MONGO GROGGER and Purim Shpiel

For your viewing pleasure, I am pleased to present my dear cyberfriend Kathi's huge polymer clay covered grogger... IT is 18" long and she promises me that it is LOUD.


You can find everything on the internet... even Purim Shpiels. Rabbi Richard Agler and Cantor Stephanie Shore of Congregation B'nai Israel were kind enough to share their shpiels with the cyber world...

Narrator #1: This year’s Purim Schpiel takes place in Shushan Shell City, where we find the characters from Spongebob Squarepants. King Ahashveros is Neptune. Vashti is the old lady. Mordechai is Spongebob Squarepants.

Narrator #2: Esther is Mindy. Haman is Plankton.

Narrator#1: King Neptune Ahashversos is hosting a grand party. All the guests are dancing the hora and having a wonderful time.

Narrator #2: Let's all go now to Shell City and join in the celebration.

Pageboy: Attention, attention.

Patrick: King Neptune Ahashversos has an important announcement to make.

Squidward: Please lend us your ears.

King Neptune: Soon my queen shall arrive and dance for all of my guests. (clap, clap)

Guards send orders to the Queen that we await her presence.

(Guards exit and go to the queen)

Pageboy: Queen Vashti, King Neptune is ready for you to appear. You must come now.

Vashti Old Lady: I will not appear at his party, I will not dance the hora for his guests. Tell him no!

Queen's Lady: But your highness, you must obey the King's wishes.

Patrick: But Queen, the consequences.

Vashti Old Lady: You have my answer, tell the King NO!

(Guards go to the King.)

Patrick: King, the Queen has told us she will not dance for you.

Pageboy: Yes sire, she has refused to appear.

Neptune: What, I am outraged! How dare she refuse my request. She will be dethroned for this act of disrespect. Guards bring me the Queen!

(Guards exit and bring the Queen to see the King.)

Let's HEAR those Groggers

I hope you all clicked on the title to hear that wonderful Grogger noise. We use the Grogger to block out the sound of Haman's name during the reading of the Purim Megillah. By blotting out his name, we erase the evil which Haman represents.

For many of us, a grogger was a mass produced tin toy which we spun around in the air as the Rabbi read the megillah. For children today, the grogger is something they make themselves in preschool or Sunday school. Eileen from the Chadis Craft site gives instructions for making clay and CHOCOLATE groggers.

Contemporary artists have used the grogger as a means of expressing their Jewish roots and have done so with great results.

Avi Biran who is primarily a silversmith combines various materials to make his groggers. One represents the blotting out of Haman's name (as if a rubber stamp) and the other is Broken Neck Haman (as one would have found Haman after he is hung on the gallows he built for the Jews of Shushan).


Richard Bitterman, a self-taught metalsmith and Institute of Design in Chicago educated artistsays this about his grogger. This amazing piece of art and machinery has just as amazing a story behind it. Once upon a time,a few years ago, Richard was given a most unusual commission. Could he come up with something for a synagogue that would memorialize a beloved young teacher who had died terribly prematurely. It needed to be child-oriented, as the young teacher had loved and been loved by all the children in the congregation. And the congregation wanted a piece that would make a statement all its own, a strong, vital, vibrant statement. This was not an easy request to satisfy. It took weeks just to think of a fitting memorial, and additional weeks to figure out how to make such a piece work. The actual brazing,silver-soldering, and finally the enamel-painting stretched out into several weeks more . But the final product--this delightful, noisy, joyous parade of children celebrating Purim, was the result. The congregation so loved it that they gave Richard permission to make and sell more of them, and thus we can offer it to you. Each child is individually hand-painted in a different costume. When the grogger is whirled easy to do! they seem to dance around in a circle, while a flag waves above them. What a joyful noise they make!
To see the grogger in action, check this out. Be patient. It is slow to load.

The most beautiful noise

During one of my virtual wanderings I found a wonderful silversmith Sharon Geller-Metal . This talented woman is an Orthodox Jew whose knowlege and faith resonate through her work. Her hamanstash grogger is just beautiful to look at... and that it actually is a ceremonial object just amplifies its beauty.

Esther and Haman, Its Purim OH MY!

At the end of the week the Jewish holiday which is better than Halloween or Mardi Gras arrives- fun costumes and GOOD food. What is better?
Purim is a joyous holiday which commemorates the Jews being saved by the bravery of the Queen Ester and her Uncle Mordecai in ancient Persia.

I can't help but celebrate because this holiday has lots of beautiful goodies involved with it!

A big part of Purim is that it is a holiday of Brave women... Vashti who refused to be paraded in front of the drunken friends of her royal husband and Esther who risked her her own life to save her people. Definitely a feminine grogger, Betsy Platkin Teutsch's tambourine honors the strenth of our foremothers.

Lilian Broca also appears to admire the Purim heroines. Look at her strong and sensuous mosaics of Esther.

















More wonderful goodies await this week!
And don't forget to VOTE!!!