It’s always exciting to see a world premiere of a new show, especially if that show is on track to go to Broadway. And if that show has an all-star cast, even better. Such is the case with Babbitt, playing now at The La Jolla Playhouse, starring Jewish actor Matthew Broderick. [Sandi Masori]
La Jolla Playhouse’s ‘Babbitt’ Features All-Star Cast Read More »
Sandi Masori, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
By Eva Trieger SOLANA BEACH, California — If the adage is true, that things get better with age, theatergoers are in for a treat when these North Coast Rep Theatre School actors mature. The entire cast of The Importance of Being Earnest is already in line to win Tony and Golden Globe Awards for their
Right now they’re doing Tuesday With Morrie, a two-man show based on the book of the same title by Jewish writer Mitch Albom. The play takes place in the 90s when Mitch (Kevin Quezada) reconnects with his favorite professor from Brandeis University, Morrie Schwartz (John Grasberger). Morrie has recently been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease and is ailing fast. Mitch guilts himself into committing to come and visit Morrie every Tuesday until he passes. During these visits they talk about life, love, death and the meaning of it all. [Sandi Masori]
Actor in ‘Tuesdays with Morrie’ has Yiddishisms Down Pat Read More »
Sandi Masori, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
Cynthia Wynn Taylor Citron, born September 16, 1934, in Boston, died November 11, 2023, in New York, of pneumonia and old age. For nearly 20 years she was a well known theater critic in Los Angeles, writing for the Santa Monica Daily Press, San Diego Jewish World (for which she served as L.A. County Bureau
Los Angeles Theater Critic, San Diego Jewish World Contributor Cynthia Citron Dies at 89 Read More »
California, Obituaries & memorials, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
Most identify the Book of Psalms as a collection of Jewish hymns, prayers, and poems mostly focusing on praising and adoring God. Rabbis Jack Riemer and Elie Spitz, co-authors of Duet on Psalms, with their long careers as pulpit rabbis recognize for too many, reciting psalms is a perfunctory exercise, spoken without passion and devoid of their intrinsic meaning. [Fred Reiss, Ed.D]
The Hidden Passion and Joy of Psalms Described by Two Rabbis Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish Religion
By Eric George Tauber CINCINNATI, Ohio — How do we get through difficult times? How can we find a ray of hope when all we see are shadows? During the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us turned to streaming services like Netflix to cope with our feelings of boredom and isolation. My personal favorites were works
‘All The Light We Cannot See’ Illuminates Dark Places Read More »
Eric George Tauber, Holocaust, Opinion, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
It’s been a hard month not only for all of us in the Jewish community, but for the entire San Diego community. With all of the unrest and strife happening, the audience at Broadway In San Diego’s Mamma Mia was ready to let loose and revel in the joyous ABBA songs that make up the backbone of this whimsical show at the Civic Theatre. [Sandi Masori]
Audience Delights in Familiar Songs of ‘Mamma Mia’ Read More »
San Diego County, Sandi Masori, Theatre, Film & Broadcast
By Steve Kramer KFAR SABA, Israel — “Under the shadow of the horrors of October 7, 2023 and the war, the National Library of Israel made the decision to open its new home to readers and researchers as of Sunday, October 29, 2023.” The Library was due to open on October 17, but given the
In Time of Strife, Israel’s New National Library Opens Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Israel, Opinion, Steve Kramer
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania (Press Release) — Five years ago, a white supremacist murdered 11 Jews at prayer at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. It was the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history. The killings — one of a series of violent racist attacks committed by an increasingly aggressive white supremacist movement shocked the
Film on Pittsburgh Synagogue Attack to Air on San Diego Public TV Nov. 13 and 16 Read More »
San Diego County, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, USA
Like my father, I was presented as a traitor to the homeland and an enemy of the USSR. Although my immigration to Israel was legal, I was honored with the title of “traitor to the homeland.” My father was labeled a “traitor to the homeland” in 1949, although he loved the USSR and socialism. I was labeled a “traitor to the fatherland” 30 years later. In that country, any Jew could be a traitor – one who loved the homeland, as my father did, and one who did not love it, as I did. [Alex Gordon]
The Melody of Zionism Read More »
Alex Gordon, Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Israel, Jewish History
It was coincidence that two artisans who exhibited their work at Temple Emanu-El’s artisans festival on Sunday, Nov. 5, both had scientific backgrounds. Jonathan Rosenberg had worked prior to retirement as an immunologist at PharmaGen and at Becton, Dickinson (BD) during 16 years of his career. Anita Hettena was a biology professor, specializing in the teaching of anatomy, at San Diego City College. [Donald H. Harrison]
Science, Art, Religion Mix at Temple Emanu-El’s Artisans Festival Read More »
Donald H. Harrison, Jewish Religion, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, San Diego County
SAN DIEGO – This collection of five graphic stories was released on Halloween, October 31, not coincidentally. Each fictional tale has elements of the supernatural, mostly intervening on behalf of Jews who otherwise would have been murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust. [Donald H. Harrison]
Supernatural Tales Embody Wishes of Holocaust Rescue Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Holocaust, Jewish Fiction
By Eva Trieger SAN DIEGO — Scripps Ranch Theatre brings us The 39 Steps, a murder-mystery comic romp that has director Phil Johnson’s fingerprints all over it. Based loosely on Hitchcock’s 1935 film of the same name, this reimagined version takes the liberty to incorporate so many films of this genre with the over-emoting, high
Let me quickly give you a little plot summary… Kira (St. Clair) is one of the nine Greek Muses, and she decides to go down to earth (as a roller skating Australian) to give some inspiration to aspiring artist Sonny Malone (Hunter Brown). But there are rules about going to earth to inspire artists, and those rules include not helping to create art, not letting on you’re a muse, and definitely not falling in love with a mortal. [Sandi Masori]
‘Xanadu’ Brings Back Memories of the 1980s Read More »
Sandi Masori, Theatre, Film & Broadcast