The force is with Six13 in a Star Wars-themed Hanukkah video
Six13's “A Star Wars Chanukah,” the release of the new and final Star Wars film, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which is set days before the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.
By HANNAH BROWNSix13(photo credit: Courtesy of Di Zhang)Six13, the all-male a capella group that has created clever Hanukkah-themed songs to the tune of such pop hits as Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Taylor Swift’s “Shake It Off,” is back with a Star Wars Hanukkah anthem.Called “A Star Wars Chanukah,” it celebrates the fact that the release of the new and final Star Wars film, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, is set to hit theaters in the US on December 20 – and in Israel on December 18 – just days before the beginning of the Hanukkah holiday.Opening with a parody of the iconic Star Wars “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away,” the opening crawl begins with the words, “Episode DCXIII, The Rise of Maccabee. It is a dark time for the Jewish People. The Land of Israel has been overrun by the Greeks. The evil emperor ANTIOCHUS has banned all Torah learning, and his army has desecrated the Temple.” It goes on to tell the story of Judah Maccabee and his warriors, all in Star Wars fashion.On the edges of the frame, six of the members of Six13 perform the Hanukkah blessing recited over the lighting of the candles (with the word for God changed to accommodate Orthodox listeners, so the name of the Lord is not taken in vain) to the tune of the Star Wars theme. The singers appear wearing Star Wars-style robes, and they sing a song about spinning a dreidel as a Darth Vader figure strides by.The bouncy gin-joint music from the Cantina scene plays as Six13 sings “Maoz Tzur” (Rock of Ages) like you’ve never heard it before, first in Hebrew and then in an English version. Instead of traditional gambling – as the aliens in the Cantina scene from the original Star Wars film engaged in – the Six13 members bet their chips on spinning dreidels. Following this, they engage in a parody light-saber competition over whether sufganiot (jelly-filled donuts) or latkes (potato pancakes) are the best Hanukkah food.Finally, in a scene referencing the climax of the original film, where Princess Leia awards medals to the brave heroes, Six13 delivers a vial of oil to a Hanukkah celebration. Their version of a Jewish princess, with sufganiot on either side of her head – in a parody of the side bun hairstyle worn by the Princess Leia – munches on the holiday treat while a light saber is lofted above a hanukkiah.The video, uploaded to YouTube this week, already has nearly 50k views and has received dozens of comments, many of which trace Jewish references throughout the Star Wars films. Some comments strayed into political territory, however. One commenter, Robert Billing, wrote: “I’m not Jewish, I’d like to convert if it weren’t for the bacon sandwiches, but I enjoyed this more than anything this week. As we have in the UK just thrown an antisemitic party leader under a bus, there is a lot to celebrate. Happy and blessed Hanukkah to everyone.”
