Seattle Jewish Chorale

We are gearing up to get started with our 19th season in Seattle! What are some of your favorite SJC memories? 🌠

We're excited to see everyone's oratorios and fully fledged operatic arias at our auditions on September 2nd! (Or maybe just Happy Birthday...) If you have any questions, please reach out!

(Picture is from our recent 18th Anniversary Gala Encore, where we invited former members to sing with us for the last song!)

It's tiiiiiiiime! 🌼🌻🌸 Auditions are coming up on September 2nd! Please visit our website for more information!

Thank you for supporting the Seattle Jewish Chorale at our Chai Anniversary Gala, as well as for the entire 18 years of our existence. This community has put in monumental effort to sustain SJC through ongoing challenges. Your donations and auction purchases will help finance our ambitious plans for commissioning more new works and conscientiously exploring cross-cultural collaboration.

We are so proud to share the beauty of Jewish music and culture with the world and we appreciate everyone's generosity so much. We'll soon be announcing auditions, concerts, and more -- but for now, thank you again for a wonderful Gala!

Please enjoy this recap video created by our planners and decorators, A Your Name Story, as well as some other photos of the event!

The flowers are blooming and so are we! Tickets are still available for tonight's performance!

! If you haven't gotten your tickets yet for our 18th Anniversary Legacy Gala, you only have 24 more hours!

Tickets and information are available at seattlejewishchorale.org/gala2026 !

If the ticket price is prohibitive, we are able to offer free and reduced ticketing options! Either select the Pay What You Can option on our Eventbrite or, for a free ticket, contact us. This is supported by a grant from 4culture.

Read below about another great silent auction item!

🎭 AUCTION ITEM: A Night Out at Village Theatre

Bid on two tickets to any show in Village Theatre's 2026-2027 Mainstage Season! The season features Ragtime, Come From Away, Dear Evan Hansen, the Agatha Christie mystery And Then There Were None, and the world premiere musical comedy Love Is Dead! There is truly something for everyone. One of the Pacific Northwest's most beloved regional theater companies, Village Theatre never disappoints.

Tickets and information are available at seattlejewishchorale.org/gala2026 !

The 18th Anniversary Legacy Gala gets closer by the day, and we'd like to feature another amazing auction item!

🎩✨ AUCTION ITEM: A Private Escape Room Experience at Locurio

Think you can crack the case? Bid on a private 75-minute session of The Vanishing Act at Locurio Immersive Experiences in Seattle! The Great Noximillian's assistants have been mysteriously disappearing... can your team solve the magic before time runs out?

This hard-difficulty experience is perfect for a group of 6-8 and is sure to be an unforgettable night out. Donated by Locurio Immersive Experiences.

Tickets are still available and going fast! Visit seattlejewishchorale.org/gala2026 for more information.

We have ONE WEEK until our 18th anniversary legacy gala! In the coming week, we’ll be giving you sneak peeks at what's up for bid at our 18th Anniversary Legacy Gala, and this one is hard to top.

🎻 AUCTION ITEM: An Evening at the Seattle Symphony

Bid on a world-class night out in Seattle! This prize includes two tickets to any concert of your choice during the Seattle Symphony's thrilling 2026/2027 season, the second under celebrated Music Director Xian Zhang, inspired by the themes of nature and community.
Benaroya Hall's public spaces have been boldly reimagined, with warm and welcoming details throughout designed to give you a truly exceptional concert experience.

Tickets are still available and going fast! Please visit seattlejewishchorale.org/gala2026 for more information.

, Leading up to our 18th anniversary Legacy Gala, we will be posting some spotlights of our members! The first one is of our lovely Celia Curran Amancio!

Spotlight on a Star
Celia Curran: Singing Between Spotlight and Harmony 🎶

Seattle Jewish Chorale: What makes your musical journey unique?

Celia: I think what makes me different is that I love being both a choral singer and a solo singer at the same time. I really enjoy blending into a group sound, but I also love stepping forward and telling a story on my own. Those two things feed each other for me.

Seattle Jewish Chorale: Where did your love of music begin?

Celia: My early musical experience is tied directly to Judaism because my first experience was in the Temple Youth Choir at Congregation B'nai Torah. I joined right away. My grandparents loved musicals, so I grew up going to Broadway shows and listening to cast recordings constantly. I even used to sing commercial jingles to cashiers before my family ordered food. Music, theater, and performing arts were just woven into my life from the very beginning.

Seattle Jewish Chorale: How did New York City shape you as an artist?

Celia: Moving to New York to attend Manhattan School of Music changed everything for me. I started receiving a lot of solos when I was 10. Middle and high school was so much fun, singing even more! I sang "On My Own" from Les Miz at my 8th grade graduation. During the performance, I noticed some of my friends getting emotional and crying... and my first reaction was "Am I that bad?" That's when I realized my voice could really stand out. I loved being around working artists and at the same time realized how hard it is to be a working artist! New York teaches you resilience. It gives you thick skin. Oddly enough, it was freeing to realize that everyone is so focused on their own dreams that you stop worrying about being judged all the time.

Seattle Jewish Chorale: What brought you back to Seattle?

Celia: I realized I didn’t want performing to be everything in my life. I loved opera, theater, and working at places like Lincoln Center, but I wanted music to remain something joyful and meaningful, not just something that kept me living out of a suitcase.

Seattle Jewish Chorale: How did you first discover the Chorale?

Celia: Completely by surprise! In 2008, I was visiting the hospital with my grandfather when a doctor came out and said, “So, I hear you’re a singer?” That doctor turned out to be Steve Greene, a founding member of the Seattle Jewish Chorale. I joined soon after, and I’ve been here ever since.

Seattle Jewish Chorale: What do these traditional songs mean to you?

Celia: Some of these melodies are ancient. Singing them makes me feel connected to generations before us. Audience members recognize songs their grandparents used to sing, and sometimes they quietly sing along. It feels like history breathing through music.

Seattle Jewish Chorale: What inspires you outside the chorale world?

Celia: I became a recent Swiftie during Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour era. I admire how much thought she puts into every lyric, costume, and performance detail. I also love artists who genuinely care about their audiences. And if I could dream big for a collaboration with the Chorale? Having Yo-Yo Ma perform with us would be absolutely mind-blowing.

Seattle Jewish Chorale: If you could describe your life in one genre, what would it be?

Celia: My life has been a choose-your-own-adventure story. Every day feels a little surprising. Every morning, I wake up wondering: Who is Celia going to be today?

V'shameru (Friedman) sung by Celia Curran Music: Debbie FriedmanPiano: Steven Jal FeldmanVideo & Audio production: Tom HillmanThis is a piece that is near and dear to my heart. I sang this for Friday...

Our volunteers and members of our Board of Directors were very busy this afternoon putting together gift baskets that will be auctioned off at our June 7th gala. We're so thrilled with the sheer amount of beautiful goods that have been donated; from handmade baby blankets to breakfast at Maltby Cafe, there is something for everyone to get excited about! Tickets for our gala are still available, check our page for the link!