HERE’S MY OFFICIAL THEATER BIO: Brenner began professional work in the theater in 1987, when he joined the Ark Improvisational Theatre’s Animal Crackers ensemble in Madison, Wisconsin. Under the direction of Dennis Kern and Elaine Eldridge, Brenner performed as part of a small comedy group that included the late Chris Farley (Saturday Night Live) as well as Brian Stack (The Late Show) and Todd Hanson (The Onion). In addition to work on stage, Daniel was part of Animal Cracker’s live sketch comedy show for the local NPR radio affiliate, WORT.
Since his time at the Ark, Brenner has written five plays that have been produced professionally. His first play, a one-act about a man visited by the ghost of his Bar Mitzvah tutor, Where’s Your Stuff? was produced by Theatre Ariel in 1992 at the University of Pennsylvania’s Annenberg Center Theater. The piece was subsequently published by Dramatic Publishing in Voices from Ariel: Ten Minute Plays Reflecting the Jewish Experience. His second piece, a one-act about a kosher butcher shop entitled Meat, was part of the Theatre Ariel’s Ten by Ten Festival at the Walnut Street Theater Studio in 1994 and received rave reviews in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Brenner was then commissioned to co-write Theatre Ariel’s folktale series for children entitled Old Tales/New Sparks, which toured for more than a decade. In 1996, Daniel joined a group of four writers (including Emmy Award winner Aida Croal) and began work on a play about a Passover Seder in a biracial family titled Taking Names. The show premiered in New York City at the Clemente Sotto Velez Cultural Center and was named the Best New Play by All Out Arts 2000.
In 2004, Daniel’s one-act Driving School of America, about the relationship between a Chinese man and his Dominican driving instructor, was produced by Vital Theater in New York City as part of the Vital Signs festival of new works starring David Shih and Emanuel Loarca. In addition to these works, Brenner performed his solo show Faster Rabbi, Drill! Drill! at the Goldman Theater in the 14st Y in New York City and his one-act rant “Please Don’t Feed the Prophet” appeared in Believer Beware: First Person Dispatches from the Margins of Faith (Beacon Press, 2009)
He lives with in Montclair with his beloved, Dr. Lisa Brenner, and their three children.
Free Hannukah Play? Get your presto-instant Hannukah skit right here: That’s right! A certified organic kosher Hannukah play for kids! 3 characters, five minutes. Just the right little shpiel for your celebration. HANNUKAH PLAY By Rabbi Daniel Brenner www.rabbidanielbrenner.com ON STAGE: DR D, APPLE SAUCE, and LATKE DR D Hi, I’m Dr. Dreidel and I’m here with my friends Latkes and apple sauce to tell you all about the Maccabees.
Need a fun play for your seder? This free Passover Play is a 10 minute script for all ages I wrote this kid and adult friendly alternative to the Maggid section (the Passover story section) of the Haggadah when my kids were in elementary school. This short play is a contemporary take which makes the story current but stays true to the Exodus narrative. I’ve written it for large crowds — so there are 13 parts, but if you have…
“Smell the Ham” is an excerpt from the one man show “Faster, Rabbi, Drill! Drill!” performed at the Goldman Theater, 14Y in New York City.
Faster, Rabbi! Drill! Drill! is the one-man-show I wrote and performed during my last year of rabbinical school – 1997. It was performed at the Goldman Theater of the 14th Street Y in New York City, Poet’s House of the University of Pennsylvania, and at a number of rabbinical conferences of CLAL. Prelude Right before I entered rabbinical school, I had a dream. I’m in a large suburban synagogue. The kind of synagogue with a gift shop which carries little…
If you’re looking for an easy way to add some good drama to your Passover Seder, then you are in the right place. I’ve got twenty people coming to the first seder and probably as many to the second. Rather than read through the Haggadah’s maggid section, we’ll have fun with this short skit that tells the story. I offer it free to all those who would like to spice up their seders. Enjoy – and Zissen Pesach! Daniel Free…
Director’s note: This play can be performed with a cast of five actors…or expanded to include more. The Whole Megillah By Rabbi Daniel S. Brenner SCENE 1 KING A (swinging a drink) Show me the way to the next whiskey bar…oh don’t ask why…of don’t ask why…(he falls) I can’t reach it. Help!!!! Oh my gods, look at this. Dry cleaning! I need dry cleaning! You – you look at me and laugh. `but do you know how expensive it…
November 15, 2004 – by BWW News Desk VITAL THEATRE COMPANY is pleased to present its ninth installment of VITAL SIGNS, the company’s annual new works festival. The three-part series begins Wednesday, December 2nd at 7:00 p.m. Each series runs 1 week – Wednesdays through Sundays at 7:00 p.m. – through December 19th. Tickets are $15.00, $10.00 for students. TDF Accepted. To purchase tickets, please log onto www.TheaterMania.com or call (212) 352-3101. For more information, visit www.vitaltheatre.org. Vital Theatre Company…
My first one act play is now available online from Dramatic Publishing. Here is a wonderful reading of the play that took place in 2016 in Hollywood, Florida. https://youtu.be/2e641jVJLAM