Leadership

Executive Directors

Esther Leah Marchette – ATARA Co-Director; Singer-Songwriter – Boston, MA - Esther Leah (Aviva) Marchette is a singer, songwriter and former cantor (before becoming a baalat teshuva in her early 20’s) with a B.A. in Songwriting from Berklee College of Music in Boston, and plays piano, guitar and percussion. Professionally, she has been working in the software industry for 20 years as a manager and technical program manager. She has led many large complex cross-functional programs, coordinated development and releases of new software products and IT… Read more
Miriam Leah Gamliel, EdD – ATARA Founder/Director, Performer – Montreal - Miriam Leah (Droz) Gamliel is a thought leader with a doctorate in Educational Innovation residing in Montreal, Canada. In her early career, she studied musical theatre and performed principal roles before adopting religious observance. Once observant, she became a producer and arts administrator, instrumental in the formation and management of ATARA. Outside of ATARA, she has directed a feature film, participated in arts-based fellowships, and can be seen as a principal performer in shows by… Read more

Advisory Board & Staff

Chaya Bracha Rubin – Social Media & Marketing Advisor. Singer/songwriter and educator. Kingston, PA - Chaya Bracha is an accomplished speaker, singer songwriter and educator and has been singing professionally for over 15 years. She is a published author and has won numerous awards and scholarships for her poetry and writing. She has composed more than fifty original songs and performed in the U.S. and Israel, most notably for a crowd of over 3,500 at the Kinus HaShluchos in Manhattan. She was a co-writer for the CD “Davening with Niggunim”, is… Read more
Toby Klein Greenwald – Advisory Board. Theater Director, Writer – Efrat, Israel - Toby Klein Greenwald has founded, co-founded or directed more than 12 theater companies or educational theater projects. She is the artistic director of Raise Your Spirits Theatre (www.raiseyourspirits.org), in which capacity she has co-authored (lyrics) and directed musicals on Esther, Noah, Ruth, Deborah and the daughters of Tzelofchad (sole lyricist). She directed and script-advised the show Count the Stars in Gush Etzion in 2014 and directed Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat for both Raise… Read more
Keri Roth – Dance Advisor. Dancer – Toronto, CAN - Keri Roth (nee Saltzman) has over 20 years of experience in the dance world, has taught throughout Toronto, competed and performed internationally, and has extensive training in jazz, tap, ballet, lyrical, hip-hop, and flamenco. Keri’s energetic approach to teaching fosters a safe, fun and challenging environment for her students to develop as dancers and as individuals. As Co-Founder & Artistic Director of JCreative Group Inc., Keri looks forward to each day filled with creativity, action… Read more
Mark Finkel – Business Advisor - Mark Finkel has been deeply involved in early stage entrepreneurial enterprises for the past 25 years. Over that time, Mark has worked as an executive or active board member of numerous high-growth technology companies on the East Coast, in Silicon Valley, and in Israel. Mark has had significant international operational experience, having set up distribution channels and operations in both Europe and Asia. Mark was also the founder and Chairman of RightAnswers, an enterprise software… Read more
Nechama Leah Dahan – Playlist Developer. Vocal instructor/coach, Ramat Bet Shemesh - I have a Bachelor of Music Degree in Vocal Performance from California State University, Sacramento, and I'm a Certified Vocal Coach through Modern Vocal Training. I've also studied in the Institute of Vocal Advancement program where I achieved a Level 1 Certificate. I'm committed to helping singers develop their singing technique with a healthy mindset. I'm here to offer a safe environment for bringing out your best voice. I use evidence-based techniques to get you the sound you want. My… Read more
Robyn Shrater Seemann – Advisory Board. Playwright, Producer (Artists Circle), Theater Director, Performer – Potomac, MD - Robyn Shrater Seemann is a multi-hyphenated theatre artist: playwright-performer-producer. She is the founder and Producing Artistic Director of Artists Circle (www.artists-circle.com), an all-female professional performing arts company in the Greater Washington, DC area dedicated to creating opportunities and breaking down barriers for Jewish women in the performing arts. Her passion is to use her unique talents to empower women to reach their full potential. Robyn delights audiences with live storytelling, performing as a featured storyteller… Read more
Ron Ashkenas – Business Advisor - Now Partner Emeritus of Schaffer Consulting, Ron is a trusted advisor and coach to senior leaders across industries- with a current focus on nonprofits, startups, and healthcare. He has helped leading organizations achieve dramatic performance improvements while also helping CEOs and senior executives to strengthen their leadership capacity. Ron collaborates with staff groups and internal consultants to improve the bottom-line impact of their professional contributions. Ron’s clients value his pragmatic approach and insight into their… Read more
Henya Storch – Consultant to ATARA – Woodmere, NY - Henya Storch is a registered nurse with a Master’s degree in nursing. She is CEO of The Storch Agency International, specializing in healthcare, business and talent coaching, publicity, PR and communal outreach. Henya is a trained Performing Arts Medicine expert who has worked with artists of all kinds, and is a member of the Performing Arts Medicine Association, Opera America, Actors Fund, Jewish Womens Entrepreneur ( JWE), Association of Orthodox Jewish Nurses and the American… Read more
Yona Lavie – Intern/project coordinator. Artist, dancer, choreographer, teacher – Queens, NY - Yona Lavie is a multidisciplinary artist, dancer, and choreographer from Queens, NY. Having artistic family roots, Yona started out as a visual artist before she decided to pursue dance at age 16. After completing an associate degree in dance from Queensborough Community College, Yona transferred to Adelphi University, graduating summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance. During her college career, she studied under Frank Augustyn, Orion Duckstein, Emily Berry, Aviva Geismar,… Read more

Bracha Goetz – Advisory Board. Author – Baltimore, MD - Bracha Goetz is the Harvard-educated author of 40 books that help children's souls shine and one candid memoir for adults: www.goetzbookshop.com. Warmly, Bracha Goetz Author of 40 books that help children's souls shine Find lots of them here: https://www.goetzbookshop.com/more-books-by-bracha-goetz And the new book that JOYFULLY helps children understand how to stay healthy is Let's Stay Healthy Read more

Community Advisory & Project Leadership

Abigail H. Meyer – Art Curation Advisor. Art Historian – New York City - Abigail H. Meyer is an art historian, curator, and museum educator specializing in Jewish visual arts and material culture with experience in various art-world sectors including collection management and practices, museum interpretation, connoisseurship, and provenance research. Abigail was the Head of Department of Ceremonial Objects and Fine Art at Kestenbaum & Company, the leading boutique auction house specializing in rare Judaica in New York City for nearly two decades, and the Researcher for Judaica at… Read more
Ayala Feingold – Community leadership. Vocal instructor/coach. Washington Heights, NYC - AYALA has been singing since before she could talk, and performing on stage for as long as she can remember! She studied at New York Voice Teacher Training and has been running her private vocal studio ever since. She also teaches group voice lessons and has led multiple choirs in NYC’s Jewish community. She is confident that singing is a tool everyone can use to build more joy and confidence into their life. AYALA writes… Read more
Davida Giborah (Darcie Nicole) Sasson – Communications Liaison. Songwriter & Music Industry Consultant – Modiin, Israel - CONTACT intentimpactmarketing@gmail.com | +972 58-574-5510 / 860-615-2254 | linkedin.com/in/askdarcie | https://open.spotify.com/artist/4zupiMnukandnKDheiFQn3 Darcie Nicole is a seasoned music professional whose dynamic career has put her at all corners of the industry. Darcie’s expertise in Vocal Performance, Songwriting, and Music Business Consulting is deeply focused in African-American music genres. Several members of her extended family were very high profile, award-winning figures in Jazz, orchestral, film, and opera; including GRAMMY® Awards, Oscar Awards, Emmy Awards, and Golden Globe… Read more
Amy Guterson – ATARA Contributing Board; Film writer and Director – Pittsburgh, PA - Amy (Gordon) Guterson has her BA from Stern College, Yeshiva University, where she was the school’s first theatre major. She studied acting with Uta Hagen, and Mike Nichols, and has trained intensively in improvisation with Paul Sills. Amy is a graduate of The New Actors Workshop, a graduate level program in acting. A member of Actor’s Equity, Amy performed Off- Broadway before returning to observance. Now living in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband and four… Read more
Rebecca Klempner – Forum 2021. Author – Los Angeles, CA - Rebecca Klempner has published five books for Jewish children—most famously A Dozen Daisies for Raizy, and Glixman in a Fix. Her newest, Adina at Her Best, became a November 2021 pick for PJ Our Way. Her stories, essays, and articles for adult audiences have appeared in a variety of venues, including Tablet Magazine, The Layers Project Magazine, The Wisdom Daily, Hevria, kveller, The Jewish Press, Hamodia and JewishFiction.net. LINKS: https://rebeccaklempner.com/ https://www.facebook.com/rebecca.klempner.writer https://twitter.com/klempnerjots?lang=en R. Klempner writing, copyediting, and developmental editing http://rebeccaklempner.com/ Rebecca's latest book, Adina At Her Best,… Read more
Laura Melnicoff – Forum 2021. Musician – Albany, NY - www.lauramelnicoff.com Laura Melnicoff is a professional cellist located in New York. Her performances have taken her to Carnegie Hall, Broadway, klezmer music festivals, Satmar community centers, the Kinus HaShluchos, various Jewish music festivals, and the Israel Philharmonic. Laura was recently a member of the Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish orchestra, and her online programs during the pandemic were viewed globally. She holds a Bachelor’s of Music from Mannes College of Music, and a Master’s… Read more
Lisa Aronson Friedman – Forum 2021-2022. Musician, Songwriter, Choir Director – Baltimore, MD - Lisa Aronson Friedman is a biostatistician at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine by vocation, and a musician by avocation. But music is not a minor hobby for her. She studied classical piano for 13 years, studied music theory, voice and guitar, and was a member of several choirs including the Oberlin College Chorus. She dabbled in composition before becoming Torah observant, but the Torah, Jewish prayer and Tehillim (Psalms) are what motivated her turn… Read more
Rivka Nahari – Partner. Pianist, harpist, opera soprano – Brooklyn, NY - Rivka Nahari has had many years of training and performing experience in both music and dance. She began her ballet training at the age of 3 and studied in the pre-professional program at the Academy of Nevada Dance Theater where she continued until her graduation from high school at age 17. While at the Academy, she performed yearly in the "Nutracker" ballet and "Cinderella" with the Nevada Dance Theater professional company and danced in numerous… Read more
Rebecca Lopkin – Forum 2021-2022. Educational Theater Director – Teaneck, NJ - Rebecca Lopkin is a theater educator, director and actor based in Teaneck, NJ. She holds Bachelor's and Master's Degrees from New York University in Educational Theater and is a certified Theater Arts teacher in NYS. Mrs. Lopkin is the founder and Artistic Director of Envision Theater, an educational theater company specializing in bringing theater and performing arts programming to students in k-12 yeshivas and Jewish day schools in NY, NJ and PA. Her Yeshiva League Shakespeare festival and… Read more
Shaked Sebag – Dancer, Choreographer – Ramat Beit Shemesh, Israel - Shaked was born in Israel and raised in Arizona and has been training in dance since she was 3 years old. After becoming baalat teshuva in college in arizona, and finishing her degree in education for the arts, and made aliyah with her husband and first child. She was an instructor at Rachel Factor’s studio in Jerusalem before moving to Ramat Bet Shemesh and opening the RBS Dance and Music Academy together with Jezliah Villarreal… Read more

Additional Project Leadership & Advisory, 2019-2025

Conference Administration, 2016-2018

Founding Leadership

Leah Chwaiewsky Bassett – ATARA Founding Member; Dancer and Theater Artist, Medical Clown – Toronto, CAN - Leah (Chwaiewsky) Bassett has trained in Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Modern and Musical Theatre at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet and Academy of Dance in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Leah has performed in a wide variety of productions throughout Western Canada and had the privilege of assisting in choreographing the opening and closing ceremonies of the Pan Am Games. Leah participated in the first ATARA Conference in 2007 and became an early active ATARA board member. Read more
Robin Garbose – ATARA Founding Member; Film Director – Los Angeles - Founding Member, ATARA; Film Director - Los Angeles, CA Robin Garbose began her directing career in the theater. In New York and Los Angeles, Robin directed some 35 plays at theaters including: Ensemble Studio Theater, Jewish Repertory Theater, Manhattan Punch Line, Juilliard Theater Center and the Odyssey Theatre. She has directed such noted actors as Laura Linney, Jon Tenney, Peter Riegert, Helen Slater, Ricki Lake, Jason Alexander, Judd Nelson and Bruno Kirby. Her television credits… Read more
Amy Guterson – ATARA Contributing Board; Film writer and Director – Pittsburgh, PA - Amy (Gordon) Guterson has her BA from Stern College, Yeshiva University, where she was the school’s first theatre major. She studied acting with Uta Hagen, and Mike Nichols, and has trained intensively in improvisation with Paul Sills. Amy is a graduate of The New Actors Workshop, a graduate level program in acting. A member of Actor’s Equity, Amy performed Off- Broadway before returning to observance. Now living in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband and four… Read more
Henye Meyer – ATARA Founding Member; Writer, Director – Manchester, UK - Henye Meyer, a writer and theatre director in Manchester, England, has two published novels and an upcoming work to appear shortly as a serial in Hamodia. She has written articles for the BBC, Jewish Observer, Jewish Tribune, and the Jewish Homemaker, as well as comedy routines and eight full length plays and musical comedies. In 2005, she and a friend founded a women’s theater group in Manchester, PACE. She has produced as well as performed… Read more
Yocheved Polonsky – ATARA Founding Member; Dancer – Cleveland, OH - Yocheved Polonsky is a dancer, dance educator, and founder of the Creative Learning Institute of Dance in Cleveland, OH, a Judaic dance and movement arts studio to provide a holistic Jewish environment for the study of dance. Yocheved studied classical ballet, modern dance, jazz, at the Cleveland Institute of Dance, Cleveland Ballet, Chataqua Institute. Recently she studied expressive movement based on the Hebrew Aleph Beis with Judith Rose based on Otiyot Khayot. Yocheved has taught… Read more
Yochana Chava (Pollack) Sandler – ATARA Founding Member; Visual Artist – Jerusalem, Israel - Yochana Chava Pollack/strong> is a third generation artist originally from New Haven, Ct. and presently living in Jerusalem. She uses various mediums: paints, collages, and ink, and often paints phrases of Jewish teaching. Her style is whimsical and conveys simchat chayim, love of life. Yochana Chava studied Fine arts at Emuna College, Illustration and Design at Pratt, Cooper Union, SVA and Parsons Art Therapy, Drama Therapy and Creative Writing in the New School for Social… Read more
Kari (Isaacson) Siegel – ATARA Founding Member; Dancer – Detroit, MI - Kari (Isaacson) Siegel has performed and trained in modern dance and contact improvisation across Canada. She has danced since childhood, studying a variety of contemporary styles as well as musical theatre, tap, jazz, ballet, stilt walking and acting. Kari has also worked as a stage manager and in theatre publicity, production, and administration for companies both large and small in Toronto, including Livent Inc. Kari is a founding member of the Toronto dance and performance… Read more
Rivka Lomiansky Watters – ATARA Founding Member; Actor, Singer, Dancer – Toronto, CAN - Rivka Lomiansky Watters has been a professional performer for over 15 years and has a tremendous amount of training in acting, dance and voice. She has studied at the prestigious American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York, as well as at the Toronto-based comedic workshop Second City and with top coaches in Los Angeles. Rivka began singing classically at a young age, and has taken a wide range of dance lessons since the age… Read more