The Jewish community has hit out at Brighton Festival organisers for scheduling religious-based events on their Sabbath.

The founding editor of Sussex Jewish News sent a letter to the event’s boss bemoaning the “little consideration” given to the “very loyal” Jewish theatregoers.

Last year Brighton Dome, which runs the festival, sparked complaints from Jewish audience members after scheduling the celebrated Israeli Batsheva Ensemble on their Sabbath.

Doris Levinson, who has written to organisers, said that having attended the event’s press launch, she was approached by a woman in charge of the classical music events.

She told Ms Levinson how she was proud to have put in place a number of items relating to the Holocaust.

But Ms Levinson expressed concern that there would be little, if any, Jewish audience because of the date.

Traditionally the Jewish Sabbath, or Shabbat, is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until Saturday night.

It is reserved as a time for family with more orthodox Jews prohibited from any kind of everyday activity such as working or driving.

In the email to festival boss Andrew Comben, Ms Levinson said: “After the sad experience when the Saturday performance of the Batsheva Dance Ensemble was cancelled, leaving only a Friday night available, I would have thought that you would have given much more thought to the sensitivities of a Jewish audience who would have liked to attend the Theresienstadt concert or the interview with Judith Kerr.

“I realise that planning the Brighton Festival is a huge undertaking and it has become such a successful item in the British calendar of cultural events.

“However, I am very sad that so little consideration has been given to your very loyal local Jewish concert and theatregoers.”

Mr Comben defended the scheduling adding that his programming team faced a “mammoth task” in fitting events in.

He said: “Although we can’t always secure artists’ availability when we might ideally choose, we always endeavour to schedule events at times we hope are both accessible and considerate for our audiences.

“Given the themes of this year’s festival there are many events which we hope will be of interest to a Jewish audience, including a very special lunchtime concert from Busch Ensemble on Wednesday May 8 which commemorates the anniversary of the liberation of Terezin.”