'There's a Jewish story everywhere'
 


Sunday, October 25, 2009



Editor's Note: Events are listed in alphabetical order of the organization sponsoring them.

Camp Mountain Chai—Third Annual Women's Weekend—
Camp Mountain Chai sponsors its third annual women's weekend October 23-25 at the rustic hideaway in Angelus Oaks, California.A San Diego-based Jewish camp with offices in the same building as the United Jewish Federation at 4950 Murphy Canyon Road, Camp Mountain Chai offers summer camping for youth and diverse programming, including the women's weekend, over the rest of the year. The weekend, which costs $225 per person including transportation from the Lawrence Family JCC, will include Shabbat services, social activities, exercise, yoga, and nature walks, kosher cuisine, singing, Israeli dancing, and a variety of workshops. These will include Torah study with Rabbi Lenore Bohm, who will discuss Parashat Noach, giving attention to such questions as how Noach differed from Abraham, what were the sins that prompted God to destroy the world, and what is the cautionary tale of the Tower of Babel. Rabbi Bohm also will lead a discussion about eco-kashrut based on the teachings of Rabbi Zalman Schachter Shalomi who advocated "organizing our daily choices (food and beyond) so that we can actively engage in ecologically responsible living." Maxine Weseley will lead a workshop on communications to "promote even better relationships with our loved ones, students and colleagues." Weseley will utilize dialogue, Jewish anecdotes and Biblical quotes. Ellen Fox will conduct a discussion "All About Friendship," asking "what qualities do we look for in a friend" How many friends do we need? How are our friendships different now than they were in previous stages of our lives?Cheryl Rattner-Price will conduct a workshop in beginner converational Hebrew. She says participants will be able to enjoy some basic conversation "even if you don't know glida from g'veret or chalav from challa. (ice cream from Mrs. or milk from challa) Louise Chandler will lead a discussion of the book God in the Wilderness by Rabbi Jamie Korngold, "Perhaps you have some term that you are comfortable with such as Oneness, or Sprit, or Unknown, or Source, or I Don't Know, that feels better than God," advises Chandler. "All of that is ok. We are going to talk about some of the ideas Rabbi Korngold brought up in her book, and see if they might apply to you, or maybe you will disagree." Liat Hoffman will lead a workshop using "music as a medium to explore our emotional and spiritual selves, and to wash away the dust of our everyday lives. It will be an organic mixture of learning new songs, singing songs we already know, and creating our own, orginal songs. If you have an instrument please bring it." Besides the workshops, there will be specialized hikes. The entire group will make a moderate hike as a community to the creek where "together we'll experience how nature can open our hearts and remind us of all the small miracles that abound in every moment." Diana Lerner and Wanda Refealy will lead an easy hike to the Medicine Wheel, an hour long up hill, down hill walk through the pine forst. Adam Lybarger will lead a more challenging hike from the camp to Slushy Meadows at the edge of the San Gorgonio Wilderness area, where several streams meet forming the headwaters for the Santa Ana River. It will take approximately 90 minutes. For more information call (858) 449-1330, or visit the camp's website at www.campmountainchai.com


J*Company—South Pacific—1 and 4:30 p.m.., the award-winning J*Company Youth Theatre, a program of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center,Jacobs Family Campus, is pleased to announce its production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s immortal favorite, South Pacific , which premiered on Broadway 60 years ago. The production will run October 15-25 at the David & Dorothea Garfield Theatre. It all starts “Some Enchanted Evening” on an island paradise during World War II, where two parallel love stories are threatened by the dangers of prejudice and war. The natural beauty of the islands, the hijinks of the sailors, the danger of war, and the strength of true love are joined by a sensational Rodgers and Hammerstein score featuring such hits as “Bali Ha’i,” “Younger Than Springtime,” and “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair.” Based on James Michener’s Pulitzer Prize-winning Tales of the South Pacific, the musical was nominated for ten Tony Awards and won all of them, including Best Musical, Best Score, Best Libretto and all four awards for acting. J*Company will produce a gorgeous 60th Anniversary production for the entire family.“This is the first of our year-long tribute to the brilliance of Rodgers and Hammerstein and the Golden Age of American Musical Theatre,” said J*Company Artistic Director Joey Landwehr. “South Pacificholds a very special place in my heart as my very first union production at the age of 19. It starred Victoria Mallory and the late, great Howard Keel. I remember loving the music and performing for 15,000 people every night.”Heading the cast of South Pacific Are are:Ensign Nellie Forbush: Danielle Smotrich, 17, High Tech High International; Emile De Becque: Darien Sepulveda, 16, High Tech High International;Seabee Luther Billis: Robbie Friedman, 18, Rancho Penasquitos resident, high school graduate; Bloody Mary: Satya Chavez, 16,  Academy of our Lady of Peace;Lieutenant Joe Cable: Daniel Myers, 15, High Tech High International; Liat: Danielle Levin, 15, San Diego School of Creative & Performing Arts.  



Jewish National Fund—National Convention—Jewish National Fund has announced its lineup of speakers at its national conference at the downtown Marriott Philadelphia on Sunday and Monday, October 25-26. They include Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter (Democrat, Pennsylvania), who are both members of the Jewish community; Dr. Jakov "Bielski, son of Zus Bielski, whose partisan exploits during World War II were popularized by the movie Defiance; Mayors David Buskila and Ruvik Danilovich, respectively of Sderot and Be'er sheva, Israel; Israel's Vice Prime Minister Silvan Shalom; Uri Shani, director of the Israel Water Authority; Michael Ben-Eli, manager of Project Attir; and KKL World Chairman Efi Stenzler. Here is a link to the conference registration site. (Preceding provided by Jewish National Fund)

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Lawrence Family JCC—Art exhibit—The Gotthelf Art Gallery, part of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, JACOBS FAMILY CAMPUS, is pleased to announce the new exhibition Like Water on Rock: Exhibit by the Jewish Women Artists’ Network, running September 10, 2009 – October 30, 2009. Art is for sale, with all proceeds benefiting the artists and the Gotthelf Art Gallery. The title of this exhibit relates the phenomenon of the soft continuous drip of water that eventually erodes a hard rock to personal, familial, communal or global challenge and change. The poetry and image of Like Water on Rock provoke a variety of responses and suggests a relationship between time, the human process, the persistence of change and the many layers of meaning that speak to each artist in her own way Dr. Barbara Gilbert, Senior Curator Emerita of The Skirball Cultural Center, Los Angeles, selected the work for this exhibition. Dr Gilbert points out the great diversity in this exhibition as well as the wide range of personal expression: “Beginning in the nineteen-sixties when artists in greater numbers began to explore the potential of their Jewish heritage, most efforts were identity-based. Like Water on Rock provides an opportunity for artists to transcend this earlier approach, challenging them to think expansively and take ideas and values inherent to Jewish tradition, adapting them to concerns of the larger society.” The participating artists are: Linda Arreola, Ruth Askren, Madeleine Avirov, Helene Aylon, Carol Buchman, Emily Corbato, Anne Doris-Eisner, Harriet Finck, Karen Frostig, Teresa Gale, Sari Gilbert-Batchelor, Fay Grajower, Beth Haber, Katherine Janus Kahn, Rachel Kanter, Julie Klaper, Wendy Sue Lamm, Elaine Langerman, Aline Mare, Freyda Miller, Priscilla Otani, Margaret Parker, Roxanne Phillips, Cindy Rinne, Launa D. Romoff, Dawn Saks, Masha Schweitzer, Margaret Silverman, Simone Soltan and Marian Yap.Thirty artists from across the United States were selected to comprise this exhibit. "To have thirty talented Jewish women artists exploring the theme of change is exciting to see, "says Randy Savarese, Gotthelf Art Gallery Committee Chair. "We are excited to give these artists a platform to exhibit their diverse work and the San Diego community an opportunity share art from around the country." The Jewish Women Artist’s Network is a special interest group within the National Women’s Caucus for Art (WCA) and is the only organization of professional Jewish women artists in the United States. The Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, JACOBS FAMILY CAMPUS, is located at 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. Gallery hours are Sunday-Friday, 9 a.m.—5 p.m. For more information about the Gotthelf Art Gallery and other programs of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture, visit the web site at www.sdcjc.org or call (858) 457-3030.


Oceanside Museum of ArtFabric of Survival: The Art of Esther Nisenthal Krinitz— Esther Nisenthal Krinitz was a teenager in rural Poland when the Nazis invaded her quiet village, changing her life forever. Separated from their family, young Esther and her sister survived the Holocaust pretending to be Polish Catholics, eventually coming to America after the war. Several programs are planned throughout the exhibition that celebrate Jewish culture and honor Holocaust memories. In New York, Esther continued the sewing and embroidery she learned as a child. She was an avid storyteller and throughout their lives, shared with her daughters the story of her harrowing days as a youth in Nazi occupied Poland. A gifted seamstress, Esther decided, at age 50, to tell her story in cloth, stitching thirty-six beautiful and poignant appliqué and embroidered panels which comprise the exhibition, Fabric of Survival: The Art of Esther Nisenthal Krinitz. Today is the last day of the exhibit: 1 p.m.-4 p.m. For more information call the museum at (760) 435-3720, or visit its website at www.oma-online.org

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Old Globe TheatreSammy—The late Sammy Davis Jr. broke ground as an entertainer and as an interreligious figure. His conversion to Judaism was a sensation, with Davis later explaining that after the car accident in which he had lost an eye, he had reflected with singer Eddie Cantor about the similarities between the Jewish and American experiences. Years later, he appeared on a television special with Nancy Sinatra, and the kiss they gave each other in greeting was believed to have been the first inter-racial kiss ever seen on television. Nancy's father, Frank Sinatra, was, along with Davis, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop were members of a high-flying group of popular entertainers known as the "Rat Pack." Sammy Davis, Jr., the man, his songs, and dancing are the subject of a world premiere to be performed at the Old Globe, September 19 through Nov 8, with the title role to be filled by Obba Babatunde, whose own career was influenced by Davis. Leslie Bricusse wrote the book, and most of the music and lyrics. Curtain times and other information available on line at www.theoldglobe.org.

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Project Sarah--The Yellow Dress -- Project Sarah, a program of Jewish Family Service to combat domestic abuse, presents The Yellow Dress, a dramatic monologue geared for teens, in which the story is told "of a teenage girl who becomes a victim of dating violence." "Speaking directly to the audience in anintimate and honest monologue, the young woman describes the devastating effects that verbal abuse, jealousy, possessiveness and physical assault have on her life. Her relationship begins as young love full of passion and promise--only to end in tragedy," according to JFS promotional material.
Doors will open at the Lyceum Theatre at Horton Plaza at 4:30 p.m., Sunday, October 25, and the play and discussion are scheduled from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Advance Tickets are $8 for students and military, #18 for adults and $36 for VIP seating. More information may be obtained at (858) 637-3067.


San Diego Repertory Theatre—Long Story Short—The San Diego Repertory Theatre will present October 3-November 1 Long Story Short, a musical based on a 50-year love affair between Hope, an Asian American woman, and Charles, a Jew who moved to Los Angeles from New York. Written by Brendan Milburn and Valerie Vigoda, and starring Robert Brewster and Melody Butiu, the musical is described as a "timetraveling romance that begins with a blind date and goes all the way to old age in one exotic song-filled evening!" It will be presented at the Lyceum Space at 79 Horton Plaza. For tickets, call the box office at (619)-570-1100

Temple Adat Shalom—Jewish Food Festival—Temple Adat Shalom proudly presents the first-ever San Diego Jewish Food Festival on Oct. 25 2009 11:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. Admission at the door is $3.00 for adults and free for children 12 and under. Pre-registration and discounted tickets are available on-line at www.adatshalom.com for $2.00 per person plus $2.00 worth of free food. The festival will be held at 15905 Pomerado Rd, Poway, CA. This event will bring thousands of people from the San Diego community together for a day of enjoying delicious Jewish cuisine, fabulous music and entertainment, Israeli & Judaic art and plenty of activities for children. The event will showcase various Jewish delicacies from around the world including New York corned beef on rye, meat stuffed cabbage rolls with rice, baked chicken wings with kasha & varnitchkes, gefilite fish, matzo ball soup, potato knishes, challah bread, bagels, halavah, cheese blintz with jelly, noodle pudding, potato pancakes, leek and cheese matzo pie, sweet fruit bread and much more. The entertainment lineup will include a comedy set, Israeli Folk Dancing, an adult choir and a concert featuring the band Yad b’yad. There will be synagogue tours throughout the day and a shuk (market) featuring beautiful items from Israel.
“The day will be filled with fun activities, unique performances and most of all a festive celebration featuring some of the world’s more exquisite Jewish food,” said Hannah Cohen, Festival chair. To learn more about the first-ever San Diego Jewish Food Festival or to pre-register, visit www.adatshalom.com or call 858-451-1200.


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