Curtains Up: Chaviva's 2025 Play

Chaviva was buzzing with creative energy in the weeks leading up to this year’s original production. From the moment rehearsals began, the hallways echoed with music, laughter, and the rhythmic steps of choreography as students rehearsed lines, refined vocals, and brought movement to life. With each passing rehearsal, confidence grew, and characters began to take shape, creating a palpable sense of excitement and anticipation throughout the school.

Behind the scenes, an equally dedicated technical production crew worked tirelessly to ensure every detail was just right. From gathering costumes and crafting props to assembling imaginative set pieces, the crew demonstrated remarkable focus, teamwork, and creativity. Their careful attention transformed the stage into a vibrant world that fully supported every moment of the story.

Leading this meaningful project was Mrs. Riva Eisenberg, director of this year’s original production, What If?, written by Mrs. Berkowitz, Mrs. Wolman, and Mrs. Eisenberg. Together, they poured countless hours into shaping a thoughtful and engaging show that challenged and inspired our students and audience. Under their guidance, the girls committed themselves fully, rehearsing during school and after hours while demonstrating responsibility, perseverance, and strong school spirit.

One of the final music rehearsals

That dedication came to life on stage during two back-to-back performances of What If?, which showcased far more than talent alone. Every girl embodied the very best of what it means to be a Chaviva girl. Whether in the spotlight or working behind the scenes, students demonstrated that no role is too small and no challenge is too large when everyone is working together toward a shared goal.

As a small school, we rely on the dedication and generosity of our community to bring a show of this caliber to life. We offer our deepest thanks to the moms, grandmoms, staff members, and other supporters who came out on Sunday to do hair and makeup for our actresses, handle ticket sales and check-ins, sell refreshments, and help put everything in order at the end of the night. We are so grateful to all of the volunteers. 

We would also like to extend our sincere appreciation to those who provided essential venue, creative, and production support. Thank you to Laurel School and Andrea DiSalvo for hosting us, Shelby Jones for photography, Deborah Pollack for sweatshirts, Amy Schwartz and Amy Smith for operational support, Jerry Hayes for videography, Yosef Aryeh Greenberger for music support, and Yavne High School and YDT for costumes. We are also grateful for the continued support of our Chaviva staff and production team, including, whose efforts helped make this production run smoothly from start to finish.

As the curtain closed and the lights dimmed, the message of What If? lingered powerfully: what if respecting the individuality of one another is what truly brings us together? It is a lesson our girls lived throughout the journey of this production and one that continues to shine well beyond the stage. Congratulations to our incredible girls on a truly wonderful performance. We are so proud of your hard work, creativity, and commitment.

From our Playbill: Mrs. Eisenberg and Mrs. Berkowitz's beautiful letters to our incredible cast.