When Chani Lisbon was recently in Israel doing 11 comedy shows, she noted to a Chabad rebbetzin that she was still single. At the end of their conversation, after being told she should strengthen her connection to G-d, Lisbon decided to start keeping Shabbos and has done so for the last 12 weeks. She also sells shirts and hats that read “Hashem Is Legit.”
She said her experience in Israel was an emotional time.
“Having the opportunity to look people in the eye and make them laugh when they have gone through so much is powerful,” she said. “It was my way of showing that America stands with Israel. It feels like a gift to be with Jews, to be together, to laugh for a few moments when we know that there has been great tragedy and many tears.”
Performing in the comedy show she produced, she told a crowd of more than 120 at the Sixth Street Synagogue that in the wake of rising antisemitism, she wears a Jewish star necklace with pride.
Jewish comedians in the wake of October 7 have tried to deal with chaotic times and with the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, and political polarization.
The show featured something you will almost never see elsewhere: four Orthodox comedians, including three from the JSketch, a group which makes Jewish comedy videos, namely Ami Kozak, Eli Lebowicz, and Mikey Greenblatt. Kozak, the headliner, told the crowd he was relieved that former President Trump survived the assassination attempt. He said he thought Trump was mellow in the days after and expected him to say, “They tried to get me folks. They tried so hard. They got JFK. They got Lincoln. They didn’t get Trump.”
Still imitating Trump’s voice, he said he preferred presidents that weren’t assassinated.
He also did imitations of President Joe Biden, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.
Kozak praised Israelis for being “resilient and chill.”
He said he was freaking out after Shabbat a few months ago when Iran launched hundreds of missiles, but when he watched videos coming out of Israel, it was Israeli guys on their balconies looking up and shouting “‘Wow! Tistakel! (Look!) It’s not landing It’s okay! It’s not landing! Aizeh whywhy!’ American Jews would not have reacted like that.”
Lebowicz told The Jewish Press that he often tweets in response to major national news.
“There’s a lot of material with crazy things happening,” he said.
With a picture of Democratic Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib holding a black object that said “war criminal” while Netanyahu addressed Congress, Lebowicz tweeted that she looked like she was bidding on Hamas leader Yehia Sinwar at an auction.
Shifting gears, in thinking about kashrut restrictions, he said: “Imagine how unhealthy we would be if we could eat anything.”
He spoke about the neshama yesera, or extra soul, on Shabbos and said you need to fuel it by eating more on Shabbos.
“At kiddush, you have kugel, cholent, poppers, deli and then we have lunch,” he said. “Insane.”
He also said the extra soul helps people walk extra miles or up countless steps and we are tired when Shabbat ends because the soul leaves.
Greenblatt got the crowd laughing describing Netueri Karta as the “ones that do kiruv for Hamas.” The fringe group, which believes Israel should not be controlled by Jews, has joined rallies in which some have cheered Hamas and burned Israeli flags. He also announced he recently got engaged.
The fourth Orthodox performer, comedian Dovie Neuburger (who after shows I’ve attended has had offers for shidduchim), said he once went to a shadchan in Monsey who said one should not be too picky. “You think I like my husband?” he recalled her saying.
He added that his father is a well-known rabbi and his parents’ friends have not watched a comedy special in about 40 years. Going shopping in Teaneck and the surrounding New Jersey areas, he was once at a supermarket when he was approached by a family friend. “Dovi, you know your mother tells us you’re gonna be the next Bill Cosby,” he said she told him.
Olga Namer got a big laugh when she said she got criticized for getting married so young, but she got the last laugh as a few years later, her friends had student debt, but she was collecting alimony.
Amichai Rossler, whose son Dvir was killed as she saved others from Hamas, got up after all the performers to share the story of his son and speak about his mission to try to spread joy. Rossler spoke to The Jewish Press after the show.
“My son fought for Am Yisrael,” he said. “I am going around talking about my son’s legacy. I’m trying to make people happy by taking families for trips. I know I’m fulfilling his legacy. He was a listener and always wanted people to be happy.”
He said his son made a decision on October 5, 2023.
“On Thursday, he saw his friend said and he came up to him and he said, ‘Why are you sad?’” he recounted. “His friend said he wanted to be home for a party and didn’t want to miss it. Dvir told him, ‘Okay, you will be home, I’ll stay.’”
He said Dvir was killed standing in the door of a bomb shelter, saving others.
“People were not shocked when they heard he did this,” Rossler said. “If someone needed someone to talk to, the first one was Dvir. He wanted to make everyone united, and he was always thinking about helping other people.”
