Film Review: “My Perestroika” (2010)
by Jamie Bushell
May 10, 2011
Times of political and cultural upheaval often lead to periods of deep introspection and personal change. In a review of the 2010 film "My Perestroika," writer Jamie Bushell discusses the ways in which this film portrays just this sort of experience for a group of former classmates, as they look back on what life was like for them in the Former Soviet Union, both before and after the fall of communism.
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Laughter, Music and Joy: The New Center for Arts and Culture Celebrates Mimouna
by Daniel E Levenson, ALM
May 6, 2011
The New Center for Arts and Culture has been doing some impressive work in Boston, creating events and programs which have a Jewish flavor, but are open and accessible to all. In this piece, new Vilna Review publisher Daniel E. Levenson writes about this year's Mimouna Celebration, an event which drew hundreds of Jews and Muslims from the Boston area to an evening of laughter, discussion and music all centered around the traditional Moroccan Jewish holiday of Mimouna, which marks the end of Passover.
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A Review of Hillel: If Not Now, When? by Joseph Telushkin
by Gerald SorinFebruary 18, 2011
The debates between the ancient sages Hillel and Shamai have fascinated scholars and observant Jews for thousands of years. In this new book by Joseph Telushkin, the author attempts a closer look at Hillel, considering the overall architecture of his ideas and why they remain relevant today. In this review, Gerald Sorin, professor, author and Director of Jewish Studies at the State University of New York at New Paltz, offers a candid and engaging review of Mr, Telushkin's new work.
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Society, Tolerance and Jews: New Center for Arts and Culture Co-Sponsors a Discussion on The Merchant of Venice
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALMJanuary 28, 2011
People love the work of William Shakespeare for many reasons – the fluidity of the language, the clever turning of a phrase, the heart-breaking stories of love, loss and revenge. But we also like Shakespeare because he makes us think about our own lives and the societies in which we live. And while he may have intended to hold a mirror up to his own Elizabethan society, what he has bequeathed us is clearly so much more than that. What we have in many of his plays is in fact a tool for better understanding ourselves and our cultures, an activity which is essential for all free and healthy societies, one might argue. This idea, that Shakespeare is challenging us in the here and now, was clearly at the center of a discussion held on stage at the Paramount Theater in downtown Boston this past week, at an event entitled “Shakespeare’s Jews.” The program, which was held in anticipation of an ArtsEmerson staging of The Merchant of Venice, this coming March and starring Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham in the role of Shylock.
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An Interview with Peter Marck, Principal Bass of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
January 18, 2011
The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra is about to embark on a seven-city US tour in celebration of their 75th anniversary. Recently, Principal Bass player Peter Marck, took some time to answer a few questions about the history of the orchestra and its role in Israeli society.
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Color and Motion: Chagall on Newbury Street
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM
January 3, 2011
In July of 2005 I passed up a chance to see one of the artist Marc Chagall’s more famous works – the stained-glass windows that adorn the chapel of Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem. To be fair, I had other things on my mind at the time, having just left the emergency room where I had spent the night passing in and out of consciousness while hooked up to an IV, battling some unknown virus which had rendered me severely dehydrated and border-line delirious. But that’s a tale for another time - what I am interested in discussing here is not my experiences with the Israeli healthcare system (which was, on the whole, positive if not a bit confusing) but the artist whose work I did not see as I nibbled on some dry toast in the back of a taxi cab, heading for a friend’s apartment to convalesce. Despite this less than happy episode, Chagall, a name I had known, but an artist whose work I was not very familiar with, continued to carry in my mind a connection to Jerusalem and Israel and Jewish art, all very positive things.
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What's in a Title? Questions Within Questions, a Review of Howard Jacobson's The Finkler Question
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM
December 24, 2010
Questions are essential to good fiction– the exact nature of the questions will vary from one book to the next of course, but questioning, seeking, is crucial. And when it comes to Howard Jacobson’s new book, The Finkler Question, there is no shortage of questions, or for that matter, questioners. This work, which was recently awarded Britain’s Man Booker Prize for Fiction, is largely driven by the sprawling and elusive question of what it means to be a Jew. Surrounding this question are myriad sub-questions, swirling about, like a rich cluster of stars about to be sucked into a black hole, devoured by this one vexing conundrum that drives this book and plagues the emotional, spiritual and physical lives of the characters Mr. Jacobson has created.
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An Interview with Francine Achbar, Director of the New Center for Arts and Culture in Boston, Massachusetts
December 17, 2010
In this interview, Francine Achbar, Director of the New Center for Arts and Culture, discusses the work of the center in Boston and the ways in which Jewish ideas influence the work of the center. She also shares a little about the ways in which her own background in the arts has influenced her career.
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Echoes From The Ghetto: A Review of Michael Goldfarb’s Emancipation, How Liberating Europe’s Jews from the Ghetto Led to the Revolution and Renaissance
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM
December 10, 2010
In Emancipation, How Liberating Europe’s Jews from the Ghetto Led to the Revolution and Renaissance, author Michael Goldfarb explores an important period in both European and Jewish history. His lucid descriptions of the oppressive nature of Jewish life in Europe before the Emancipation, as well as the political upheavals which defined revolutionary France and the formation of a unified German state, offer a fascinating glimpse into the climate of political and religious debate in Western Europe during the last decades of the 18th century.
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“1948” Offers Valuable Lessons for the Present
A Review of 1948, The First Arab-Israeli War by Benny Morris
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM
November 25, 2010
One of the first causalities in practically any discussion of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is often nuance, with reason, facts and any semblance of civility following shortly thereafter. While not everyone has the time or inclination to devote themselves to becoming fully-informed about the history, culture and politics of the Middle East, it doesn’t seem too much to ask that those who do become involved in debates and discussion relating to the conflict take the time to learn something about the history and evolution of both Zionism and Arab nationalism. There are some good books out there dealing with these topics, as well as the broader history of the region, and one which should most certainly be on any thorough reading list is 1948 The First Arab-Israeli War, by Professor Benny Morris.
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A Review of the Film “Nowhere in Africa”
by Jamie Bushell
November 13, 2010
Nowhere in Africa is a deeply passionate and engaging film about the journey of a young German girl, Regina, and her parents, Walter and Jettel, and their escape from Nazi Germany to Kenya. On the eve of the Nazi’s attack, Regina and her family, decide albeit reluctantly, that their safest option is to flee Germany and escape to Kenya. Regina’s father was already living in Kenya working on a farm and sent an urgent letter to Regina and her mother stating that they need to come join him to ensure their safety. Based on a true story, this film is rich in its character development and invocation of moral values. While it is impossible for the viewer not to get absorbed in the meditative landscape of Kenya and by the compassionate narrative itself, this film is more than just a beautiful drama; it is an incredibly compelling and thought-provoking journey exploring what it means to feel at home in a foreign land after having lost the sense of belonging in your own country. It is also very much about the transformation of individual characters as they learn to leave behind denial and reluctance and embrace acceptance.
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Empire and Nation in England and Arabia:
A Review of The Balfour Declaration, The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict by Jonathan Schneer
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM
November 4, 2010
The first thing that readers of Professor Jonathan Schneer’s new book The Balfour Declaration, The Origins of The Arab-Israeli Conflict, will notice is the thorough approach that the author takes in exploring the multi-layered landscape of the Middle East, as well as the motivations of the British empire in the opening decades of the twentieth century and the roots of Arab nationalism. Professor Schneer seems to be keenly aware of the importance of providing such context and background, and it will serve readers of this book quite well. The second thing that readers may notice, however, is that for a book which has as its title the name of a key document in the history of Zionism that Professor Schneer devotes the majority of his book to exploring the intersection of British imperialism, World War I and the rise of Arab nationalism. As such, this book will be of interest to those seeking a broader understanding of the political situation in Whitehall and Mecca as it touched on early nineteenth century Zionism, but those in search of a book focused on the relationship between the British Empire and Zionism will be disappointed.
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Haunted by the Past in the Pursuit of Justice
A Review of Tom Segev’s “Simon Wiesenthal, the Life and Legends”
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM
October 23, 2010
The portrait that emerges from Tom Segev’s new biography of famed Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal is that of a man who was both obsessed with bringing the Nazis and their collaborators to justice, and at the same time felt very keenly the larger social and political challenges of the time and place in which he lived. The former is reflected is in his unrelenting pursuit of former Nazis regardless of where he believed them to be hiding, and the latter is evidenced by the strong connection he felt to certain democratic principles and his status as an Austrian citizen.
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An Interview with Boston Filmmaker Laura Wiessen
October 6, 2010
Writer and producer Laura Wiessen recently took some time to answer a few questions from the New Vilna Review about her work in documentary film. In this interview, Ms. Wiessen, who is currently working on a film about the conversion process in Judaism, discusses this current project and shares some of what she has learned about religion and identity in the process of making this film. Her work has appeared on a wide variety of television channels, including PBS, A&E, Bravo and the History Channel.
NVR: For people who might not be familiar with “More Beloved By Gd,” your film-in-progress, can you give us a brief description of the topic?
Sure – More Beloved by Gd looks at the unusual decision to convert to Judaism through the lives of several people who’ve made that choice. We get to know these individuals intimately, following them wherever they are on their Jewish journey – whether it’s in the conversion process or many years later. Choosing to change your religion, and with it, sometimes, your lifestyle, isn’t easy – families of origin may not accept or understand your choices, and it’s often difficult to be accepted as “Jewish” by Jewish communities uncomfortable with Jews from different ethnic, racial, or even geographic backgrounds. More Beloved by Gd will follow people negotiating this terrain, a landscape that can include spiritual fulfillment and joy, as well as doubt, sadness and pain, to better understand the journeys and decisions of those who choose the Jewish people.
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An Interview with Textile Artist Heather G. Stoltz
October 3, 2010
New York based textile artist Heather G. Stoltz recently took some time to answer a few questions about her work as an artist and teacher for the New Vilna Review. In this interview Ms. Stoltz discusses her current show at the Park Street Synagogue as well has her own personal evolution as an artist and the ways in which Jewish ideas have influenced her work.
NVR: For people who may not be familiar with your work can you give us a description of the kind of art you do?
As a fiber artist, I create fabric sculptures and quilted wall hangings based on Jewish texts. When most people hear the word quilt, they think of a traditional bed quilt, but art quilts and fiber art have truly transformed this medium. The textures of the fabrics and dimensionality that can be achieved through different stitching methods are exciting and inspiring. I often incorporate three-dimensional elements into my wall hangings and also create free standing and suspended fiber art pieces. My work can be seen at http://sewingstories.com.
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Rallying Point and Religious Icon,
A Review of “Dreyfus: Politics, Emotion and the Scandal of the Century” by Dr. Ruth Harris
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM October 3, 2010
In her new work exploring the events, people and period surrounding the Dreyfus Affair, scholar Ruth Harris has created a book which will appeal not only to readers who are interested in the broader social context of the affair itself, but to anyone who is interested in learning more about the intellectual, religious and political climate of late 19th and early 20th century France. This book will also be of use, it seems, to those interested in contemporary issues of prejudice and Anti-Semitism, as many of the same sorts of forces – those surrounding regional politics and nationalism, religious centrism and universal idealism – are also at the core of debate and argument surrounding both modern Jewish identity and discussions of the role of religion in society, within both Israel and the Diaspora, today.
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An Interview With Boston Artist Fran Forman
September 20, 2010
Fran Forman, a Boston-based artist recently took some time to answer a few questions from the New Vilna Review about her work and a new show at the gallery at Mayyim Hayyim Living Waters Community Mikveh and Paula Brody and Family Education Center in Newton, Massachusetts. In addition to being a widely-known working artist Ms. Forman is also a Resident Scholar at the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis University. You can find out more about her work by visiting her website at www.franforman.com
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Success Has Many Parents, a Review of A Safe Haven, Harry S. Truman and the Founding of Israel by Allis and Ronald Radosh
by Daniel E. Levenson
May 9, 2010
The period immediately after World War II was a time of great political change across the globe, and an ascendant America found itself grappling with the implications of an increasingly aggressive Soviet Union amidst the waning of several traditional colonial powers, chief among them, Great Britain. At the same time, the world was becoming more and more aware of the scale of the horrific acts perpetrated by the Germans and their allies throughout war-time Europe and the Middle East. The majority of the Jewish survivors of these unspeakable acts of barbarism wanted to leave Europe and go to Mandatory Palestine, but with the balance of power shifting dramatically between nations, the plight of the Jews seemed likely to go unheeded. There were a number of important figures who played a key role in ensuring that the Zionist dream would become a reality, ranging from David Ben-Gurion to former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
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A Review of the film Where I Stand, the Hank Greenspun Story
by Daniel E. Levenson, ALM
April 18, 2010
In the film, Where I Stand, the Hank Greenspun Story, Director Scott Goldstein presents the dramatic and engaging story of Hank Greenspun, a man who wore many hats in his lifetime, from gunrunner for the Haganah, to Las Vegas casino and publisher, to social activist.
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An interview with Charles London,
author of Far From Zion
January 26, 2010
Charles London recently took some time to answer a few questions for the New Vilna Review via email. His most recent book, Far From Zion, offers a portrait of different Jewish communities around the globe, and was a finalist for the 2009 National Jewish Book Award. His first book, One Day the Soldiers Came, dealt with issues surrounding the impact of war on youth, including child soldiers.
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A (Rather Disturbing, but Definitely Funny) Look Inside the Israeli Government
November 8, 2008
Book Review by Daniel E. Levenson
In Shut Up, I’m Talking, And Other Diplomacy Lessons I Learned in The Israeli Government (Free Press, New York, 2008), author Gregory Levey, has written a hilarious, if at times slightly disturbing, memoir about his experiences working as an English-language speech writer for the Israeli government. While it may not be the most politically deep or lyrical of prose, Levey has written a very engaging and highly-readable memoir about the ups and downs of working for the Israeli government, first as a speechwriter at the Israeli mission to the United Nations in New York and then as a speechwriter in the offices of Israeli Prime ministers Ariel Sharon and Ehud Olmert.
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Interview with Emily Mello, Director of Education at the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University
July 25, 2008
Emily Mello, Director of Education at the Rose Art Museum recently took some time to answer a few questions from the New Vilna Review by email. In this interview she talks about the history of the museum, as well as upcoming exhibitions.
NVR: Can you tell us a little about your own background in education and the museum world?
I studied art history at Mount Holyoke College and knew that I wanted to pursue a career in arts that involved engaging diverse audiences. I was particularly interested in the way that the art of our time engaged directly with the issues and ideas of our time and felt that access to this work should be shared by all. After interning at the RISD Museum of Art I got my Masters in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. I was attracted to pedagogical approaches that privileged process over product and I think that mirrors much of the art and readings of art that I am also drawn to. From Harvard, I went on to be a Curator of Education at the Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati Ohio for over 4 years. There I managed and directed our tour, school and community programs as well as developing public programming that included music, film, and performance. I came back to New England to work at the Rose as Director of Education in January.
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Inside Yoav Liberman's Studio: Etrog Boxes and American Beauty
June 30, 2008
Etrog American Beauty
Artist Statement
Found objects and discarded wood serve as both the literal and the metaphorical “raw material” for all my work: they provide the actual physical basis out of which a new piece will be formed; but just as crucially, they provide the conceptual inspiration for that new piece.
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Brandeis Hosts Exhibition of “Post-Jewish” Art
June 26, 2008
by Daniel E. Levenson
Jewish artists have always found different ways to express not only Jewish ideas, but their own personal relationship to those ideas. In songs, poems, paintings and other art forms, each generation must wrestle anew with the rich and complex cultural and theological traditions of Judaism, and the one which was born in the 1960’s and 1970’s is no exception. This is clearly evident in “The New Authentics: Artists of the Post-Jewish Generation,” an exhibit currently at the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. The exhibit is on loan from the Spertus Museum in Chicago, where it was created by Senior Curator Staci Boris.
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Tales From the Jewish South
Book Review by Nina R. Schneider
In the Mouth: stories & novellas by Eileen Pollack Four Way Books, 2008.
In her fiction, writer Eileen Pollack treats American-Jewish characters with honesty, affection and humor—yet adds a satiric edge that is both recognizable and disconcerting. The author of the novel Paradise, New York and the story collection The Rabbi in the Attic returns with tales set in the Jewish uber retirement community of Boca Raton, Florida, aka “Boca,” which means “mouth” in Spanish. In her latest collection, In the Mouth, I was struck by the authenticity of both the characters and settings. Dramatic conflicts between adult children and their aging parents in distress reveal surprise role reversals. Pollack’s themes include deception, loss, guilt, illness, as well as human yearnings for love and meaning at all stages of life.
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An Interview With Novelist Jon Papernick
June 12, 2008
Boston-based Novelist Jon Papernick recently took some time to answer a few questions via email for the New Vilna Review. He is the author of The Ascent of Eli Israel and the novel Who by Fire, Who by Blood. and recently completed his second collection of short stories. He also working on adapting Who by Fire into a graphic novel with artist Sandy Jimenez. His website may be viewed at www.jonpapernick.com.
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Nancy Schön Exhibition 
May 27, 2008
On April 13, Mayyim Hayyim, Community Mikveh and Education Center in Newton, Massachusetts held an opening reception for a unique and exciting show by internationally renowned scultpor Nancy Schön. The pieces on display represent nine months of intensive work done in a shared studio in the Old City of Jersualem in 1979. In her artist's statement, part of which is reprinted here, Ms. Schön reflects on the many ways in which the sights and sounds she encountered during this period influenced her work. This show will be on display in the Mayyim Hayyim Gallery until July 11, 2008.
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Jewish Punks Embrace Nazi Rhetoric and Imagery
May 14, 2008
by Michael Croland
A half-heeb from Holland, Guy Tavares hoped to use his musical—Cohen, Blood, Speed, and Sperm—to talk about multiracial, swastika-worshipping, drugged-out punks.2 When the film failed to materialize, Tavares salvaged the score for the most logical venue for a Jewish punk using Nazi symbolism: a punk rock band.
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An Excerpt from the Play "Pulling Apart"
April 25, 2008
by Ellen Kaplan
SARAH and JOSH sit on a bench, overlooking Jerusalem. SARAH is agitated.
JOSH: Atrocities were committed.
SARAH: On both sides. Yes.
JOSH: We didn’t grow up with this, Susie. By the time we had any politics, Israel was a dirty word. So, why now, out of blue nothing? Why are you here?
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Inside Yoav Liberman's Studio: Flash Teapot
April 22, 2008
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Artist Statement
Found objects and discarded wood serve as both the literal and the metaphorical “raw material” for all my work: they provide the actual physical basis out of which a new piece will be formed; but just as crucially, they provide the conceptual inspiration for that new piece.
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Interview with Israeli Illustrator Liora Grossman
by Daniel E. Levenson
Award-winning Israeli artist Liora Grossman recently took some time out of her hectic schedule to answer a few questions for the New Vilna Review. Ms. Grossman was born in Lithuania and made aliyah with her family at the age of five.
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Der Übermensch!!!
Comic Books, Golems, and Super-Jews Christen Punk
by Steven Lee Beeber
While the East Village rock movement now had the perfect band and the perfect club, it still didn’t have a name. Known variously as “street rock,” “New York rock,” and “downtown rock,” it was like a two-headed newborn whose parents are reluctant to legitimize it.
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Chronicle of Heschel
Review by Daniel E. Levenson
Few Jewish thinks of the last century had the depth and breadth of the late Abraham Joshua Heschel. He was a man steeped not only in Jewish learning who reached out within the Jewish community across the spectrum from Reconstructionist to Orthodox, but also an activist deeply devoted to the political and spiritual causes he held dear.
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Fleeing Hitler
Book Review by Daniel E. Levenson
There are many stories of hope and desperation, of luck and despair that arise out of the Shoah. We have seen these tales in books and on film, and although with each passing day we move further and further away from the tragedies of the Holocaust and World War II, there are still new stories emerging.
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“Open Wounds, The Crisis of Jewish Thought in the Aftermath of the Holocaust”
Book Review by Daniel E. Levenson
Perhaps the greatest challenge to Jewish thought in the last fifty years is how to understand and find meaning in the world after the experience of the Holocaust.
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The Golem Rides Again
Book Review by Daniel E. Levenson
The tales of the golem are among the most fascinating of Jewish legends, but for a generation which has no living memory of shtetl life, it could be argued that the golem and the tales surrounding him, has become less of a presence over time. As we move about our daily routines in twenty-first century
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Questionable Courage
Film Review of "Secret Courage: The Walter Suskind Story"
by Chloe Safier
The inevitable and problematic nature of a historical documentary is that it lacks footnotes. While a book can convey layers of historical truth, a documentary on the same subject lays flat- conveying to the viewer that everything presented is equally verifiable as fact.
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Roots Lost and Found
Film Review of "Roots", directed by Pavel Loungine. Russia/France, 2006 (Russian, English, Yiddish)
by Olga Gershenson
It seems that the whole world is obsessed with roots. The more globalized we become, the more important it seems to find the very hut (or yurt, or cave) from which our great grandparents tried so hard to escape.
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