Since 2013, artists Danielle Durchslag and Ryan Frank have been re-configuring and re-imagining the Jewish ritual of Sukkot. The weeklong holiday, when observant Jews build temporary ritual huts, constructed from natural materials, in which they eat and sleep, has inspired the artists to fashion new, interactive art experiences that address contemporary problems. This year, in the midst of the pandemic, their two-person artist collective, Assembly Required, has designed a new Sukkot art experience to help people cope with the omnipresent constrictions and isolation present since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.  

Sukkah In Place, redefines the human body as this year’s sukkah. With this in mind, Durchslag and Frank have invited four choreographers from diverse backgrounds and spiritual identities to create video movement pieces in response to specific Sukkot rituals and the theme of Ushpizin, or welcoming the stranger. These works, created by Hadar Ahuvia, Verónica Santiago Moniello, Londs Reuter, and Nehemoyia Young, will offer four different perspectives on physicalized ritual at a time when our bodies are increasingly separated and vulnerable.

Co-presented with Congregation Beth Elohim.