Feeling Liberated: What a Play Taught Me About Jewsplaining
How Liberation, an Off-Broadway play about second-wave feminism, helped me rethink the way I explain Jewish ideas to non-Jews.
Hey you! I’m running my first-ever text study through IYUN and would love to learn with you! During this free, three-part online series, we will explore ideas, texts, and wisdom from Jewish tradition about the Omer, the period of self-reflection as we count 49 days between Passover and Shavuot.
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I’m milking Women’s History Month for all it’s worth, and it’s worth a lot! Because today, we’re exploring second-wave feminism and Jewish representation on the stage.
Last week, I had the privilege of seeing the Roundabout Theatre Company's world premiere of Liberation at the Laura Pels Theatre. Written by Bess Wohl and directed by Whitney White, this Off-Broadway play takes place in a 1970s Ohio rec center gym, where a group of diverse characters run a women’s liberation group.
Liberation is more than women’s civil rights, protests, and personal freedom. It explores the complexities of feminism, choice, and just how messy the pursuit of freedom can get.
The heart and soul of the play are the gifts each woman brings to the table (er… basketball court)—her personal journey, identity, and perspective—as they grapple with everything from the constraints of marriage to the power of self-love. They might even get nude in the process!
Lizzie (played by Susannah Flood), the leader of the group, is a journalist who wants to cover more substantial topics other than weddings and obituaries.
Susie (Adina Verson), a punk and the most radical of the group, openly identifies as lesbian and lives in her car with her pet bird.
Dora (Audrey Corsa) is tired of being passed over for a promotion at work only to watch men get the role, even though she is more than capable.
Margie (Betsy Aidem), the oldest, is a housewife who dreams of stabbing her husband because he doesn’t do the dishes.
Celeste (Kristolyn Lloyd) is an intellectual who is back home taking care of her mother, and who brings a nuanced perspective as the only Black woman in the group.
Isadora (Irene Sofia Lucio) is a passionate, radical Italian activist stuck in a green-card marriage.
But don’t let these one-line descriptions fool you; these women are anything but stereotypical or basic. In fact, they grapple with their dreams and contradictions, like wanting to be taken seriously like a man but using your looks to get ahead. And wanting to be an independent feminist but being pulled toward romance and marriage. Liberation asks: As a feminist, can you really have it all? What does being a feminist mean to you? And how did we get to a point where, in 2025, our rights to abortion are being stripped away and the government is banning words like “women” —where did feminism fall short?
Here’s Where it Gets Jewish
I know you’re probably thinking, “Get to the Jewish part! This is a Jewish newsletter, isn’t it?” In that case, you should think about feminism more.
But sure, I’ll get to the Jewish part. It just so happens that not one but two characters in this play are Jewish. I can’t remember the last time I saw a play or musical featuring Jewish characters that wasn’t about antisemitism or the Holocaust. Can you? (But if you’re interested in that, check out Leopoldstadt and Parade)
The punk character Susie Hurricane introduces herself as living in her car with her pet bird, and how her dad sat shiva for her. She says it with a sense of gleeful pride, not missing a beat as she explains what sitting shiva is, how it’s the seven-day Jewish mourning practice.
Other than Isadora revealing her upbringing—how she was raised by nuns and later learns her mother was Jewish—the only other Jewish moment is when Susie translates Hashem as G-d for the other women when describing a dream. Oh, and when describing her naked body, she says “feh,” (a Yiddish word to express disgust).
True, Jewishness isn’t a central theme of the play, but the way Susie portrays her identity and explains Jewish colloquialisms to the other women made me think of how I do this in my own life, and of the different ways to Jewsplain. I know that word takes on different definitions for some, but in this case, let’s say it means to explain and identify Jewish ideas when you’re the only Jew in the room.
There’s different ways to Jewsplain. You can A) toss around Yiddish or Hebrew words/expressions without explaining or defining anything, as though everyone knows what you’re talking about. Or, B) You can use those terms, then clarify them for your listener without having been asked, like what Susie does. C) You can reference something Jewish, then pause to look around for quizzical looks in case they need explaining (Ex. “I took the day off because it was Yom Kippur…… 👀”). This assumes people know what you’re saying, but you’re open to explaining should they need. D) You can flat out ask if people know what you’re referencing, for example if they’ve heard of a ketubah before.
… Or you can do the weird thing I did to a woman on the street the other day, which was Jewsplain before even getting to the Jewish part, like:
Me: "Oh you’re reading A Court of Thorns and Roses!”
Her: “Yes!”
Me: “Love that book! I just dressed up like Feyre because… well, I’m Jewish, and there’s this holiday called Purim that just happened, and that’s where we—”
Her: “Cool, I’m Jewish too!”
Me: “Oh thank goodness, I wasn’t sure how to back out of starting to explain 5th century BCE Shushan to a stranger on the street.”
Why is my preamble necessary? It’s not! Susie’s character inspired me to go about my Jewish business without feeling the need to explain every little thing, and if people don’t know what I’m referencing, that’s on them to ask questions. Not exactly the Susie style of explaining without being asked, but I don’t want to assume someone doesn’t know what sitting shiva means, or what a bris is.
How do you address Jewish ideas to someone who may not be familiar with them? Please share in the comments!
Speaking of Susie, here’s Adina Verson on what playing Susie means to them:
“My character, Susan, comes from a Jewish family who has disowned her. I love that Susan clearly has differing ideas regarding gender roles in her Orthodox upbringing, but still holds on to her Jewish spirituality. I think she is led through her life by a deep connection to the spiritual and the signs she believes are presented to her. At one point in the play, she describes a dream in which her mother’s voice and God’s voice are the same—this reminds me of my own experience in childhood when my synagogue replaced the prayer books with new ones that had no gendered pronouns for God. It felt revolutionary. I love that Susan is still tied to her Judaism, and the idea that Judaism can and does continue to evolve.”
Right on!
Here’s Where it Gets Even More Jewish
I’d like to share a fantastic quote by playwright Bess Wohl on how Judaism is in fact central to Liberation:
"Jewish women played a crucial role in second-wave feminism—from Gloria Steinem to Bella Abzug to Betty Friedan to Shulamith Firestone to Letty Cottin Pogrebin—so it felt important to include Jewish characters in the play. There is historically a deep and strong connection between Judaism and activism, especially with regard to the power of collective action. In the play, the character of Susan has rejected much of her Orthodox upbringing, however she retains the sense of intellectual rigor that surely came with it. Her own Jewish identity is something that she struggles with—what does it mean to fight for your rights as a Jewish woman and can you hold both identities at the same time? Furthermore, how is her Jewish identity both a source of strength and inspiration—at one point she receives a feminist manifesto from ‘Hashem,’ but also a challenge as she bristles against Jewish laws and traditions. Another character in the play, who is half-Jewish but was raised by Catholic nuns, is also the product of a regimented upbringing, albeit in the Catholic church. Putting women who were trying to rewrite the rules in conversation with ancient cultures, hierarchies and systems felt like particularly rich and fertile ground for the play."
I loved Liberation for its complexities and the messiness of being human. Of being a woman! It’s running until April 6th. Get liberated and see it soon by purchasing tickets here.
Shabbat Shalom! I hope you get the chance to teach something Jewish to someone,
Another insightful and fun to read ‘drop’ about a play I wouldn’t otherwise know about. The feminism of the 70s shook society creating inroads for women that never would have happened without the rise of this movement. And your question,
50 years later where did feminism fall short is a pertinent one in many ways. Where do the feminists stand today on men forcing their way into women’s sports? Where do the feminists stand today on men allowed in women’s bathrooms? Who’s side were they on- if they even took a side when a father in Loudoun County Virginia was arrested after expressing outrage of over the sexual assault of his daughter by a boy wearing a dress in a school bathroom? Where is the outcry against Hamas’ rape of young defenseless Jewish women? If they voiced anything about all this I for one didn’t hear it. All I heard was silence.
Some older folks will recall that, more often than not, a non-Jew would show little or no interest in Jewish customs, holidays, and beliefs. Thus, it is a welcome sign that people are reaching out to understand and appreciate "Jewishness."