Todd Salovey, Playwright and Director says:  "In my seventeen years at the REP, I have had the opportunity to work on many, special plays.  My productions have won many awards, but of all the work I've done, there is no project that I feel is more important and essental than "The Blessing of a Broken Heart."

 

This is the story of Sherri Mandell who moved her family to the West Bank in Israel.  On May 8, 2001, her 13 year old son Koby and his best friend were murdered by terrorists less than a mile from their home.  Thus began her remarkable journey of grief, healing, and love.  Three years later, Sherri Mandell published her novel, The Blessing of a Broken Heart, which immediately moved readers around the world and won a National Jewish Book Award.  In 2005, Todd Salovey read the book, contacted Sherri Mandell, and together they began the ambitious process of bringing this true story to the stage in San Diego.

 

Instead of dying with her son, the author makes a conscious decision to live.  Instead of abandoning her faith, she finds consolation and guidance in her Judaism.  "What do we do with the pain?" she asks.  Her rabbi answers:  "You must use it to grow."

 

Sherri Mandell was born in New York and graduated from Cornell University in 1977.  She taught writing at the University of Maryland and at Penn State.  She moved to Israel in 1996, where she lives in Tekoa, in the West Bank, with her family and is now director of the Koby Mandell Foundation Mothers' Healing Retreats for Bereaved Mothers and Widows.

 

At 8:30 p.m. immediately following the play, Peter Salovey, Todd Salovey's brother, will speak.  His topic is "Emotional Intelligence and Healing. " Peter Salovey is the Dean of Yale College at Yale University, author, acclaimed lecturer, and pioneering scholar in the field of emotional intelligence.  This talk is being sponsored by the Soille San Diego Hebrew Day School. 

 

To reserve a ticket, or for further information, please contact Sandra at