Currently Browsing: November 2010
Terrific new documentary about Ruth Gruber, released in NYC in September & finally making its way here… but only to Landmark’s Renaissance Place in Highland Park. Gruber, born in 1911, is still amazingly vibrant, clear-headed, & articulate, bearing witness to great moments of 20th century history with such conviction that only fools would doubt her. In 73 […]
From Nov ’10 Spotlight: The theme of this year’s Chicago Humanities Festival is “The Body,” and once again, high profile Jewish authors from around the world will be coming our way, but this year an unusually high number of local authors are also on the schedule including Rachel Havrelock (“The Body of Jesus”), Martha Nussbaum […]
From Nov ’10 Spotlight: The 17th Annual International SOFA Fair (Sculpture, Objects & Functional Art) returns to Navy Pier on Nov 5, and this year’s program includes an opening day lecture at 2 p.m. called “Advocates for the Arts: Polish and Czech Fiber Artists from the Anne and Jacques Baruch Collection.” Born in Warsaw in […]
From Nov ’10 Spotlight: Chicago will host the Association for Jewish Theatre’s (AJT) 30th annual conference from Nov. 11 through Nov. 14. Based in Israel, AJT is an international organization, so theatre professionals will be arriving from all around the world to offer a variety of workshops, discussion groups and panel discussions for playwrights, administrators, […]
From Nov ’10 Spotlight: Mazel Tov to Argentine director Daniel Burman and Israeli director Avi Nesher, both award-winners in this year’s 46th annual Chicago International Film Festival! In last month’s column, I listed six Jewish-themed films scheduled for this year’s CIFF (Burman’s film Brother & Sister and Nesher film The Matchmaker, plus Circus Kids, The […]
From Nov ’10 Spotlight: Chicago North Shore Section of the National Council of Jewish Women began the new year on Oct. 4 with the wonderful presentation “Barbra Streisand: One Funny Girl!” at Lakeside Congregation in Highland Park. Speakers Jane Atlas and Joyce Grant used numerous film clips to show Streisand’s career arc in the context […]
The theme of this year’s Chicago Humanities Festival is “The Body,” and once again, high profile Jewish authors from around the world will be coming our way, but this year an unusually high number of local authors are also on the schedule including Rachel Havrelock (“The Body of Jesus”), Martha Nussbaum (“From Disgust to Humanity”), […]
Meanwhile way far away in Adelaide, Australia (miles away from Sydney on the southern coast), a girl prepares for her Bat Mitzvah, or in her pronunciation: “My Bu’Mizzvuh.” Who knew? Melbourne, of course, but Adelaide? So nu, why not? But aside from the fact that the local toughs all have a touch of Maori blood, Hey Hey It’s Esther […]
Two of the Broadway titans who created Fiddler on the Roof have just left us: Joseph Stein, author of Fiddler’s libretto, died on Sunday October 24; Jerry Bock, composer of Fiddler’s music, died yesterday (11/3/10). May their memories be for blessing. Although all five of these great artists all had many other accomplishments, what the Fiddler […]