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On Sunday, Oct. 25, the East Brunswick Jewish Center (EBJC) will host one of the 1,455 performances to take place in 70 countries as part of the Daniel Pearl Music Days.

Partnering with local religious and communal institutions, EBJC will stage a production of the Neighborhood Theater for Kids' "The Singing Tiger," an interactive musical created for children ages 3-10.

The Daniel Pearl Music Days is an international network of concerts in honor of the Wall Street Journal reporter who was kidnapped, tortured, and murdered by al-Qaeda members in early 2002, while serving as the paper's South Asia Bureau chief. The concerts are scheduled to take place throughout October, the month of Pearl's birthday.

Following his death, Pearl's family and friends founded the Daniel Pearl Foundation to promote "uncompromised objectivity and integrity; insightful and unconventional perspective; tolerance and respect for people of all cultures; unshaken belief in the effectiveness of education and communication; and the love of music, humor, and friendship," according to the foundation's Web site.

"It is an opportunity to bring some of the [Daniel Pearl Foundation's] mission to the EBJC, with the partnership of other local organizations," EBJC Rabbi Aaron Benson said.

Though the list of partner organizations has yet to be finalized, Temple B'nai Shalom of East Brunswick is one of the participating institutions.

While Pearl was familiar to most people as a prominent journalist, music was also one of his great passions.

"Danny was a journalist for the Wall Street Journal, though many people who knew him, knew him as a musician," Paul Karlsen, the operations program manager at the Daniel Pearl Foundation, told The Jewish State. "Everywhere that he went -- and he traveled all over the world -- he used music as the language to bridge cultures and barriers."

Karlsen said that the goal of the international project is to "bring people together through the universal language of music."

Benson said that the performance allows the synagogue to promote the values that Pearl stood for in his life and work.

"He sought to, through words and through music, promote cross-cultural understanding," Benson said of Pearl. "We thought it was a wonderful opportunity to further the work of the Daniel Pearl Foundation and an opportunity for the community, Jewish and non-Jewish, to come together."

Benson said that such a message is especially important in light of the painting of swastikas on Congregation Beth-El in Edison after Yom Kippur as well as a park in Edison that were found on Oct. 9.

"Given some of the recent vandalism -- among many aspects of the response -- part of the response that needs to come from the Jewish community is to do its share to promote better tolerance and understanding of the differences we have and not to have antagonism between groups," he said.

"We want to do our part to better the lives of people in the community and promote the values of tolerance and understanding," he added.

"The Singing Tiger," produced by the Neighborhood Theater for Kids, is an hour-long performance that includes interactive segments for young children.

Based on a Hmong folk tale from the country of Laos, the show tells the story of a young tiger finding his way in the jungle.

"It shows how all different kinds of people can work together to solve problems," said Laurie LeFever, who founded The Neighborhood Theatre for Kids in 1999.

Instead of ticket donations, attendees of the performance are asked to bring a new small instrument (small drum, maracas, castanet, triangle, cow bell, recorder, etc.), a CD of favorite music, or a small portable CD player to be donated in Daniel Pearl's memory to an after-school program in Middlesex County for disadvantaged and homeless children.

The performance will take place Sunday, Oct. 25 at 4 p.m. The event, free and open to the public, will take place at the Kroll Ballroom in the East Brunswick Jewish Center, which is located at 511 Ryders Lane in East Brunswick.