theater/exhibition

When you think of Benjamin Franklin—and soon you will, every day, if the folks celebrating the 300th anniversary of his birth do their job—you don't think of him as a religious figure. Even less as someone who would pledge his hard penny-saved-penny-earned coin to build a synagogue.

Yet Mitchell Kramer (pictured), official storyteller at the National Museum of American Jewish History, reveals that he not only helped to build the first synagogue in Philadelphia, Mikveh Israel, which shares its home with the museum, but also supported every other house of worship building campaign during his life here.

Mikveh Israel has the original subscription list, with Franklin's signature writ large, on display as the inspiration for their just-opened exhibition on Franklin and religious liberty. Kramer spins the image of Franklin as a man devoted to liberty: "His last position was at the head of an anti-slavery society. His last act was to petition Congress for abolition." To represent the day Franklin was finally laid to rest, Kramer recreates a vibrant scene, where every religious leader in the city, including those from Mikveh Israel, marched behind the hearse.

Kramer has a wealth of historical knowledge, but he works his crowd, so there's no fear of him going into dusty details. "If the kids are happy, the parents are too," he says. But if you ask a question, he's got the answer. An awestruck comment about his acumen prompts this laughter-filled reply: "I suck it all in! My whole life is building up to being on Jeopardy!" Test your own local history with him during storytelling sessions on Dec. 25 and beyond.

"Benjamin Franklin and Religious Liberty," through May 31, free; "Being Jewish at Christmas," Sun., Dec. 25, noon-4 p.m.; also storytelling performances Fridays, noon-3 p.m., Sundays, noon-4 p.m., and periodically from Dec. 27-30, free, National Museum of American Jewish History, 55 N. Fifth St., 215-923-3811, www.nmajh.org.