We're thrilled to have hosted Ben, Jonah, and Henry Platt to discuss their professional achievements and aspirations as well as how their Jewish upbringing and involvement, including Camp Ramah, have influenced their careers. The Platt brothers have talent galore and amazing singing voices. They've achieved tremendous success in such popular and critically-acclaimed productions as Broadway’s Dear Evan Hansen (Ben) and Wicked (Jonah), and in Counterparts A Cappella (Henry) at the University of Pennsylvania. The brothers spoke with acclaimed author and interviewer Abigail Pogrebin, who asked about their achievements, their challenges, their ambitions, and the role Judaism plays in their lives and art.
The annual Henry N. and Selma S. Rapaport Memorial Lecture was established in 1982 by Selma S. Rapaport (1916–2010), who served as president of the Women’s League for Conservative Judaism and as a longtime JTS board member, in memory of her late husband. A distinguished attorney and committed Jew, Henry N. Rapaport (1905–1980) served as president of Temple Israel Center in White Plains, New York, and as president of United Synagogue. He was an active member of the JTS board, and a generous benefactor of JTS’s scholarly programs.