this nearly forgotten era in Sandisfield.
Historian and Sandisfield resident, Ron Bernard, paints a sketch of “the fascinating and improbable saga of the original ‘colony’ of very poor Russian immigrants who were sponsored to Sandisfield — of all places — by a European philanthropist Baron Maurice DeHirsch.” The book will be an exploration of how well the experiment worked and its lasting legacy, which includes “learn[ing] what drew several dozen other families to town between the world wars and how they fared.”
That attendees will gather in a former synagogue is no small coincidence. Bernard, in his book Sandisfield Then and Now points to “the physical and temporal transformation of this wonderful building [as] a metaphor for the social transformation that took place in Sandisfield in the early 20th century.” In 1839 it began an 80+ year run as a Baptist meeting house, followed by another 75 as an orthodox synagogue; in 1995 the building was reborn as a performing arts center whose mission is “to preserve our historic building and provide cultural and educational programs for our community.”.This physical space of intersection, on myriad levels, is noted by Bernard as “[perhaps] the only example of a Baptist-to-Jewish house of worship conversion in New England, if not the country, and that alone is very historically significant.”
Liana Toscanini, co-chair of the event, summed things up quite succinctly: “Creating a great event requires a lot of brainstorming to find just the right combination of good food, entertainment, and fundraising. I think we succeeded spectacularly with the theme of “Berkshires Borscht Belt” and the addition of comedienne Rachel Siegel, who has the most mischievous sense of humor. Even our simple raffle of “5 great things” will inspire people to participate because it’s fast and fun and the items are coveted.”
Advance tickets, required for Saturday’s event, can be ordered online at sandisfieldartscenter.org, through Thursday, April 27th; tickets are $75 each with the proceeds going to support the historic Sandisfield Arts Center’s vibrant selection of performances, exhibits and workshops. SARC is located at 5 Hammertown Road in Sandisfield, off of Route 57.
