There will be a special one-night screening of “Sabbath Queen,” an award-winning documentary about Rabbi Amichai Lau-Lavie’s life as an openly queer Orthodox Jewish rabbi.
Third Space at Shaarei Tfiloh will host the film screening in partnership with Chizuk Amuno Congregation and School & Camps at The Charles Theater in Baltimore on March 19, 2026, at 7 p.m. There will be a talkback with Lau-Lavie and Sandi DuBowski, who directed and produced the film. The two will reflect on themes from “Sabbath Queen” and how they resonate in Baltimore and beyond.
“Sabbath Queen” was filmed over 21 years, following Lau-Lavie’s journey as the dynastic heir of 38 generations of Orthodox rabbis, some of whom served as the Chief Rabbis of Israel. Over the course of those two-plus decades, he is torn between his faith and identity, ultimately embracing both. Lau-Lavie becomes a drag-queen rebel, a queer-bio-dad, and the founder of Lab/Shul–an everybody-friendly, God-optional, artist-driven, pop-up experimental congregation.
Lau-Lavie spends his life reinventing religion and ritual, challenging patriarchy and supremacy, championing interfaith love, and standing up for peace. The film shows his ability navigate millennia-old tradition while promoting Jewish survival in the 21st century. While Orthodox Judaism is often portrayed as rigid and inflexible regarding gender and sexuality, the Talmud has recognized non-binary identity and up to 8 genders for millennia.
“When Sabbath Queen started making its film screening debut, it was clear we wanted to host a screening in Baltimore,” said Rabbi Jessy Dressin, founding executive director of Third Space at Shaarei Tfiloh. “The film is provocative and passionate, and deeply rich in challenging questions with a subject and producer who take seriously the charge of raising difficult questions in a deeply Jewish and artistic way, making it a natural fit for our community.”
The film premiered at Tribeca Film Festival in 2024 and has since screened at more than 80 film festivals and over 50 arthouse cinemas worldwide. DuBowski’s previous films include “Trembling Before G-d,” “A Jihad for Love,” and “Budrus,”
Bringing “Sabbath Queen” to Baltimore marks an interesting return for DuBowski, considering his last film shown here engendered some controversy. In 2002, “Trembling Before G-d”–a documentary that explored homosexuality in the Orthodox Jewish world–ran at The Charles Theater. Protests erupted, as groups of Orthodox Jews and Evangelical Christians decried the film. These were the only demonstrations that occurred during the film’s international run. DuBowski’s bringing “Sabbath Queen” to The Charles Theater represents an new chance for dialogue, reflection, and conversation.
For more information and to purchase tickets to the one-night screening of “Sabbath Queen,” visit this link. Tickets are $18 each*.
*The number 18 is considered special, or even sacred in Judaism. In Hebrew, the letters of the alphabet also represent numbers. The Hebrew symbols that make the number 18 also spell the word “chai,” which means “life.” “Chai” is spelled with the Hebrew letters “chet,” which has a numerical value of 8, and “yud,” which has a numerical value of 10. This is why Jewish people often make donations or give monetary gifts in multiples of 18, representing life and good luck.
