“Compelling” is the one single word that best describes the emotional story of "Jacob's Choice," told through the everyday life of the Fishers, an Old Order Amish family of today. In as unusual a theater setting as you have likely encountered, you meet grandfather, mother, father and children living together on the land, as their ancestors before them. You learn of teenager Jacob's dilemma in having to choose between joining the Amish church, or leaving behind family and community to become a part of the modern world. This lifetime decision is faced by every young adult member of an Amish family, since becoming Amish is a choice made freely as an adult and is never a "given."
The belief in adult baptism led to the Amish being referred to as “Anabaptists." Experiencing the horrendous religious persecution of the Anabaptists ( that was so widespread throughout Europe some 450 years ago, you take heart in their perilous voyage to America. With words from an actual 1737 passenger diary, you learn that many friends and family died before reaching the New World. Their dream of a new beginning set against the reality of their journey is magically heightened by wind, rain, smoke, and fire effects that encompass you right in the theater!
Jacob’s story is destined to bring to you the pain, sorrows, and ultimate joy of this family with whom so many inescapably identify. At the same time it provides an intimate view of these people who, to us, are neither "saints" nor "curiosities," but rather our friends and neighbors.
More than any other single Amish attraction, you leave "Jacob's Choice" with a better understanding of what it means to be Amish, and the ties that have held them together through the centuries.
The Amish Experience • P.O. Box 414 • 3121 Old Philadelphia Pike, Route 340 • Bird-in-Hand, PA • 17505
Phone (717) 768-8400, Ext. 210 • Fax (717) 768-7864 • Email: padutch@amishexperience.com
