A cherished annual tradition at KlezKanada's Summer Retreat, the Backwards March was brought to KlezKanada by Jenny Romaine, Frank London, and Itzik Gottesman as part of a 2001 workshop on Jewish processions entitled "How Do Yiddish Speaking Jews Walk Together?"

In preparation for the workshop, Jenny met with folklorist Itzik Gottesman. Itzik remembered the tradition of a backwards procession, shared with him in a 1998 interview with Arye Laish, a Yiddish singer and actor living in Israel. Laish described how, in the 1920-30's all the Jews of his town of Stănișești, Romania, would gather by the river on Friday evening. Facing the sunset, they would walk backwards together toward town playing a melody to usher in the Sabbath. They would proceed backwards into the town so as not to turn their back on the Sabbath and the Shabes Queen. When they reached the synagogue, they would put down their instruments and begin the evening prayers.

Working with Itzik and with Frank London, who re-imagined and adapted the melody so that all participants at the Summer Retreat could learn and sing or play it, Jenny and workshop participants led the whole retreat in a Backwards March. Over the years, the Backwards March has since become an integral part of the week at KlezKanada's Summer Retreat.

The Backwards March is a powerful example of the work we do at KlezKanada, where we actively explore, create, and perform a relationship to cultural practice that is grounded in history, makes informed choices, and turns it into something for the present and future.

"The Backwards March is almost the epitome of everything we're trying to do at KlezKanada. About taking our history and studying it and making informed choices and yet creating something new that we internalize that is ours and that lives on in the future." Frank London

Cover photo (above) by Josh Dolgin.