New Jerusalem

As a young Jewish man in 17th century Amsterdam, Baruch de Spinoza excelled as a theological student; but as he encountered free-thinking Protestants, atheists, and radicals in this relatively tolerant city, he began to question his religion and the nature of God. As a result, he was branded a heretic and faced excommunication.

Includes an interview with Steven Nadler, Professor of Philosophy at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and author of A Book Forged in Hell: Spinoza’s Scandalous Treatise and the Birth of the Secular Age.

Recorded before a live audience at the Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles, in July 2011.

Director: Rosalind Ayres

Producing Director: Susan Albert Loewenberg

An L.A. Theatre Works Full-Cast Performance Featuring:

Edward Asner as Abraham van Valkenburgh

Richard Easton as Saul Levi Mortera

Andrea Gabriel as Clara

Arye Gross as Ben Israel

Amy Pietz as Rebekah

James Wagner as Simon de Vries

Matthew Wolf as Baruch de Spinoza

Associate Producer: Christina Montaño

Recording Engineer/Sound Designer/Editor: Mark Holden for The Invisible Studios, West Hollywood

Sound Effects Artist: Tony Palermo