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CINNAMINSON - When the pandemichit, millions of people were in isolation working from home, going to school from home, and worshipping from home.

For some this was a convenient situation. For others, the stress of isolation made them more susceptible tosubstance abuse and addictive behaviors.

But the reality of addiction is,itcan happen to anyone, anytime.

A musical productioncoming to South Jersey will shine a light onits impact in the Jewish community.

On April 3, nationally acclaimed theatrical production"Freedom Song" will hit stage ofTemple Sinai of Cinnaminson. Through song, dance, laughter and tears, as well as a post-discussion with the cast, "Freedom Song" is meant to openan honest conversationonthe often stigmatized topic of addiction.

"Freedom Song'' debuted in 2013 in Los Angeles, performed by iresidents of Beit T'Shuvah, aninterdenominational treatment program in the city.

As word of the music spread to other states, changes were made to the production to encourage funding that would allowthe cast toperformon the road.

Since then,Beit TShuvah has put on50 to 60 "Freedom Song'' performances each year,including two national tours.

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The Burlington County Times spoke with "Freedom Song" Musical Director Michael Kamenir and Temple Sinai Rabbi Michael Perice, who has been in recovery from opioid addiction for 10yearsto find out more about the cast, musical performances and parallels between the message of Passover and the struggles of recovery:

Q: Who are the writers and composers ofFreedom Song and what was the inspiration for the musical?

Michael Kamenir: There's a fellow who I grew up with in L.A. by the name of Craig Taubman. Taubman is very, very well known in the Jewish music world and he's also kind of a community organizer, and so forth. And at the time, he was organizing a city- wide Passover program called "Let My People Sing.'' And it was going to be all these different Jewish groups all over L.A. creating different programs for Passover. So he had gone to a number of different organizations and one of them wasBeit TShuvah to say, can you put together something for Passover?

Rabbi Mark Borovitz at the time wasthe founding rabbi of Beit T'Shuvah. He got a few people together and they started putting together stories. They came up with the idea ... that coming out of addictionhas so much to do with Passover, with coming out of slavery.

Craig had also recommended my friend Stuart K. Robinson at the time to come and help them theatricalize. So Stuartgot together with about 10 or 12 residents ... He would get together with him a few times a week and they would tell their storiesand then he weaved together with everybodythe basic script of "Freedom Song.'' Thenhe and the musical director at the time, James Fuchs, and ourthen- cantor,Rebekah Mirsky, and Stuartcomposed the music.So he was basically the original, we're gonna callit writer.But the words were really those of residents.

Now we travel with 15people including myself and our musical director, Laura Bagish, who was also in the original cast.

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Q: What is "Freedom Song" about?

MK:So I'm gonna have spoiler alert,but there's thisnice Jewish family that everybody seems to relate to. And everything's great halfway through the play. Then what we find out is that theirone daughter, the oldest daughter, isn't there.Why isn't the oldest daughter there?Well, she was kicked out of the house two years before, because she was an addict and the father couldn't deal with it. And he said, 'Don't ever come back.' Andit wasn't about tough love, it was about 'get the hell out' ...

She's come backthis week for Passover. Andthere's a huge confrontation, of course, between her and the rest of the family, andso it shows also how addiction is a family disease.It doesn't just affect the addict themselves, it affects the entire family, in one way or another.

So she's got a little sister and a little sister, obviously, is affected by the fact that her big sister went, andshe feels it was her fault that the sister went. And then there's the mother who, you know, is [ticked]off at the father because the father kicked the daughter out.So there's all this dynamic that goes onin that family, that people can really, really relate toin a big way.

And then [among the other characters] there's the addict who is in recovery, whose wife isn't in recovery. And he's been getting better for a year, but he's left her out the cold.While he's getting better, what does she do? It wasn't her problem,he had the problem. But she's now got a problem because she was with him. So it showshow addiction really is a communicable disease.We tie it, you know, in terms of [giving] people hope, that there is hope.And just seeing these people on stage also gives people hope, because these are people in recoverywho've had some gnarly stories, and everybody loves a good comeback story. Andwe've got some really, really good comeback stories, andthey're real.

Q: Who is in the cast of "Freedom Song?''

MK: Of our 15people in the castwho are actually on stage, every single one of them is either inBeit TShuvahnow, which is a long-term recovery program, or arealumni, and/or staff.But also, 85% of the staff atBeit TShuvah are alumni of the program as well.

We've all had the same experience of going through the program atBeit TShuvah, which isby the waynot a 30-day program, it's a six- to nine- to 12-month program.Which makes it possible for us to do a show like this. If somebody were to come in to rehab for 30 days, you don't put them in a playand expect them to get better. Usually you have to have been atBeit TShuvah for three months before you can even come to rehearsals. You have to first kind of get your feet on the groundbefore you can take on this kind of commitment.

THE BURLINGTON COUNTY TIMES: How did the Temple Sinai Synagogue of Cinnaminson hear about the musical?

MichaelPerice: One of the commitments I made was that we werereally going tomake this an issue in our community. It wasn't just going to be I share my story and we were going to be done. We were going to do programming;we brought in guest speakers. Andafter I shared my story publicly, that's whenBeit TShuvah this program out in L.A., asynagogue-meets-rehab treatment center, like the first of its kind,they were the first to come up with this musical. They've been doing it for several years using the story of Passoverto tie into people's personal stories of addictionbecause in many ways, the analogy and the metaphor is appropriate ... it's a very fitting, musical and just was so perfect to bring it to Temple Sinai. They reached out to me, and I was like, 'Yes, we have to do this.'

Q: Why is the message in "Freedom Song" important and how does it relate to the meaning of Passover?

MP: The Jewish holiday of Passover commemoratesthe Exodus out of Egyptin the bible, we call it the Torah, the Hebrew bible. For people unfamiliar with that story, the ancient Israelites were enslaved by Egypt and here comes this figure of Moses who is this famous Jewish leader and he frees the people to liberation. And it's not an easy process. And even in that story it shows you that people who were enslaved still had fears about being liberated. Some people were scared to go forward, and it's such an appropriate analogy. Sometimes when we are oppressed by something or held down by something, you're almost scared to leave it behind. It keeps you in a state of mind that's not healthy. With addiction, it's just appropriate to talk about how do we free ourselves from the things in our lives that keep us from being the best versions of ourselves.

Q:What kind of music can the audience expect to hear?

MK:It's 99.9%original music.There's some spoken word, some rap, some lyrical music, some ballads,some Broadway show-ish kind of stuff also.But I wouldn't say any one particular type of music.

Q:Do you have to be Jewish to attend the show?Who are you hoping to come out and see the show?

MP: Absolutely not. I mean the content is going to be somewhat Jewish, but it's really going to have a [global] message, and we are absolutely encouraging everyone of all stripes to come. You do not have to be Jewish; you don't haveto have dealt with addiction. We are definitely encouragingfamiliesthat have had this issue or friends to come, but it's really open to anybody that wants to show their support or learn about this issue.

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Q:WillTemple Sinai offer follow-up support services following the musical?

MP: We're going to have tables set up in our lobby with resources so that will be available to people. We're also going to have a Q&A after where we'll get to talk and have conversations about addiction and have people ask questions, and we might have a mental health professional on hand to answer some questions.

Q: Is Freedom Song touring nationally and will it come backto the Garden State?

MK: We say we tournationally but what happens isthat twice a year,we go outusually springand right around fall and a place will call us and say we really want for "Freedom Song'' to come to our city. So then we will say, 'OK, what day do you want?' and then we will start building usually about a 10-dayor 12-day tour around that city with otherlocations.

Q:Is there a favorite song or scene you have from the musical?

MK:It's not one of those plays that you come out of and say that person was really good or that song was really good, orit was my favorite song, because it's an experience. Whoever takes on theparts on the 12-step side, we try to, within reason, change their monologues to fit their life and their story.So it's pretty special in terms of that.

Q:What do you want the audience to take away from the show?

MP: That the stigma of addiction is harmful to those going through it. That until we change the stigma around addictionthat addiction only happens to certain people or that it only happens in certain areasthe people who are going through it are never going to get the help they deserve.

I'm of the firm belief that things like being out in the open and raising awareness changes the way people view an issue. Sharing my storyI was hoping, and I think it did to a degree, change the stigma in the Jewish world. Every little bit helps, and I think that helps people come and admit and be able to seek treatment.

Where: Temple Sinai of Cinnaminson, 2101 New Albany Road, Cinnaminson, NJ 08077

When: 2:30 p.m., Sunday, April 3

Tickets:While tickets to "Freedom Song" are free, it is requested that those interesting in attending the performance register in advance. To register visittemplesinainj.com

COVID restrictions: Masks are required for all attendees.

To learn more aboutTemple Sinai of Cinnaminson: call856-829-0658 or emailTempleSinaiNJ2101@gmail.com

To find out more about the Beit T'Shuvah addiction recovery program go to:beittshuvah.org/

Additional addiction-related links and resources:

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration:samhsa.gov

Treatment facility locator:findtreatment.samhsa.gov

Substance abuse and mental health data archives:icpsr.umich.edu/SAMHDA/

Governor's Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse:state.nj.us/treasury/gcada/

Division of Consumer Affairs, Board of Marriage and Family Therapists, Alcohol and Drug Counselor Committee:htttp://www.state.nj.us/lps/ca/medical/familytherapy.htm

National Institute on Drug Abuse:www.nida.nih.gov

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism:www.niaaa.nih.gov

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Musical coming to South Jersey combines message of Passover with recovery from addiction - Burlington County Times

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