Shot over 21 years, Sabbath Queen follows Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie's epic journey as the dynastic heir of 38 generations of Orthodox rabbis including the Chief Rabbis of Israel. He is torn between accepting his ancestral destiny or following his heart to become a drag queen rebel, a queer father, and the founder of Lab/Shul - an everybody-friendly, experimental congregation.
As Sabbath Queen opens, Lau-Lavie is newly arrived in New York in the late 1990s, a young gay man declaring “Artists are the new rabbis” and appearing around the city in drag as Rebbetzin Hadassah Gross, the widow of six Hasidic rabbis (all from the same extended family). As the years pass, Lau-Lavie embraces a range of creative spiritual endeavors including Storahtelling and Lab/Shul – until he shocks everyone with his decision to become a rabbi himself, studying in the Conservative tradition of Judaism.
Sabbath Queen joins Amichai on a lifelong quest to creatively and radically reinvent religion and ritual, challenge patriarchy and supremacy, champion interfaith love. The film interrogates what Jewish survival means in a difficult rapidly changing 21st century.
“A fascinating look at the act of questioning yourself and your family, your surroundings, and your decisions.” (The New York Times)
Event Details:
Sabbath Queen
April 1st, 5:45 PM
Pickford Film Center | 1318 Bay St. Bellingham, WA
GUESTS: Sandi Simcha Dubowski (Director)
