Since 2014, Ashbel and friends have presented several pieces in conjunction with the holidays of the Jewish calendar. These works, unlike the stage pieces, are salon-like in nature, mixing performative elements with discourse, food, drink and usually live music, in a hospitable setting. In the years since 2021, the group performed different variations on two traditional Jewish spring rituals: the holiday of Purim, aka Jewish carnival, which is marked by what’s commonly known as the “Purimspiel”, and the Pessach/Passover Seder: a performative dinner that follows the story of the exodus to offer reflections on renewal, freedom and social responsibility. The rites of spring variations were developed with and presented by Brown university, HAU Hebbel am Ufer, Beba restaurant at Gropius Bau and Jewish museum Frankfurt. In 2023, it kicked off “dialectics of departure”, Ashbel’s collaboration with artist Rachel Libeskind, and in 2024 it was part of the event series “the Omer Count”.
2021: Online Purim show for BAI, Brown University
2022: Pessach show at BAI, Brown University
2023: Purim show at HAU Hebbel am Ufer
2023: Pessach show / Dialectics of Departure at HAU Hebbel am Ufer
2024: Purim show+party at Jewish Museum Frankfurt
2024: Pessach dinner / opening of the Omer Count at Beba restaurant
2025: Purim party at HAU Hebbel am Ufer
