NYC Jewish-y Events, September 27 – October 7

Editors Picks: 

THE ART OF EXILE
In the late 1930s, propelled by the Nazi threat, countless Jewish artists fled their homelands in Germany and Austria to regrow their roots and careers in new lands. “The Art of Exile: Paintings by German-Jewish Refugees,” a Leo Baeck Institute show that opened in the summer, tells the story of 11 such refugees through the art they created in their new homes — which, even years after, retain the feel of exile. Presented in conjunction with the exhibit, this evening offers readings of documents pulled from the archival collections of the painters that illuminate the personal stories and struggles behind each work. (The show runs through Dec. 31.) — Wednesday, Oct. 2, 6 p.m., Center for Jewish History, 15 W. 16th St., (212) 294-8301, art-exile.bpt.me.

A JEWISH PRINCESS PARTY
A cast of all-female Broadway stars comes together to celebrate female Jewish-American singer-songwriters like Carole King, Barbra Streisand and Pink, from the worlds of pop, rock and Broadway. Headliners include Adinah Alexander (“Parade,” “Wicked”), Dara Paige Bloomfield (“Ragtime”), Blair Goldberg (“Annie Get Your Gun,” “Kinky Boots”) Annabelle Kempf (“Billy Elliot”) and more. Conceived and produced by Dara Paige Bloomfield. — Thursday, Oct. 3, 9:30 p.m., Feinstein’s 54 Below, 54 W. 54th St., Cellar, 54below.com.

THE LEHMAN TRILOGY, IN FILM

 

A filmed version of Stefano Massini’s hit play “The Lehman Trilogy,” directed by Sam Mendes, tracks the spectacular rise and disastrous fall of one of the most influential Jewish families in history. The play, which is headed to Broadway in March, explores how a general store opened by Bavarian Jewish immigrants in 1840s Alabama grew to become one of the world’s leading investment banks. Played by three illustrious British actors — Simon Russell Beale, Ben Miles and Adam Godley — it is a cautionary tale that tracks the ever-riskier tightrope act of three generations of the ultra-wealthy family, which evolved from traders in cotton and coffee to “merchants of money.” — Sunday, Sept. 29, 3:30 p.m., NYU Skirball, 566 LaGuardia Pl., (212) 998-4941, tickets.nyu.edu; Saturday, Oct. 5, 6 p.m., Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway, (212) 864-5400, symphonyspace.org.

Theater

KINGFISHERS CATCH FIRE

Robin Glendinning’s play tells the true story of the unlikely friendship that evolved after the WWII between Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, a Vatican priest who helped Jews escape the Nazis in Rome, and Herbert Kappler, the former head of the Gestapo there. — Through Oct. 20, Irish Repertory Theatre, 132 W. 22nd St., (212) 727.2737, irishrep.org.

JAZZ SINGER
Joshua William Gelb and Nehemiah Luckett’s new musical, “jazz singer,” interrogates the themes of the first feature-length “sound film,” the Al Jolson vehicle “The Jazz Singer.” Set on the Lower East Side, the 1927 film tells the story of a jazz crooner forced to choose between his immigrant Jewish heritage and his aspirations to become a Broadway star. Jolson, of course, performed the role in blackface, and given the sudden re-emergence of the blackface phenomenon (remember Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam and Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey?), Gelb and Luckett use the musical to explore cultural appropriation, assimilation and racism in its many shades. — Through Saturday, Oct. 12, Abrons Arts Center, 466 Grand St., (212) 598-0400, abronsartscenter.org.

THE TALMUD

In a cultural mash-up that’s hard to fathom, the genre-bending performance “The Talmud” draws upon Chinese martial arts cinema and juxtaposes it with chosen chapters of the Talmud. Taking place in a reimagined Talmudic academy, rabbis debate tractate “Gittin,” about divorce laws; interspersed in the scholarly dialogue are choreographed Kung-Fu-inspired movement sequences featuring a four-person cast and a musician playing a Chinese lute. Oh, and hip-hop dance scenes. —Through Sept. 28, Target Margin Theater, 232 52nd St., Brooklyn, (718) 398-3095, targetmargin.org/talmud/.

BAB(OO)SHKA
Anna Lublina’s interdisciplinary performance begins with her grandmother telling humorous anecdotes about Jewish oppression — onstage and in Russian. The tales are then translated into gibberish, klezmer music and a puppet show, reflecting on the realities of Jewish life in the Soviet Union. — Thursday-Saturday, Sept. 26-28 and Thursday-Saturday, Oct. 3-5, 7:30 p.m., Theater at the 14th St Y, 344 E. 14th St., (212) 780-0800, 14streety.org.

TO LIFE!
The Rosen family comes together in a hospital room and subsequently falls apart as family secrets are revealed, in what playwright Eve Lederman calls a “death-defying traumedy.” — Through Sunday, Oct. 6., Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave., (212) 254-1109, theaterforthenewcity.net.

LUDWIG AND BERTIE
The 40-year love/hate relationship between philosopher Bertrand Russell and his student Ludwig Wittgenstein is dramatized in this world premiere, a play of ideas and personal stories. —Opens Friday, Sept. 27, through Oct. 13. Theater for the New City, 155 First Ave., (212) 254-1109, theaterforthenewcity.net.

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

FIDDLER: A MIRACLE OF MIRACLES

“Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles” is the first in-depth documentary to track the musical’s origin story and reasons for its long-lasting success, revealing why the story of Tevye the milkman is reborn again and again as a global cultural touchstone. Featuring Lin-Manuel Miranda, Sheldon Harnick, Hal Prince, Austin Pendleton, Joanna Merlin, Danny Burstein, Itzhak Perlman, Charles Isherwood, Harvey Fierstein and more. — Quad Cinema, 34 W. 13th St., quadcinema.com. Extended through Sept. 26.

TEL AVIV ON FIRE

Palestinian director Sameh Zoabi’s “Tel Aviv on Fire” turns the Mideast conflict into a satire about the perils of producing a soap opera. — Quad Cinema, 34 W. 13th St., quadcinema.com. Extended through Oct. 3.

WHERE’S MY ROY COHN?

Roy Cohn personified the dark arts of American politics, turning empty vessels into dangerous demagogues, from Joseph McCarthy to his final project, Donald Trump. This thriller-like exposé connects the dots, revealing how a deeply troubled master manipulator shaped our current reality. —  Film Forum, 209 W. Houston St., filmforum.org.

SYNONYMS

Israeli director Nadav Lapid’s third feature follows the adventures of peripatetic Yoav (Tom Mercier), a disillusioned Israeli who has absconded to Paris following his military training. Having disavowed Hebrew, he devotes himself to learning the intricacies of the French language, falls into an emotional and intellectual triangle with a wealthy bohemian couple (Quentin Dolmaire and Louise Chevillotte), and frequently finds himself objectified, both politically and sexually. A powerful expression of the impossibility of escaping one’s roots. The Sept. 29 screening will be followed by a Q&A with Lapid. Part of the New York Film Festival. — Sunday, Sept. 29, 2:45 p.m. and Tuesday, Oct. 1, 8:30 p.m., Film at Lincoln Center, 70 Lincoln Center Plaza #4, (212) 875-5610, filmlinc.org.

Music

YULA BEERI

With her soaring, birdlike voice, dark and witty lyrics and a repertoire stretching from electro-pop to operas, Israeli-born singer/songwriter/pianist/guitarist/bassist Yula Beeri is founder of the impossible-to-pin down ensemble Yula and the Extended Family, which merges influences from punk, rock, soul, pop and Middle Eastern music to create a sound both enigmatic and enticing. — Saturday, Oct. 5, 10:15 p.m., Rockwood Music Hall, 196 Allen St., (212) 477-4155, rockwoodmusichall.com.

LOVIN’ BEETHOVEN
Hailed by The Washington Post as an artist of “formidable virtuosity and stylistic sensitivity,” Israeli pianist Tomer Gewirtzman leads the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players in a program dedicated to Beethoven’s works. — Monday, Oct. 7, 2 p.m., 7:30 p.m., Good Shepard Presbyterian Church, 152 W. 66th St., jupitersymphony.com.

BROADWAY-ISRAEL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrPU_fJ0b4c

Isaac Sutton, one of the leading male vocalists introducing Israeli audiences to the Great American Songbook, performs Broadway hits regularly at Israel’s national theaters and with symphony orchestras. “Broadway-Israel,” Sutton’s hit show both in Israel and the U.S, features songs from “Wicked,” Cabaret,” “Fiddler on the Roof” and more. Sutton will be joined special guests Amanda Jane Cooper (“Wicked”) and Ali Ewoldt (“The Phantom of the Opera”). — Saturday, Oct. 5, 9:30, 54 Below, 254 W. 54th St., (646) 476-3551, 54below.com.

SIM SHALOM JAZZ SERVICES
Sim Shalom, the world’s first purely virtual synagogue, presents musical services fusing Jewish music and prayer with jazz. Rabbi Steven Blane, Sim Shalom’s founder and a seasoned cantor and jazz musician, will perform holiday music with a jazz quintet. — Monday, Sept. 30, 10:30 a.m. -1 p.m., The Bitter End, 147 Bleecker St., (201) 338-0165, simshalom.com.

BOWL HASHANAH
Antibalas (Spanish for “bulletproof”) is an acclaimed Brooklyn-based Afrobeat band, modeled after Fela Kuti’s Africa 70 band and Eddie Palmieri’s Harlem River Drive Orchestra. Rabbi Daniel Brenner leads a morning service with Jordan McLean, Antibalas’ lead trumpeter, as musical director and trumpeter, along with Timothy Allen on guitar, John Bollinger on drums, Derin öge on keyboards and Yula Beeri on vocals and guitar. A vegetarian/dairy lunch from Blue Ribbon and babysitters for the kids are included in the price. — Monday, Sept. 10, 10 a.m., Brooklyn Bowl, 61 Wythe Ave., Brooklyn, (718) 963-3369, brooklynbowl.com. $40-$90.

Talk

RACE AND THE HISTORY OF EVIL
In the wake of white nationalist attacks, the ongoing debate over reparations and the controversy surrounding Confederate monuments and the contested memories they evoke, Susan Neiman’s “Learning from the Germans: Race and the History of Evil” delivers an urgently needed perspective on how a country can come to terms with its historical wrongdoings. Neiman, a Jewish woman who came of age in the civil rights-era South and has spent much of her adult life in Berlin, will discuss the making of this book and the lessons it offered. A book signing will follow. — Friday, Sept. 27, 1 p.m., 92nd Street Y, 1395 Lexington Ave., 92y.org.

 

THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE INDUSTRY ON EARTH, WITH RACHEL MADDOW
For more than a decade, Rachel Maddow has been issuing clarion calls about the myriad dangers facing America. Now, in her new book, “Blowout,” she’s sounding the alarm about a peril that weakens democracies, pollutes oceans and rivers and props up authoritarian thieves: Big Oil and Gas. Tickets are sold out, but the waiting list is still open. — Thursday, Oct. 3, 8-9:30 p.m., Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center, 1 E. 65th St., (212) 507-9580, emanuelstreickernyc.org.

Exhibitions

RUSS & DAUGHTERS, AN APPETIZING STORY
Russ & Daughters, the 109-year-old, family-owned appetizing shop on the Lower East Side (and an uptown outpost of late at The Jewish Museum), has already been immortalized in a documentary (“The Sturgeon Queens”) and a book (“Russ & Daughters: Reflections and Recipes from the House That Herring Built”). Now, the store can add a photo exhibit to its legacy. — Center for Jewish History, 15 W. 16th St., ajhs.org/opening-russ-daughters-appetizing-story.

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.

To publish events, submit them to jewishweekcalendar@gmail.com two weeks or more in advance. We cannot guarantee inclusion due to space limitations. Since scheduling changes may occur, we recommend contacting the venue before heading out to an event.