Broadway hit Alex Edelman to perform Oct. 29

By Deb Silverthorn 

From Broadway to Dallas, from the lights of the Great White Way to Congregation Shearith Israel, comedian Alex Edelman will share his comedic shpiel Sunday, Oct. 29.  Light bites begin at 6:30 and the program will start at 7:30 p.m. Adriana Meyerovitz, Sharsheret Dallas’ Woman of Valor honoree will share her story. The evening is  sponsored by McKesson and will benefit Sharsheret, The Jewish Breast & Ovarian Cancer Community.

The event is co-chaired by Lizzy and Dr. Jules Greif and Kim and Dr. Jaryd Stein and supported by their committee including Brenda and Ron Bliss, Marissa and Josh Kaufman, Zoe and A.J. Magid, Adriana and Dani Meyerovitz, Elaine and Trevor Pearlman, Robyn and Dr. Ross Radusky, Elana and Frankie Shulkin and Sheryl and Stuart Wernick.

 “The whole healing of a cancer patient is important and not to be underestimated. Sharsheret ‘gets it,’ all of it, and it is an honor to celebrate this organization with those familiar with it and to introduce it to a greater audience as well,” said Kim Stein, a breast cancer survivor, diagnosed at 39 with Triple Positive breast cancer. 

 Alex Edelman, whose show, “Just For Us,” completed runs on and off-Broadway, in Washington D.C., London and Boston over the last two years, is the proud recipient of an Outer Critics Circle Award, a Drama Desk Award, Best Show in Melbourne, Best Show in Edinburgh, a Herald Angel Award, an Obie Award and more.  

As a writer and comedian, Edelman says hisOrthodox Jewish upbringing informed his critically and commercially acclaimed work for the stage and screen including his “Saturday Night Seder,” a star-studded YouTube special, which raised more than $3.5 million for the CDC Foundation (COVID-19) Emergency Response Fund.  To event organizers, having the comic take the stage at Shearith Israel, supporting Sharsheret, is a bravo moment to be sure.

“Alex is fantastic, funny and fun!  I promise it’s going to be a great show and a great night.,” said Lizzy Rosenberg Greif. She has seen Edelman’s performance in London, on Broadway and shows he’s done for two other Sharsheret events.

“The front row seat I have to the tremendous work that Sharsheret does for so many patients and their families is an absolute privilege,” said Greif, who sits on the organization’s executive board and who introduced Sharsheret to the Dallas community after her sister Margot Rosenberg Pulitzer, and then her sister Sheri Rosenberg — both of blessed memory — who fought brave battles against breast cancer, passed away. 

Greif added, “Sharsheret’s efforts touch everyone who finds them.”

On Sept. 12, Greif and committee members Robyn Radusky and Elana Shulkin co-chaired a pop-up event, hosted at the Greif home.

“It was a wonderful day with women-owned businesses and community members shopping, coming together to support this amazing organization,” said Radusky, whose Poppy and Prince online children’s clothing boutique was one of a dozen vendors that shared their profits with Sharsheret. The event raised more than $5,000 in four hours.  “The passion of the women who have made Dallas a ‘Sharsheret gem’ is amazing and I’m honored to help share that to the community,” she added.

Elana Shulkin is one of the women who is passion about Sharsheret. The organization helped her throughout her own journey.

 Shulkin, who was 21 when her first cousin was diagnosed with breast cancer during her cousin’s eighth month of pregnancy, knew for years she’d somehow have to address the threat to herself.  She was followed with regular screenings, and 13 years later the time was right.

“Having a cousin who was diagnosed at such a young age, and hearing many stories of young mothers being diagnosed, made me feel like a ticking time bomb.  It was important to me to speak with other women who had undergone prophylactic surgery with young children at home and who went on to have more children afterward,” she said. 

Shulkin explained that she didn’t know anyone in that specific bracket and Sharsheret was able to connect her with other women in a similar situation.

“They connected me with women who were in the same position as I was when they had their surgeries, which gave me the confidence to go through with it. Ultimately, I had a preventative double mastectomy in 2021,” said Shulkin. 

At the Oct. 29 event, Adriana Meyerovitz will share her story and how Sharsheret was also there for her.

“My mother is a breast cancer survivor, another cousin as well.  I had been a genetic counselor working in biotech and for so many reasons, the disease was always in the back of my mind,” said Meyerovitz.  “I was vigilant about mammograms and MRIs and that’s the only reason I found it right away.

“Still, I was one of the lucky ones because I had a roadmap to the doctors and protocol,” she said, giving props to her mother, Pixie Silverman, who came to Dallas to support her, her husband Dani and their sons Noah and Shane throughout her ordeal.  “I talked to Sharsheret hours after my diagnosis and, in addition to their sending me a cozy robe and information for myself, they guided me with how to support my husband and young boys.”

Meyerovitz, who has addressed students at Akiba Yavneh Academy remembers watching Sharsheret Dallas’ 2020 virtual event, a fashion show, and placing orders for some of the items.  Three years later, she’s proud to speak at the event, to tell her story but to also address how mental health for survivors is a real issue.

“We have to address issues of self-care and, just because our body is healed, doesn’t mean it’s all over,” she said, noting that while she has lasting physical concerns, she is “living her best life.”  

Meyerovitz added, “it’s hard for family and friends to understand, and the patient doesn’t want to continue to be a ‘burden,’ but those who’ve ‘been there’ absolutely get it.  The team at Sharsheret have expertise in providing guidance, on so many different levels, to women and families in their time of need.”

Sharsheret provides telephone counseling, webinars, classes, events and a plethora of resources.  There are peer-to-peer programs, financial assistance, genetic counseling and so much more. Sharsheret in Dallas provides local resources and enables thousands to benefit from Sharsheret’s broad, national reach.

“Dallas, led by this special group of individuals, is a nonstop, never-sit-still community, which cares deeply for every individual and in turn, helps our professional team help so many facing cancer,” said Elana Silber, Sharsheret’s CEO.  “We are thrilled to host this annual event to raise critical funds and awareness of the life changing and lifesaving work we do and to recognize remarkable people whose stories inspire us to look forward to a healthier future.”

For more information or to register for the Oct. 29 event, visit sharsheret.org/dallas23.