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Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie has long been a fiddler on the roof, trying to keep his balance while playing his own wildly creative version of an ancient tune. The hard questions that have defined his life are familiar: How far can tradition bend before it breaks? How adaptable is Judaism to a rapidly changing world, and how much can it embrace modernity without losing its essence?
One of the foremost proponents of a boundary pushing movement to reimagine and reinvigorate Jewish religious and social life, Lau-Lavie’s personal journey has continually challenged norms and defied orthodoxy. When Lau-Lavie embraced Conservative Judaism, the burning questions become even harder. Will the prodigal son be accepted in the home to which he has returned?
The life of this influential radical thinker is the subject of the new documentary “Sabbath Queen,” which was filmed over the course of 21 years by Sandi DuBowski, whose 2001 film “Trembling Before God” is about gay and lesbian Orthodox Jews trying to reconcile their sexuality with their faith.
“Sabbath Queen” plays July 9-13 at the Dairy Arts Center’s Boedeker Theater, with the director appearing in person at the screenings on July 9 and 10. The screenings are co-sponsored by the Boulder JCC and the Boulder Jewish Film Festival.
An Israel-born gay man, Lau-Lavie is the dynastic heir of 38 generations of Orthodox rabbis including the Chief Rabbis of Israel. He is the founder of the Lab/Shul, and experimental, God-optional New York congregation that has attracted wide attention as part of the big-tent Judaism movement. He is also a drag queen, hence the film’s clever title, which references the personification of the Sabbath day as a feminine figure, often depicted as a bride or queen, a metaphor used to express the holiness and joy of Shabbat.
At its core, “Sabbath Queen” is a movie about questioning, an essential component of Jewish life. It is much more than a biography of a controversial and conflicted Jewish leader who has been instrumental in the re-examination of Judaism that started in the late 20th century. It is a provocative look at ever-shifting Jewish identity that leaves the audience with more questions than answers. Which is just as it should be.
Watch the trailer:
