CLICK HERE FOR A RUNNING DESCRIPTION OF ALL FRINGE PLAYS

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CLICK ON PLAY FOR INFO ABOUT THAT PLAY

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51 & Counting
After-party
Along the Path of Larks and Swallows
Candide, or Optimism (Part I)
Crazy Bag
Doormen
Endless Frontier
Evelyn Reese Show
Exit Sign: A Rock Opera
Exotic Messages
FLUID
i scan
Identity Crisis
If You're Going to San Francisco
In the Belly of the Whale
Iron Muffin,Glass Jungle II
It Is What It Is
Jew Must Be Crazy
Knuckleball
Last Exit
LATE NIGHTS WITH THE BOYS
Lost and Found in the Mission
Loving Fathers
Madge's Box
Marie 21 and Flying
Mitch
Monkey Poet
Moon Fable
Mr. P's Big Day Off
My Camino
My Friend Hitler
No Stranger Than Home
Number's Up!
On Second Thought
Open Season - A Queer Performance Showcase
Peg-Ass-Us
Punchline
Single Entendre VS. Comedy!
Son of Genderanium
Sonderkommando
Tale End
Taste of Enlightenment
Tenderloin Christmas Hustler
theatre that Moves
There's a Monster in the Well!
To Kill For
True Theatre Critic
Ukulady's Ponyshow!

Spoken Word… Dance…. One Actor… and Nine Characters. All Jewish??

An audacious spoken word poet mysteriously finds himself... IN THE BELLY OF THE WHALE. There, he encounters eight other people with very different relationships to being Jewish - ages 14 to 81, ultra-Orthodox to atheist - and must delve into his past to find a way out. Come on an unforgettable journey into how we have become who we are, and who we choose to be in the future.

WHALE was created entirely through interviews and from autobiographical spoken word. All stories in the show are completely true.

Audience reactions from previous performances (Chicago, Albuquerque, Boulder, Denver):
“WOW!! OUTSTANDING, INSPIRING, AWESOME (TRULY).”
“A provocative, spellbinding, & exciting performance.”
“Powerful and uplifting! Jewish or not, it’ll stir you to examine how we became who we are - and where we go from here.”
More reviews

Press coverage:
Intermountain Jewish News
Denver Post

For more information: http://www.bellyofthewhale.com

Creator/Performer: Jonathan Bender
Directorial Consultant: Elizabeth Baron
Choreography: Jennifer Milligan
Initial Development: Leigh Fondakowski and John McAdams of the Tectonic Theater Project

JONATHAN BENDER, MS, MFA (CREATOR/PERFORMER) is a 20+ year theater actor, director, solo performer, and writer. He holds an MFA in Theater: Contemporary Performance from Naropa University, a Master's Degree in Performance Studies and Speech Communication from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, and a BA in Dramatic Art and Anthropology from UC Berkeley. He has studied with Moisés Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project, Meredith Monk and The House, and the SITI Company, and specializes in physical, ensemble-developed theater and the creation of new work.

He is also the founder of WholeSpeak, which specializes in coaching and workshops for actors (acting, solo and ensemble-developed performance, movement and vocal work) and for the general public (public speaking, self-expression). Formerly of Boulder, Colorado, WholeSpeak is relocating to San Francisco. More info at <A HREF=”http://www.wholespeak.com”>http://www.wholespeak.com</A>.

A San Francisco Bay Area / local premiere