WHY THIS NIGHT, A Typical 19th Century Queer Shtetl Seder Murder Mystery!

by Daniel Kitrosser

It’s 1881 and Motke, the ne’er-do-well alcoholic Jewish homosexual novelist who can’t quite finish his novel, returns to his parents’ shtetl on the eve of a Passover seder unlike any other. For on this very night, right in the middle of the fekakte seder, there’s a murder! WHY THIS NIGHT is your typical queer Jewish shtetl mad-cap murder mystery, that scratches at the gray area between this world and the world...

It’s 1881 and Motke, the ne’er-do-well alcoholic Jewish homosexual novelist who can’t quite finish his novel, returns to his parents’ shtetl on the eve of a Passover seder unlike any other. For on this very night, right in the middle of the fekakte seder, there’s a murder! WHY THIS NIGHT is your typical queer Jewish shtetl mad-cap murder mystery, that scratches at the gray area between this world and the world to come.
It's like if Agatha Christie, John Waters and Tevye the Milkman had an orgy, with mOYder!

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WHY THIS NIGHT, A Typical 19th Century Queer Shtetl Seder Murder Mystery!

Recommended by

  • Abigail Henkin: WHY THIS NIGHT, A Typical 19th Century Queer Shtetl Seder Murder Mystery! by Daniel Kitrosser
    “

    This play is a sheer delight - laugh out loud funny, twisty, gleeful in its queerness, only to surprise with genuine cutting emotion when all guards are down. The title says a lot, but still doesn’t fully capture the magic. Go in with no expectations and enjoy the ride.

    This play is a sheer delight - laugh out loud funny, twisty, gleeful in its queerness, only to surprise with genuine cutting emotion when all guards are down. The title says a lot, but still doesn’t fully capture the magic. Go in with no expectations and enjoy the ride.

    ”
3 M, 3 W, 1 Transman, 1 Transwoman

MORDECHAI “MOTKE” BELINSKY, a ne’erdowell
AUNT RIVKA, a spinster aunt
REV ALTER BELINSKY, a merchant
MARY BELINSKY, the merchant’s wife
FEYFUL MESSENGER, a timid butcher’s son
GITL ROZENSTOCK MESSENGER, the butcher’s son’s giddy wife
RABBI BROYGES HIMMELFARB, a rabbi with a secret
REBBETZIN TZURRIS HIMMELFARB, the rabbi’s wife, with a secret of her own

Awards

  • Finalist, Jewish Plays Project Context
    Jewish Plays Project
    Finalist
    2023