The drama society creating a non-political space for Jewish artists to thrive - The Jewish Chronicle

The Jewish Dramatic Association of London (JDAL), a theatre organisation devoted to spotlighting early-career Jewish creatives, is hosting its third-ever showcase of original short plays written, directed and performed by up-and-coming Jewish talents.

“If you can't find it, you've got to make it yourself,” said Finchley-based actor Natan Paul-Collis, who started JDAL in 2023 after discovering that the Jewish theatre group he sought to join in London didn’t yet exist. So Paul-Collis, 20, created the organisation himself.

“There's a lot of people who aren't very nice or considerate to Jewish people, and [the arts scene] can be quite hostile because they always bring up Israel and Palestine,” said Paul-Collis. “So I wanted to set up a safe theatre space where we're proud to say that we're Jewish, and that doesn't make us political, it just makes us human beings.”

Enter JDAL, whose mission of platforming and promoting Jewish theatre artists in London seems, according to the flurry of interest it’s received, long overdue. Ever since Paul-Collis began distributing adverts on social media and Jewish WhatsApp groups asking for script submissions from Jewish writers, the JDAL inbox has been fit to burst.

Actor Natan Paul-Collis, 20, is making space for fellow Jewish creatives to write, direct and perform with his theatre organisation JDAL. (Photo: Sam Becker)[Missing Credit]

Thanks to an in with the artistic director of the award-winning Off West End theatre Upstairs at the Gatehouse, Paul-Collis was able to stage JDAL’s first showcase of original plays to an audience of over 100 people after narrowing down the spate of script submissions to a tight half dozen.

The format for showcases has remained the same since. Covering any genre or theme, the six “playlets” - short plays of 15 minutes or less – are performed by a mix of amateur and experienced Jewish actors, some of whom also take on creative roles behind the scenes.

“We try and utilise as many of our community members as possible, because it's an absolute dream for people to act in their own written work,” Paul-Collis said. “I want to give as many opportunities to people as possible, really utilise people for their talents.”

But JDAL is not exclusively geared towards performances; it also hosts regular mixers for likeminded Jewish creatives in the London area to make connections, an aspect of the organisation Paul-Collis considers just as vital.

Jewish performers act in a 'playlet' at a JDAL showcase. (Photo: Sam Becker)[Missing Credit]

“I want this to be very big: I want it to be a full calendar, not just of shows, but mixers, events and private scratch nights where JDAL members can test out their work with each other,” Paul-Collis said. "I want it to grow and grow and grow.”

Following the successful run of its first two events, JDAL’s next showcase on 27 July will feature six entirely new playlets, including a satire written and directed by Paul-Collis himself. The young founder, who has temporarily put his own acting career on hold to focus on JDAL, hopes that with additional funding he’ll be able to expand the organisation and find other Jewish creatives to help run it.

“Maybe I could do a bit more acting, but at the moment, I'm pretty much just helping other people, giving them opportunities, bringing communities together, bringing people to meet each other,” Paul-Collis said. “I just want this to be something that feels too good to be true.”

Tickets to JDAL’s third showcase on 27 July are available for purchase here.

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Topics:

Jewish theatre

Theatre