Inspired by Jewish legend, The Golem’s Gift is about the many unseen ways we touch the lives around us and about the unique power of stories to change the world.

Like the beloved Fiddler on the Roof, it is a universal story steeped in tradition. Like Once on This Island, it is a moving, magical coming-of-age tale in the form of a classic myth.

Northwest Children’s Theater is thrilled to announce the world premiere of The Golem’s Gift this coming fall. After a long journey to the stage (see the development timeline at the end of this page!), this extraordinary new musical is finally making its debut. Filled with magic, heart, and wonder, the premiere production is sure to captivate young audiences and adults alike.

Donations from supporters like you will help bring The Golem’s Gift to life — supporting artists, designers, musicians, and the many creative hands who will shape this unforgettable theatrical experience.

In a far-off village, an old Rabbi shapes a Golem from clay and brings him to life. The Rabbi tells the child-like Golem that he has been created with an important purpose: to go into the world and fix what is broken.

Full of boundless curiosity and good intentions, the Golem makes a valiant attempt to do just that: by growing food to feed the hungry. He is aided in his attempts by two children: Ruth, a baker’s daughter who worries she will never escape the drudgery of her life, and Velvel, a cynical pickpocket who thinks he can exploit the Golem’s naïveté. But none can anticipate how their lives will entwine, or how even unfulfilled dreams can change the world.

Playwright/lyricist Benny Zelkowicz is an animator (The Lego Movie, Robot Chicken), voice actor (Lunar Jim on BBC/CBC), and novelist (The Books of Ore Trilogy published by Disney-Hyperion). His award-winning sand-animated film The ErlKing showed at festivals around the world, including the New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center and Sundance. In addition to writing and illustrating the picture book, The Golem’s Gift (on which this musical is based), he has also published two neuroscience papers in a major international journal and once parallel parked a 22-foot lime green fire truck. He currently lives in Columbus, OH, where he teaches animation at Ohio State. His newest film, The Sacred Society, a sand-animated documentary about Jewish burial rituals, is currently screening at film festivals world-wide.

Composer Ezra Weiss has written music and lyrics to Alice In Wonderland: A Jazz Musical, Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! and Cinderella: The New Tap Musical. Alice and Cinderella were each named in the “Top 10 Cast Albums of the Year” by TalkinBroadway.com. Ezra also created and produced Is Everybody Here?, an online musical revue. Further, Ezra is established in the world of jazz, having released eight albums as a bandleader to international acclaim. Ezra composes and arranges music for numerous performers throughout the U.S. and leads his own big band and sextet. He has performed at major festivals and clubs, including Dizzy’s in NYC, the Triple Door in Seattle, and Catalina’s in Los Angeles. Ezra has won the ASCAP Young Jazz Composer Award three times and has been listed in DownBeat Critics Polls.