About Shira Kline

SHIRA KLINE is a New York based performer and music educator.  She travels with her band, ShirLaLa, throughout the country and internationally bringing a dynamic, interactive program of joy and spirit, story and song, not to mention all out rock-star dancing and grooving!  Brought up in the world and tradition of music, Shira celebrates with communities and shares her love for Jewish life and prayer.

Featuring the talents of drummer Lee "Free" Frisari (Circus Amok) and guitarist Avi Fox-Rosen (The Amazing Frozen String Quartet), ShirLaLa touches the lives of children and their families at synagogues, museums, schools, festivals and community centers including the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, The Toronto Ashkenaz Festival, The Jewish Museum on Fifth Avenue, the Alyeska Resort in Alaska, the Limmud Conferences in England and New York and Terra DiLei in Umbria, Italy.  She is also a founding company member of Storahtelling: Ritual Theatre Revived.  In its 10th year, Storahtelling is considered a trailblazer and a revolutionary approach to Judaism: "Deep inside tradition, way outside the box."  She trains and works extensively with Amichai Lau-Lavie and Peter Pitzele (Bibliodrama).

In addition to performing, Shira is a worship leader and presents engaging programs for children and adults including Tot Shabbat, adult Jewish music meditation and professional development for early childhood and music teachers.  In 2008, she served as adjunct faculty for Hava Nashira and has led ongoing programs for families at Temple EmanuEl in New York City for the past ten years.

Shira holds a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and has spent many years engaging in Torah Study in formal and informal settings.

Her motivation stems from a family who infused every moment of life with a love of Judaism - special homemade foods, singing and dancing to Jewish music, exploring and reveling in all holidays, ethics, lessons learned through Jewish eyes. Her father, Rabbi David Kline, taught her meditation as a form of prayer at an early age. Her mother, Barbara Kline, brought in each Shabbat with beautiful candle-lighting and homemade challah and at bedtime her father sent her to sleep with sweet dreams of Shabbat angels.