The Intown Chabad’s Chanukah at Klyde Warren Park in 2023.
By Deb Silverthorn
“Happy Hanukkah! I wanna give a gift to you. Light up the night, my love shines through,” sings Matisyahu, the featured guest of The Intown Chabad on Thursday, Dec. 26. The recording and performance artist will help light up “Chanukah at KWP,” The Intown Chabad’s 18th annual holiday event, at Klyde Warren Park from 5 to 6:30 p.m. and its Drinks and Dreidels event, with doors opening at 8 p.m. at the Granada Theatre for a full concert.
“Matisyahu has long sung about being a proud Jew and his enthusiasm, love and respect for Israel and our Jewish people is incredible,” said Rabbi Mendy Plotkin, who, with his wife Mushka Plotkin, leads The Intown Chabad’s young adult community. “He is a proud and outspoken advocate, and we are thrilled to have him here to celebrate Hanukkah in the biggest, most exciting way we know how.
“At Klyde Warren Park, with families and friends, and then at the Granada for young adults in their 20s and 30s, these programs which are sponsored by Action Metal Recyclers are going to be amazing,” he said. “Hanukkah is the story of freedom and that’s what we’re here to celebrate.”
Grammy-nominated Matisyahu will be featured at The Intown Chabad’s Chanukah at KWP and then at its Dreidels and Drinks party at the Granada Theatre.
The celebration at Klyde Warren Park, open to the public but with registration required, will have Matisyahu in concert, with doughnuts, latkes and more to enjoy amid Dallas’ downtown backdrop. The event at the Granada Theatre will have fried snacks, a cash bar and a DJ-hosted afterparty following Matisyahu’s performance.
“We want our Jewish community, and the greater Metroplex, to know we care and that we’re here to stay,” said Rabbi Plotkin, noting that The Intown Chabad and the Dallas Police have arranged a significant security detail for the events. “When we stand together, we can’t be torn down.”
Celebrating Hanukkah, honoring light over darkness and good over evil, in Dallas’ city center is an opportunity to unite one and all.
For almost 20 years, Matisyahu has created meaningful music, much of it inspired by his life as a Jew. The Grammy-nominated singer has melded his creative and spiritual life with reggae, hip-hop and alternative rock releases that include “Happy Hanukkah,” “King Without a Crown,” “Jerusalem” and “One Day,” which has been streamed more than 150 million times on Spotify alone.
“One day, this all will change, treat people the same. Stop with the violence, down with the hate,” Matisyahu sings in his hit “One Day.” “One day, we’ll all be free and proud to be under the same sun, singin’ songs of freedom.”
That is the spirit of Hanukkah, a hopeful gift to all.
For more information or to RSVP for the Klyde Warren Park event, visit https://www.theintownchabad.com/civicrm/event/info%3Fid%3D678%26reset%3D1. To purchase tickets for the concert at the Granada Theatre, visit https://www.theintownchabad.com/civicrm/event/info%3Fid%3D668%26reset%3D1.
