Speaker Bio

Natalie is a writer, performer, psychodramatist and workshop facilitator. Her current theatre projects marry Bible with theater-making, an expression of her passion for Jewish text and theatre, and invite audiences to engage with ancient Jewish texts as a living narrative. She studied theater at the John Bolton Theatre school in Melbourne and Curtin University, in addition to psychology, psychodrama and art. She has been involved in theatre making with Aboriginal and Jewish communities in Australia. Her other pieces include A Hungarian Love Story, Barry’s Girl and Fixing the Family (a play for teenagers). She recently recieved funding to write her next solo piece, which will focus on the Talmudic period.

After writing a psychology thesis exploring effects of the Holocaust on third -generation Holocaust descendants, Natalie conceived  “3GH,” a project that focuses on exploring identity with the Shoah as the entry point. She has run workshops in Melbourne and London and next year will be conducting groups in New York and Israel. She also created Somewhere Inside of Us, a raw documentary on the topic of third-generation Holocaust descendants.

Originally from Australia, she is currently making Israel her home.

In God’s Bedroom is a one-woman theatre show that delivers a powerful theatrical interpretation to one of the most astounding books ever written, the book of “Samuel 1 and 2”. The show is also derived from other sources such as Song of Songs, Judges, Chumash, Midrashim as well as mystical notions of the feminine attributes of God.

In God’s Bedroom is a modern Midrash.  God is portrayed as a woman who is lonely and wants to be loved. She eventually falls in love with David – poet, warrior, alpha male, charismatic political leader, King, who, being essentially human and flawed, disappoints Her and is consequently lead to a tragic demise. Other characters featured include David, Saul, Samuel, Jonathan, Batsheva, Nathan, the moon, some sheep and more…

The piece brings the text to life using comedy, tragedy, song and physical theatre and is an hour and half in duration. In God’s Bedroom has played to packed audiences in Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Limmud UK, Limmud Oz, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, and is headed to the US in the coming year. The show has played in theatres, schools, conferences; to secular, religious, halachic, scholarly, traditional, unaffiliated, Jewish and non-Jewish audiences and is appropriate for people from ages 15 +. It is particularly satisfying for audiences who enjoy the study of Jewish text and have prior knowledge about the book of Samuel, although this is not necessary.

Jonno Katz – original director of In God’s Bedroom
Jonno Katz  studied at the John Bolton Theatre School where he was trained in the LeCoq style of physically devised theatre. He has made and toured three solo shows, Uber Alice, Cactus and Jolly Roger, throughout Australia and Canada winning awards and playing to sold-out theaters. More recently he directed for “Short and Sweet” in Melbourne, winning the second week of Wild card entrants. He has also directed internationally, most notably for the One Arm Red Collaborative Arts Festival in New York. For further information about Jonno visit his Web site at www.epicworlds.com.

Adam Starr – music composer of In God’s Bedroom
Adam Starr has scored approximately 25 short films, three feature films plus music for television series, theatre and advertising. His original music has been recorded by different artists and bands on more than 10 CDs. He completed a Masters in Composition for the Screen at the Royal College of Music in London in 2005 and a Masters in Composition from the University of Melbourne in 2006. Adam is also a founding member of UK-based ensemble “The Ashes Quartet,” which has toured the throughout Europe. For further information about Adam, visit his Web site at www.adamstarr.com.au

“In God’s Bedroom was quite simply extraordinary. It represents a cultural/textual fusion of the highest order – intellectually rigorous, considered, dynamic and relevant.” – Dr Nathan Wolski, Australian Centre for Jewish Civilisation.