The Braid

The Braid, formerly Jewish Women’s Theatre, is the go-to Jewish story company and the leading nationa What is Salon Theatre?

A gathering of people in gracious homes to discover new art, enjoy music, hear plays read, and share ideas. Ticket price includes a fabulous dessert buffet, a terrific show and a Q & A with the talent and artists post-performance.

09/10/2026

Excited to welcome Juliana Morgan Alvarez (MFA, CalArts ‘20) to her first show at The Braid! 🤩

Juliana is a multidisciplinary artist working in performance and ceramic sculpture. A family history of immigration from Cuba, Romania, and Poland became a fascination with how humans are migratory beings whose ancestries can be traced across oceans.

Select work from 2025-26 includes HOT WILD ALIVE, solo exhibition & durational performance, The Forge STATE Gallery, Nashville, TN (Nashville Scene Critic’s Pick); Long Stretches of Short Time, developmental workshop of original play by G. Fowler in creation with J.M. Alvarez, Anti-Frieze Fest @ The Reef, Los Angeles, CA; among others.

Juliana will be performing in three pieces in Candlelight Storytelling: Begin Again, which is part of NuRoots’s High Holiday Citywide Festival Sweet Return - September 19 and October 1.

The evening includes dinner before the show + a sound-bath experience after. Expect some ✨Ticket link in BIO! 🎟️

09/08/2026

Meet multi-hyphenate Joshua Rueben Silverstein! ✍️🎭🎶 Joshua is a long-time Braid artist and we’re thrilled to have him with us for Candlelight Storytelling: Begin Again ✨

An award-winning actor, comic, writer, beatboxer, educator and DEI consultant, Joshua’s performances, productions and presentations have prompted admiration from creative greats ranging from Norman Lear to Prince. 💜

Throughout his career, Joshua has provided and facilitated theater, improv and creative writing workshops and in-school residencies designed to create a safe and open space for students of all ages. Joshua brings passion, play, and persuasion to make words, thinking, and expression infectiously fun. His DEI work has provided transformative dialogue and opened the bridges of challenging conversations for countless individuals.

Joshua also served as the cohost and co-producer of Emmy Award–winning Downbeat 720 and is the Executive Director of Cazadero Performing Arts Family Camp, a nonprofit arts organization based in the Bay Area. And…if that’s not enough, he’s is currently writing his forthcoming solo show produced by The Braid! 🎭

Come and see Joshua in his creative element at Candlelight Storytelling: Begin Again, which is part of NuRoots’s High Holiday Citywide Festival Sweet Return - September 19 and October 1. 🍎🍯✡️✨

The evening includes dinner before the show + a sound-bath experience after. You won’t want to miss this! Ticket link in BIO 🎟️🎟️

09/07/2026

A longtime member of our Braid family as both a writer ✍️ and advisor, Suzanna Kaplan was born in Mexico City to an American mother and Mexican father, and grew up speaking English at home — and Spanish everywhere else. As an actress and dancer, she performed in some of Mexico’s famous Vaudeville stages, and acted in commercials, films and on the stage. Suzanna moved to the US, spent time in Israel, then moved back to the States where she has focused on Hispanic advertising but mostly on doting on her three kids, and four grandchildren. 😍

Candlelight Storytelling: Begin Again runs for 2 shows 9/19 and 10/1 and is part of NuRoots’s High Holiday Citywide Festival Sweet Return. ✨

The evening includes dinner before the show + a sound-bath experience after — you won’t want to miss this! Link in BIO ✡️🍯🍎✍️🤩

09/04/2026

Meet writer ✍️ Alex Winnik—in her own words below! Alex is a first-time writer with The Braid and we’re excited to feature her unique voice and story - “New Year, New Me” - in our upcoming Candlelight Storytelling show: Begin Again!

“When I’m not writing stories and (trying) to write poetry, I’m reading a sappy romance novel, watching a sappy romance film, and scrolling on Instagram and TikTok. I love hanging out with my friends and family, my love language is definitely quality time! My other passions include reminding people that I used to horseback ride for ten years and that I was “pretty good at it” as well as writing songs, playing the guitar (very casually), and singing. Even though I love to write, my dream career is in education being a professor. Since I’m a q***r Jewish feminist, obviously I had to double-major in Gender and Women’s Studies and Jewish Studies and minor in Human Sexuality in undergrad at CSUN. But most importantly, I love my cat Marvin!” 😻

Candlelight Storytelling: Begin Again is part of NuRoots ‘s High Holiday Citywide Festival Sweet Return 🍎🍯✡️❤️

You have two opportunities - 9/19 and 10/1 - to see Alex’s story and 5 others come to life! The evening includes dinner before the show + a sound-bath experience after. ✨ You won’t want to miss this! Ticket Link in BIO 🎟️

09/03/2026

Meet writer Suzanne Levy! ✍️ Suzanne hails from North London, lived in NYC for a stretch, and settled in LA. An award-winning journalist who got her start at the BBC, Suzanne is now a senior editor at LAist / NPR where she oversees food, art, and local history. She also writes a regular column about her life as a Brit in SoCal, called ”American as a Second Language.”

We’re thrilled to feature her funny and romantic story “Love Across the Pond” in our upcoming Candlelight Storytelling show: Begin Again featuring Lauren Schaffel and JOSHUA SILVERSTEIN.

This event is part of NuRoots nurootsla‘s High Holiday Citywide Festival: Sweet Return. ✨

You have two opportunities— 9/19 and 10/1 — to see Suzanne’s story and 5 others come to life. The evening included dinner before and a sound-bath experience after the show. You won’t want to miss this!!

Tickets will go fast!
Link in bio 🍎🍯✡️🤩

09/01/2026

Back by popular demand! Get tickets at https://the-braid.org/comedy

08/27/2026

Meet the writers of Candlelight Storytelling: Begin Again! ✍️

First up is LISA TRANK with her hilarious and heartwarming true story “The Time I Cancelled Shabbat.” Everyone can relate to a little Shabbat chaos, amiright? 😆

Lisa is a writer and a storyteller for all ages. She has performed her stories throughout Colorado, as well as with Listen to Your Mother/Boulder, Better Said Than Done, and the Museum of Motherhood. She’s thrilled to have a second story performed by The Braid. Lisa’s work has been anthologized in So Glad They Told Me: Women Get Real About Motherhood, The Saturday Evening Post Great American Fiction Contest, and Primal Picnics: Writers Invent Creation Myths Around Favorite Foods. Her articles have appeared in PJ Library Proof Magazine, Tablet, Kveller, The Jewish Journal, among others.

When not writing or performing, Lisa enjoys her work as a Rested Path guide, a yoga nidra facilitator, and nonprofit storytelling consultant. She’s happy to call Colorado home with a gorgeous view of the Rocky Mountains. 🌄

You have **two opportunities** to catch Candlelight Storytelling: Begin Again, which is part of NuRoots ‘s High Holiday Festival “Sweet Return” — September 19 & August 1. Tickets will go fast! 🎟️ Link in bio! 🍎🍯✡️

08/13/2026

Don't miss these laughs! Join Monica Piper and Friends on Sept 13 for two performances only! Get tickets at https://the-braid.org/comedy

05/20/2026

Meet writer Mariposa (Kimberly) Dueñas! ✍🏼🦋

Mariposa is a California-born community leader, storyteller, and social impact builder whose work lives at the intersection of ancestral wisdom and regenerative futures. A graduate of American Jewish University and valedictorian of her class, she is a Pomegranate Prize recipient, Schusterman ROI community member, and founding member and director of learning at Jewtina y Co., where she’s built transformative programming at the intersection of Latin and Jewish identity.

In recent years, Mariposa returned to El Salvador alongside her father, Solomon—who founded and ran a beloved bakery in Orange County—in pursuit of return, rerooting, and a mission to support local farming families and communities. From that homecoming, “Yugo Colectivo” was born — a father-daughter initiative and collective of local farmers growing ancestral foods and plants, including cacao, coffee, and corn. 🌽 🌱 🍃

Today, living between California and El Salvador, she leads wellness retreats to weave together ancestral storytelling, agriculture, and healing.

We’re honored to share Mariposa and her father Solomon’s story “A Journey of Return” performed by Zoë Hall and Marcelo Tubert in our current Salon show “L’Chaim America!” - a celebration of our nation’s 250th birthday. 🎉

Through poignant and humorous contemporary stories, the show illuminates the richness and diversity of Jewish experience, and the America we hold in our hearts. 🫶

At a time when the world feels intent on dividing us, this show offers a meaningful respite from the rhetoric. We look forward to seeing you there! For the full schedule and tickets 🎟️ visit the-braid.org/calendar

For the full schedule and tickets, visit https://the-braid.org/calendar/

05/19/2026

Meet writer Emily Bowen Cohen! ✍🏼

Emily is a Los Angeles-based artist, who creates comics that explore intersectional identity. She is Jewish and a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and uses personal experience to tell stories that examine contemporary American and Jewish culture.

A graduate of Harvard University, Emily grew up in rural Oklahoma and spent her teenage years in suburban New Jersey. Emily’s graphic novel, “Two Tribes” is published by Heartdrum, HarperCollins’ Native-focused imprint.

The Braid is honored and excited to present Emily’s story “Rooted Here” performed by Zoë Hall and Kimberly Green in our current Salon show “L’Chaim America!” - a celebration of our nation’s 250th birthday. 🎉

Through poignant and humorous contemporary stories, the show illuminates the richness and diversity of Jewish experience, and the America we hold in our hearts.

At a time when the world feels intent on dividing us, this show offers a meaningful respite from the rhetoric. We look forward to seeing you there! 🎭 For the full schedule and tickets, visit https://the-braid.org/calendar/ 🎟️

Address

3435 Ocean Park Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA
90405

Telephone

+13103151400

Website

http://www.the-braid.org/

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