Westminster Shul appoints ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ Jewish cultural adviser as new rabbi

Prevezer is a UK-based rabbi, who has over 20 years of experience of building Jewish communities. She often works at the intersection of Judaism and art and culture and is currently the Jewish consultant for the Olivier Award-winning production of Fiddler on the Roof and acting artistic director – and founder – of LABA UK, a Jewish house of study supporting artist development.

She will be serving the community alongside Rabbi Dr Kamila Kopřivová, the Czech Republic’s first female rabbi, who has been a rabbi at Westminster since 2023.

Rabbi Dr Kamila Kopřivová[Missing Credit]

Prevezer will also work with Rabbi Emeritus Dr Thomas Salamon, who was Westminster’s rabbi for two decades until 2017.

“I am honoured and delighted to be joining the Westminster community and to be serving alongside Rabbi Kamila and Rabbi Thomas,” Prevezer said of her appointment.

“Each time I have walked through the doors of Kent House, I have been struck by the warmth and open heartedness of the community. I am looking forward to getting to know each and every one of you over the coming years and decades, as we together work to further strengthen Westminster Synagogue and lead it into the future.”

Kopřivová echoed Prevezer’s excitement, saying that “her appointment opens the door to new possibilities for our community, and I look forward to the fresh directions that may emerge under her leadership.

“I also see this appointment as a clear message to the wider world that our community is ready to grow, to innovate, and to develop even more inspiring programming with two women at the forefront,” she continued.

Shul chair Dudi Appleton, who chaired the selection committee, said:

“From our first meeting with Rabbi Rose, she impressed the committee with her warmth and approachability, her commitment to Jewish community life, her ability to relate to members of all ages and backgrounds, and her passion for building Kent House into a vibrant centre of Jewish life and events, bringing in and engaging our members and the wider Jewish community of central London.”

Westminster Synagogue, which was founded in 1957, currently comprises more than 600 families.

Rabbi Prevezer, who grew up in Hampstead Garden Suburb, is a graduate of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies, a Conservative academy in Los Angeles. She has taught at Belsize Square Synagogue, whose rabbi, Gabriel Botnick, is her husband.