Encino Hanukkah Show Was Well Disciplined

We don’t know what program your reporter saw on Friday night, (“Lighthearted Celebration of Hanukkah,” Valley Focus, Dec. 3) but apparently it was different from the one we attended at Valley Beth Shalom in Encino.

We take strong exception to the statement that the children “fidgeted with their costumes, fumbled their choreography and dissolved into chaos at the end of each song.” On the contrary, our observation and comments immediately following the program were how wonderfully well they (the 6- and 7-year-olds) knew all the words of the various songs and how well-disciplined their performance was throughout the program. We saw no chaos; keep in mind, this was not a professional Las Vegas production number.

This is another example of how and why we have become cynics and skeptics of reporting on any and all subjects by the media.

One more positive note, we would very much like to thank you for covering this event, and for conveying to the community the basic message of Hanukkah.

MAURY ABRAMS, FRANCINE ABRAMS, Encino