Margy’s Marvelous Mission

by

Music and Education in Her Genes

While growing up in the West Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago, IL., 5year-old Margy was taking a general kids' music class with a friend, when the teacher recommended to her parents that she begin oneano lessons. She loved it from the start! Her mother never had to remind her to practice. Instead, she always had to remind Margy to do her schoolwork because she was always at the piano! Those piano lessons lasted until she graduated from high school.

Margy Horowitz attended Bais Yaakov Elementary School and HannaGirls High School in Chicago, before going to Machon Rivkin seminary in Israel. At Stern College, Margy was one of only three music majors, after which she received her Master's Degree in Piano Pedagogy from Northeastern Illinois University.

Margy’s father, who was a Chazzan, loved classical music and took her to symphonies, operas, and other concerts when she was young, which helped to cultivate her love of music. Her mother, on the other hand, didn't love classical music as much. She was a musical theater fan who took Margy to Broadway shows and the choir leader in 8th grade. In 9th grade, she was in the choir for the school production, but by the time 10th grade came around, the word had gotten out that Margy was a pianist, so she was asked to take over playing the piano for her subsequent productions in 10th and 11th grades. That was her first experience as an accompanist.

Margy comes from a long line of Jewish educators. On her mother’s side, her grandfather, Rabbi Ben Zion Well, z'l, was a Judaic studies teacher for many years and was also the only mohel for the entire Midwest of America in the mid-20th century.

Her grandmother (Esther Well, z'l) was also a Judaic studies teacher, two of her uncles (Rabbi Don Well and Rabbi Harvey Well) were educators and pulpit rabbis, and her mother, Rena Well Berkowitz, taught after-school Hebrew school. On her father's side, her uncle Rabbi Tzvi Berkowitz is the Rosh Yeshiva at Ner Israel in Baltimore. Margy’s older brother currently teaches History at Mechinas Ner Naftali in Chicago and her younger brother is a math professor at Cal State Northridge in the Valley.

“Music has always been a huge part of my life. I can't imagine life without it!” piano lessons and support her passions.

Margy exclaims. It is no surprise then that Margy combines her love of music and education, which was so deeply imbued in her childhood, and brings it to the Los Angeles community with such conviction and warmth.

Searching for Sunshine

In the summer of 1998, Margy was looking for a change and was debating leaving Chicago to move to NY or LA. After attending a wedding in LA in June 1998, she loved it so much that she decided to move here! She hated the cold weather in Chicago, so she went back home, told her parents that she was moving to LA, and started looking for a job.

Beverly Hills High School, and are members of B’nai David Judea, where Margy currently serves on the board of directors.

Helped Her Develop Her Love For Show

In 4th grade, Margy tried out for the school choir anddiscovered a love for singing, especially harmonizing. She continued singing in the choir and became

Margy credits her first piano teacher, Livia Ayal, with giving her a strong foundation in note-reading and technique. Her music professor at Stern, Dr. Edward Levy, was influential in teaching her music theory and how harmony really works. Most importantly, her parents made the sacrifices necessary to give her

Margy decided to move to the Pico area of Los Angeles because it felt like she could be among people similar to her religiously. She found a roommate, and an apartment, and started attending Young Israel of Century City. She worked at Alfred Music Publishing Co. in Van Nuys and gave piano lessons after work. What began as a suggestion from a friend to start teaching one piano student soon, due to word of mouth, turned into 50 students within one year of her moving to LA. She realized she was making more money and enjoying the lessons more than her daytime job, so she quit that job and devoted herself fully to teaching piano privately in people’s homes.

When Margy married Jeremy, whom she knew from Chicago, they decided to begin their marriage and family while remaining in Los Angeles, They began attending Beth Jacob and made a close group of friends. They now have two children, Rowan and Nathan, who attend within the local Jewish community, referrals from friends, her students, and their families, and soon Margy became the most sought-after piano teacher in the religious Jewish communities of the Pico and La Brea areas.

Lettings Others Shine

Margy currently works with teenage girls in the local high schools, helping to instill that music, performing arts, and singing gene into them!

Since 2013, Margy has been the Music Director for Bais Yaakov High School's Halleli production. The Bais Yaakov alumni who were writing the scripts suggested Margy for the role of music director for Halleli. After the first year, while she ran the choir and played the music with the band, she got more involved with the drama, script writing, and set design for Halleli. Mrs. Shamie runs the whole program and Margy was heavily involved in assisting the process. That led to her teaching a music elective and public speaking course for BYLA memMargy directors. the mouth community, and the the Pico teenage to and the High Bais the of first played more writing, Shamie was process. students.

In 2018, Margy was asked by YULA to come on board as the Performing Arts Director. Before this, YULA girls put on plays that were directed by male directors, but the girls wanted to perform in a musi cal. Now Margy produces and directs two plays per year for the YULA High School Girls Division – a musical in the fall and a non-musical in the spring. She also teaches public speaking and advises the year-round choir club that meets every other week and performs on special occasions.

Jewish Women’s Repertory Company

While it seems like Margy Horowitz has enough on her plate, cultivating a love of music, singing, and drama for high school girls, she has had to cut down on her piano lessons from 50 students to only 20 students. If you think that’s what keeps Margy busy, you wouldn’t believe what she’s been doing for women of the Jewish community since 2005.

The Jewish Women’s Repertory Company (jwrcla.org) is a community theater that Margy founded in 2005 for the women of the LA Jewish community. The idea came to Margy when she heard about a group of women in Chicago who were performing a musical by women for a women-only audience. Margy questioned whether that would be something the Los Angeles community would be interested in so she began asking around at Shabbos meals if women would be interested in their own musical theater company. The response was loud and clear: It would never happen in Los Angeles.

During this time, Margy attended a Shabbos sermon by Rabbi Weil of Beth Jacob, who was promoting an organization that assisted women who suffered from domestic violence. While Margy did not have the funds to donate to the organization, she vowed then and there that she would put on her first musical production for women by women, and would donate the proceeds to this domestic violence support organization. She met privately with Rabbi Weil to discuss her idea. He gave his support and encouragement and offered Beth Jacob as the location for auditions.

Margy and a friend printed fliers at their own expense and advertised the auditions by walking up Pico Blvd, passing out fliers, and posting them on lampposts. That first year, 25 women auditioned and rehearsals began at Magen David. Some of the women were vocally trained, some were Baalei Teshuva who would no longer sing in front of men, and others were mothers and career women who wanted a creative outlet. One woman asked to be the choreographer because she was a trained dancer. Margy rented the show!

The purpose of the JWRC is to provide an outlet for frum women after they graduate high school. Many have talents they want to perform - acting, singing, and dancing - that must be done only in front of women due to Kol Isha. The JWRC produces a smaller cabaret show every spring, which brings in donations to fund the program. The full-length Broadway-style musical is directed and produced by Margy every winter. Ticket sales account for 50% of the budget to put on the main performance, with the rest being funded by donations, playbill ads, and the cabaret-style show.

The JWRC would not be possible without the support of Margy’s husband and two children, who are teenagers now but have never known a life without the JWRC. Margy knows she’s built something incredible. “Our cast parties are really when it hits me. I look around at all of the women who have had such a great time performing for our appreciative audiences, and I can't believe that I did this amazing thing. Some of the women that I've met and worked with have become my closest friends, and I can't even remember what life was like before I knew them. It's truly changed my life.” observance among the many women who perform in the JWRC shows - Yeshivish, Bais Yaakov graduates, Conservative, and even some who are not to watch a mother from Bais Yaakov become friends with a mother from Pressman. Nobody has ever had a problem getting along. All our other differences are left outside the door. If not for the shows, some of these women would not have met, and now they share a similarity. It’s not about politics, religion, or anything else divisive. We can all find a place for who are perhaps not Jewish. The special part about the collective group is that no one cares how observant another member is. All the women are there to put on a show, to share their talents with each other and their audience, and to sing and dance together. Margy marvels that “It’s a beautiful thing ourselves and get along, and there is room for all of us.”

JWRC serves as a unifier for the women of the LA Jewish community.

I posed the question of what brings non-observant women to the JWRC. If they aren’t observant, why do they choose not to perform in front of men? Margy believes it’s because “When women are with men, whether we like to admit it or not, we behave differently, we carry ourselves differently, there’s a different feeling of camaraderie and freedom when women are not anywhere near men.” For the women who would sing in front of men, they still enjoy the freedom of not having men around, of being with just women, and being themselves. They are not worried about how they look or how they are perceived. They can be more authentic to their true selves. Margy loves that the “women keep coming back for the camaraderie and girl power. We don’t have a lot of chances in our lives to just be there and support each other. The women are here for the feeling of friendship, the ability to be yourself, and not worried about what others think of you. It’s not only about Kol Isha.”

Some of Margy’s life’s most memorable moments are during her time with the JWRC. When she directed Les Miserables, Margy recalls, “I remember standing backstage when the orchestra music started and just getting chills thinking, ‘Oh my G-d, I directed Les Mis!!!!’ It was a musical that I've loved since high school and now I produced, directed, and performed in a small role. It was a dream come true.” Another memorable moment was when tickets went on sale for the 2019 production of Beauty & the Beast and sold out within a week.

Moving Forward with Her Mission

Margy’s had a passion for music and singing since she was young. She is grateful to her parents for paying for all of those years of piano lessons! Her two most motivating factors that push her forward are sharing her own God-given gifts with the community, and more importantly, wanting to help others to share their gifts as well. It makes Margy sad when she meets a woman who loves to sing but hasn't had a chance in her adult life because of her lack of opportunities. Margy believes in her mission and feels that she got where she is today because of her determination to do what she loves and never compromise.

Margy has never considered any other profession. She knew from a very young age that she wanted to be a piano teacher so she could teach others to enjoy music as much as she did. Her dream is to turn the JWRC into a bigger company where she can earn a salary for all the hours of work that she puts into it, but she has loved every minute of it even though it’s been nearly twenty years of volunteer time.

When it comes to the Los Angeles community, Margy feels she has grown with the community. When she arrived at a young 24 years old, she was single. Now she is raising her family among a group of very close friends that she trusts would be there to help her should anything, G-d forbid, happen. The community is her family, and she does not know what life would be without her friends. Her various jobs within the community allow her to have a part in many different social circles within the community, supporting her appreciation for different types of people. Margy believes everyone has their own contribution to give, which she tries to support through her work with girls and women and their ability to share their talents through performing arts. Margy continues to give back to the community in so many ways. “It’s important that my shul is thriving and my children are thriving. It’s important that within orthodoxy, people are accepted who don’t fit into a box.” What more does the JWRC personify than this strongly held belief of Margy’s.

To de-stress, Margy loves nothing more than rehearsing for a show, as it invigorates her. When she is feeling tired or down on herself, she just needs to get together with some friends and sing in harmony to immediately feel better. At this time, Margy is rehearsing for the JWRC's concert tribute to Rodgers & Hammerstein, which will be on June 1st and 4th at the Museum of Tolerance Peltz Theater (for women only) and YULA’s spring play, Arsenic & Old Lace, which will be the weekend of May 20-21, while also preparing for the JWRC's 17th full-length musical, The Sound of Music, which will be in December 2023. Auditions will be held on June 5th and 6th (see jwrcla.org for details!).