By Hadar Katsman, Features Editor
On the evening of Monday, March 23, the Stern College Dramatics Society (SCDS) pulled off another successful musical showcase in Koch Auditorium.
Every spring semester since 2022, SCDS has put on a musical showcase for Stern College for Women undergraduates to display their singing or dancing abilities in front of an all-female audience, providing a rare opportunity for these Orthodox Jewish women to perform in front of a large crowd.
“For the people who connect more to theater and art, it’s something really special so they can put their abilities and skills on display and show people what they can do,” Eliora Hyman (SCW ‘28), a first-time showcase performer, told the YU Observer. “It’s definitely an outlet for a lot of people.”
This year’s showcase theme was “This Is Me,” a reference to a song of the same name from the 2017 film The Greatest Showman. Using their wit and playing on the names of each showcase song to introduce the numbers, co-emcees Aliza Flug (SCW ‘26) and Liela Silbiger (SCW ‘27) roleplayed two Stern undergraduates, undecided in what degree to pursue, trying out different majors.
“You come out of sem[inary] being like, this is me. I feel comfortable with my religious levels and things like that. And then you get to college, and it kind of pivots the focus of those. Like, this is me as a Jew, but who am I as a person overall?” Silbiger told the YU Observer. “I think the idea of exploring through songs and through art, this concept of who you are, is very important, and it’s a new way to look at it that might give you a different perspective.”
The showcase included 16 numbers, all of which highlighted the night’s theme with songs about perseverance and self-discovery. All solos were self-directed and the remaining numbers were student-directed by either Hayley Goldberg (SCW ‘26), Tamara Yeshurun (SCW ‘26), Ashley Hefner (SCW ‘26), Aliza Flug or current SCDS President Talia Feldman (SCW ‘26). Numbers ranged from solo performances and duets to the closing number, which included a majority of the performers.
Feldman told the YU Observer the showcase had been in the works since last June. Soon after the start of this spring semester, auditions were held, roles were cast and six weeks of rehearsal preceded a dress rehearsal the night before the showcase. The showcase was almost entirely student-run, with added help from the Office of Student Life and Triple S Studios, a hired stage and sound system.
One thing that makes the showcase different from SCDS’s annual fall production, Feldman said, is the creative freedom she, as president, the SCDS board and the performers have. SCDS always hires a professional director to run the fall play, so “[i]t’s her vision that we’re trying to figure out,” Feldman said. But “Showcase is all students.” They get to choose the songs, the costumes and the singing roles.
Feldman described the showcase, her final gig as SCDS President, as “bittersweet.”
“It hit me that this was gonna be my last opportunity, really ever, to do something like this so freely because no one’s ever gonna accommodate me like this again,” she said. “In terms of being religious, in terms of being in charge, in terms of having free reign to decide what the stage looks like.” But she’s happy to be “going out with a bang.”
Beyond being a school organization that creates spirited performances together, SCDS is what Silbiger calls “a family.” “It’s such a close knit community but that’s also so welcoming to everyone else and I don’t think that exists so often,” she said.
During dress rehearsal, the unity and admiration the performers had for each other’s musical talents was palpable. As Hamilton’s Schuyler Sisters practiced their number, half the room jumped off the tables they were lounging on and began lip-syncing and wildly dancing along to the music. The support of SCDS for its community members was clear as applause and cheers erupted after others rehearsed their numbers, and words of encouragement and compliments flew around constantly.
For Gale Mendelsohn (SCW ‘27), joining the showcase offered her something beyond the ability to perform. “It was a really great way to meet people and to get to be a part of something with a big team,” she told the YU Observer. “We all love music, we all love performing, and we get to do it together.”
Mendelsohn sang the first lines in the opening song “This Is Me,” as per the theme. Reflecting on the theme, she said many people wish they could change who they are, but it’s important to embrace your true self. “It’s not embarrassing to be into theater, to have passion for something — to care about something deeply and to express yourself creatively and to be proud of the things that make it different from other people.”
The showcase primarily displays performers’ singing abilities, but every year there is at least one dancing number. This year, two dancing numbers hit the stage. One was a choreographed dance directed by Hefner to Hairspray’s hip hop song “You Can’t Stop the Beat,” and the other was the showcase’s first-ever ballet solo by Veronica Dronsky (SSSB ‘29). “I think it’s a great honor and a privilege that I’m able to bring this to Yeshiva University and to showcase my talent,” Dronsky told the YU Observer about the unique artistic expression that is ballet.
Dronsky has danced ballet professionally for several years and attended a ballet boarding school for two years. The musical showcase was her first performance since leaving The Israel Ballet and, she said, “a good opportunity to get back on stage, to get back on my feet after taking a little break, and putting myself to the test essentially with what I can do.”
Reflecting on the showcase, performer Shayna Rose (SCW ‘29) hoped the audience took away two things: be silly and enjoy art. “People are sometimes afraid to just be and embrace the silliness of life sometimes,” she told the YU Observer. “And be a goofball because you get an applause.”
“I think there’s a lot of criticism about art and not enough thought about how much goes into it,” Rose continued. “Lots and lots of people put this art together for you to enjoy so look at it, at a piece of art, whether you like it or not.”
The showcase concluded with the passing of the baton from Feldman to Flug and Silbiger, SCDS’s new co-Presidents for the 2026-2027 academic year. “You can feel the passion kind of radiate, which is awesome because I know that I’m leaving it in good hands,” Feldman said.
Flug and Silbiger have been involved with SCDS since their first semesters at Stern, Flug as Head of Costumes, Props Assistant and Production Designer, and Silbiger as an actor and Stage Manager. “SCDS has been the highlight of my college experience and I am grateful for the opportunity to help other students have similar experiences,” Flug told the YU Observer of her new role. “Our number one goal is always to provide a space for creative expression, whether onstage or behind the scenes.”
For Silbiger, succeeding Feldman as a co-President gives her “the opportunity to really connect with different people and to help bring more arts-related events to Stern, which is very exciting to me.”
Overall, the 2026 Musical Showcase was a smashing success. After the closing number ended and applause filled the room, family and friends approached the performers with hugs and flowers. Rose said she was running on adrenaline for the remainder of the night. “And then you can’t sleep, which is not great, but it’s amazing,” she jokingly added. “You feel an incredible sense of accomplishment and gratification and excitement to do it again and again and again.”
Photo Credit: Hadar Katsman