NYC Jewish-y Events, July 5-15

Editors Picks: 

TWO’S A CROWD
They say opposites attract — they haven’t met Tom and Wendy. Forced together by a computer error, freewheeling Tom and uptight Wendy do their best to ruin each other’s vacations, but the bright lights of Vegas may still work their magic. This new musical comedy stars Broadway and comedy icon Rita Rudner (“Born to Be Mild, ” “Married Without Children”), Kelly Holden Bashar (“Fargo” on FX), Brian Lohmann (Off Broadway’s  “Lifegame”) and Robert Yacko (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” and “The Price” at the Mark Taper Forum”). — Saturday, July 13-Sunday, Aug. 25, 59E59 Theaters, 59 E. 59th St., (646) 892-7999, 59e59.org.

THE FORGIVENESS OF JUDITH MALINA
The literary canon is littered with anti-Semites: Eliot, Hemingway (see the Robert Cohen character in “The Sun Also Rises”), Heidegger and, more recently, Amiri Baraka. But of them all, the great modernist poet Ezra Pound may have been the most vile. In her final screen appearance, the anarchist theater director Judith Malina (the daughter of a Conservative rabbi) contemplates the notion of forgiveness in the context of the Holocaust. In the 10-minute film, the intense Malina, who died in 2015, faces the camera head-on and relays an arresting story of running into the fascist Pound (one of The Living Theater’s first works was an adaptation of his poems) after he took a vow of silence as a supposed act of repentance. Directed by Jeffrey Wengrofsky. — Sunday, July 7, 5:30 p.m., Anthology Film Archives, 32 Second Ave., anthologyfilmarchives.com.

MIDSUMMER NIGHT SWING

By now a summer cultural staple and a throwback to a simpler time when dancing actually meant close contact with your partner, Lincoln Center’s outdoor series features the Eyal Vilner Big Band. Vilner is an Israeli-American saxophonist well-schooled in the Swing Era sounds of the 1940s. The gig, which stars vocalists Brianna Thomas and Brandon Bain and Lindy Hop lessons from Sam Coleman, celebrates the release of the big band’s upcoming release, “Swing Out!” Bring your dancing shoes. — Wednesday, July 10, dance floor opens at 6 p.m., dance lesson at 6:30 and music at 7:30, Damrosch Park (Amsterdam Avenue and West 62nd Street) , (212) 721-6500, lincolncenter.org.

Theater

THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO
This production of Mozart’s comic opera, highlighting the Sephardic origins of Italian librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte, is directed and adapted by Sephardic baritone David Serero, who stars as Figaro. — On various dates through Sunday, July 21, Center for Jewish History, 15 W. 16th St., (212) 294-8301, cjh.org.

GOD SHOULD NOT HAVE CHOSEN US
Following two sold-out performances, JCC Sketch Comedy’s show “God Should Not Have Chosen Us” is back with a new set of routines, skewering all walks of Jewish life. — Saturday, July 13, 9:30 p.m., The Peoples Improv Theater, 123 E. 24th St., thepit-nyc.com. $15 online/$20 door.

THE LAST JEW OF BOYLE HEIGHTS
Set in the industrial east side of Los Angeles, in what was once a heavily Jewish area, three Holocaust survivors meet on a factory floor amid talk of deportations, poor wages and fading memories. Written and directed by Steve Greenstein (“Voices From the Holy and Not So Holy”). — Through July (Thursdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 7:30 p.m.), Actors’ Temple Theatre, 339 W. 47th St., actorstempletheatre.com.

YIDDISH FIDDLER
“Fiddler on the Roof” (A Fidler Afn Kakh) in Yiddish continues its Off-Broadway run. Directed by the acclaimed Joel Grey, a rich Yiddish translation by the late Shraga Friedman adds new depth to the iconic musical. With English and Russian supertitles. — Stage 42, 422 W. 42nd St., (212) 239-6200, broadway.com.

Film

THE OTHER STORY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFY3hlcdhow

 

Family disputes and conspiracies take center stage here. Sasson Gabai plays a renowned psychologist who falls out with his granddaughter when she enters a charedi community and plans to marry a musician known for his wild ways. With English subtitles. — Through Thursday, July 11, Quad Cinema, 34 W. 13th St., (212) 255-2243, quadcinema.com.

THE SPY BEHIND HOME PLATE

 

Aviva Kempner’s film is the first feature-length documentary to tell the real story of Morris “Moe” Berg, the enigmatic and brilliant Jewish baseball player turned spy. — Various dates from Friday, July 5-Wednesday, July 10, Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Ave., jccmanhattan.org. $15 public/$12 member.

Music

DAVID BROMBERG
“You’ve got to suffer if you want to sing the blues,” David Bromberg sang in his debut 1972 recording, and it’s a lyric that says something about the Jewish experience. The great rootsy guitarist, who’s 73, was deeply touched by the blues, especially Rev. Gary Davis. But his brand of America ranges far and wide. Expect uplift and downhome-ness. — Friday, July 5, 8p.m., City Winery, 155 Var,ick St., citywinery.com. $35-$45.

ASAF YURIA EXORCISMS SEXTET

The Israeli-born saxophonist leads his own straight-ahead jazz sextet in a mix of standards and originals from his first album, “Papa Wawa,” recently released on Omer Avital’s independent label, Zamzama Records. — Thursday, July 11, 10:30 p.m.-1 a.m., Smalls Live, 183 W. 10th St., (646) 476-4346, smallslive.com.

BOOK OF J
Guitarist and vocalist Jeremiah Lockwood of The Sway Machinery and vocalist Jewlia Eisenberg, founder of the Balkan funk-punk band Charming Hostess, team up in a new duo project, Book of J. Drawing from American psalmody, Yiddish folklore and Jewish liturgy, they explore the intersection of religion and radical politics. — Saturdays in July, 6 p.m., Barbès, 376 Ninth St., Brooklyn, (347) 422-0248, barbesbrooklyn.com.

Exhibitions

AUSCHWITZ
The most comprehensive exhibition dedicated to the history of Auschwitz to date, this groundbreaking presentation brings together more than 700 original objects and 400 photographs from over 20 institutions and museums around the world to explore the history of Auschwitz and its role in the Holocaust. — Through Jan. 3, 2020, Museum of Jewish Heritage, 36 Battery Place, (646) 437-4202, mjhnyc.org.