Purim spiels

E63703

Purim spiels are humorous, often satirical theatrical performances traditionally presented during the Jewish festival of Purim, typically retelling or parodying the story of Esther and related themes.


Statements (48)
Predicate Object
instanceOf Jewish cultural tradition
religious folk drama
theatrical performance
associatedWith Book of Esther
Purim
characteristicallyFeature audience participation
booing of Haman
humor
parody of contemporary culture
satire of community figures
culturalSignificance expression of Jewish resilience and joy
dateBackTo at least the 16th century
developedFrom medieval Jewish folk performances
hasGenre comedy
parody
satire
hasPurpose celebration of Purim
communal bonding
entertainment
religious education
hasTheme Jewish survival
mockery of villains
reversal of fortune
story of Esther
language English
Hebrew
Yiddish
various Jewish diaspora languages
observesCustom “venahafoch hu” (theme of reversal)
oftenInclude local community references
rewritten popular songs
topical political jokes
originatedIn Ashkenazi Jewish communities
performedAt Jewish community centers
schools
synagogues
performedBy amateur actors
children
congregation members
performedDuring Jewish festival of Purim
relatedTo Jewish humor
Yiddish theatre
religious pageants
usesMedium costumes
dance
props
song
spoken dialogue

Referenced by (1)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Purim
custom

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