Author: Jeff Simmons

Categories
Culture Entertainment Events NYC

Celebrating Diversity of Cultural Traditions NYC

Celebrating Diversity of Cultural Traditions NYC
Photo by Brett Sayles from Pexels
Celebrating Diversity of Cultural Traditions NYC
Center for Traditional Music and Dance (CTMD)

Song. Dance. Culture. Celebrating the diversity of cultural traditions in New York City, the Center for Traditional Music and Dance (CTMD) is launching ​an online series, Beat of the Boroughs: NYC Online on Monday, November 16.

The series highlights the artistry of 54 of the City’s leading immigrant performers from around the world – but from right here at home in our five boroughs.

The artists include several National Endowment for the Arts Heritage Award winners. They represent traditions hail from Bulgaria, China, Colombia, Gambia, Haiti, Iraq, Japan, Mongolia, Ukraine, and West Africa, among other areas.

“New York City’s traditional and folk artists have been particularly impacted by both the pandemic and the anti-immigrant political climate in our country. Amid the pandemic, many of these artists have structural impediments, including the digital divide and language barriers to access federal relief funds or private sources of funding,” CTMD Executive Director Peter Rushefsky said.

“It is imperative that we come together as a city to support and celebrate our immigrant communities. Beat of the Boroughs: NYC Online showcases the immense talents of our artists and further the public’s understanding and appreciation of their work during these trying times.”

CTMD has worked closely with dozens of diverse communities

Since its founding in 1968, CTMD has worked closely with dozens of diverse communities to create a number of ongoing art programs, festivals, and community-based cultural organizations. Each year, CTMD serves thousands of New Yorkers through programs that provide unique opportunities to experience and participate in the City’s rich cultural traditions.

Organizers hope the series will build more support for the artists and for CTMD, particularly as the nonprofit continues to highlight the artistic diversity within New York City. CTMD encourages donations at https://ctmd.org/donate/.

From Borough to Borough

The schedule kicks off with:

  • The Crimean Tatar Ensemble, of Brooklyn, with folk music and dance from the Crimean Peninsula, Ukraine (Monday, November 16).
  • The Mencius Society with Xiao Xiannian and Julie Tay of Manhattan, with yangqin (hammered dulcimer) and Chinese percussion (Wednesday, November 18).
  • Sidiki Conde of Manhattan, with West African drumming and his sacred ancestral masks (Friday, November 20).
  • Malang Jobarteh and Salieu Suso of the Bronx, presenting on West African jali/griot traditions (Friday, November 27).

CTMD will highlight three artists or ensembles each week, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Audiences can tune in on those days at 5:00 PM to CTMD’s YouTube channel, ​​ or Facebook page.

“Through workshops, lectures, demonstrations, and streamed live performances, a stellar cast of musicians and dancers presents their personal stories, remarkable traditions, and pandemic experiences,” Project Director and Staff Ethnomusicologist Andrew Colwell said. “Their voices serve as a powerful platform for continued advocacy for traditional arts in our city of immigrants.”

Beat of the Boroughs: NYC Online is made possible through the generosity of​ ​the New York Community Trust’s NYC COVID-19 Response & Impact Fund and the Scherman Foundation.

Categories
Culture Entertainment Events Museums Music News Theater

A Celebration of Resilience, Resistance, and Hope

The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, where 13,000 Jews died fighting Nazi oppression –

in April and May 1943, it was the largest single act of resistance during the Holocaust. The Uprising was the inspiration for “Zog nit keyn mol” (Yiddish: “Never Say”), known as the “Partisan Song.”

 

A Celebration of Resilience, Resistance, and Hope
WeAreHere-IG-Timezones

The song, which exemplifies Jewish resistance to Nazi persecution, is inspiring a special virtual event this Sunday, June 14 –

 

“We Are Here: A Celebration of Resilience, Resistance, and Hope.” The concert – which will be live-streamed at www.wearehere.live – commemorates the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II and the 77th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, even as it speaks to the challenges of the current moment.

“We are all inspired by the example set in the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. The Partisan Song, which begins and ends this program, speaks to the fight for social justice and fundamental human rights,” said Bruce Ratner, Chairman of the Board at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust.

The Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust, National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, Sing for Hope, and Lang Lang International Music Foundation partnered to organize the event, enlisting more than 100 organizations from across the United States and globe to present it at 2:00 PM EST on Sunday.

And they’ve enlisted a robust array of renowned actors, musicians, and civic leaders to participate. Among them is a four-time Grammy Award and National Medal of Arts-winner, star soprano Renée Fleming, who will perform the world premiere of a new work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer John Corigliano based on a text by Kitty O’Meara.

Among the others participating are EGOT-winner Whoopi Goldberg –

Grammy Hall of Famer and Tony-winner Billy Joel, world-renowned pianist Lang Lang; the iconic Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Emmy- and Tony-nominated actress Lauren Ambrose, multi-platinum, Tony-winning Broadway star Lea Salonga, multi-Grammy-winning opera star Joyce DiDonato, and award-winning actress Mayim Bialik.

“Both the recent COVID-19 pandemic and the centuries-old pandemics of racism and antisemitism highlight the need for resistance and resilience,” Sing for Hope Co-Founder Camille Zamora said. Added Sing for Hope Co-Founder Monica Yunus, “As we seek to listen, learn from, and serve our communities in the days ahead, thoughtful organizational partnerships will be key. It is an honor to unite artists and stand together as allies with a global network that fosters resilience, resistance, and hope.”

National Yiddish Theatre Artistic Director Zalmen Mlotek –

and Executive Director Dominick Balletta noted that “In this time of rising antisemitism and global crisis, the themes of resistance, resilience, and hope are more important than ever, and the Partisan Song takes on even more resonance. The song begins with the words ‘Never say this is the final road for you,’ and ends with the words ‘We Are Here.’ It is the song that binds together those who fight for justice.”

The program also will feature an interview by The Forward Editor-in-Chief Jodi Rudoren with Nancy Spielberg, Roberta Grossman, and Sam Kassow about their film Who Will Write Our History, which chronicles the story of Oneg Shabbat, the group that daringly preserved the history of the Warsaw Ghetto.

You can view the list of all participants here. Local viewing times include 11 AM Pacific Time, 2 PM Eastern Time, 7 PM London, and 9 PM Israel.

Categories
Chefs Dining Museums News Nutrition NYC Restaurants

Serving Up a Dish of Heart and Sole

Serving Up a Dish of Heart and Sole

Holocaust survivors are considered some of the most vulnerable New Yorkers amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Serving Up a Dish of Heart and Sole
David Teyf – Executive Chef

One Manhattan restaurateur is making sure they get a dose of comfort – and good food – while staying indoors to remain safe.

Madison and Park Hospitality Group’s David Teyf, the executive chef who operates Lox at Cafe Bergson at the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust, is preparing pre-packaged kosher meals for Holocaust survivors.

With a small team, Teyf then bring the meals directly to these seniors across New York City.

“I am personally cooking and delivering these meals. I know that my grandparents, who were Holocaust survivors, are smiling down on me. This is something I want to do to honor them and because it’s the right thing to do,” Teyf says. “It’s in my soul to give back.”

An estimated 38,000 Holocaust survivors live in the greater New York City metropolitan area, according to Selfhelp Community Services. More than 50% of them live in poverty.

The pandemic is particularly traumatizing, echoing their lives more than 75 years ago during the Holocaust when food and resources were scarce. Because of coronavirus restrictions, they struggle with a lack of resources and community as they isolate at home.

Teyf has partnered with the Museum and the Met Council to identify 50 Holocaust survivors who need assistance. Additionally, the Museum is reaching out to other survivors to assess their needs so Teyf can provide more support.

He also is setting up an arrangement to deliver more kosher meals to essential healthcare workers at hospitals throughout New York City. The meals include salads, entrees, and desserts.

 

Serving Up a Dish of Heart and Sole
Jewish dish from Teyf’s restaurant

Teyf’s family has more than a century of epicurean experience.

“My great-grandfather started baking matzah for the Jewish community in Minsk in 1920,” he says. Each of his grandparents was the sole family survivor of the Holocaust. “After the Holocaust, my grandfather continued his father’s tradition of baking matzah for the Jewish community, which he had ultimately risked his life during Communist times until 1979. In 1979, my grandfather decided to pick the whole family up and leave Minsk for the United States for our Jewish freedom.”

Museum President and CEO Jack Kliger praised Teyf’s philanthropy.

“David is doing a real mitzvah,” Kliger says. “The Met Council and David are being generous with their hearts and minds: stepping up to serve others when there is a great need in our city.”

Categories
Design Dining Living News NYC

Hudson Square a Gateway to the Future

Hudson Square a Gateway to the Future
Courtesy: Hudson Square

A decade ago, during the Great Recession,

Hudson Square was a neighborhood known as the gateway to the Holland Tunnel.

Hudson Square a Gateway to the Future
Courtesy: Hudson Square BID

Its streets packed with cars bound for Jersey, the heyday of being New York City’s former printing district was long gone. Beautifully built loft buildings stood half empty and there was almost no commercial business or pedestrian traffic to speak of.

But today that has changed.

In the past 10 years, fueled by a thriving economy, careful strategic planning, and the support of the city and the business community, the Hudson Square Business Improvement District has emerged and Hudson Square is thriving. Vacancies decreased 300 percent and development increased from zero to 4.75MM square feet. Grab-and-go establishments have doubled, and daytime pedestrian foot traffic grew from 30,000 a day to 70,000.

But what Hudson Square is known for is its creative sector. Sixty percent of the workforce is employed by a technology, media, or communications company. Google and Disney are moving their headquarters in, too.

All of that was before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Since the shutdown, pedestrian traffic dropped over 80 percent, 87 percent of retail businesses have closed, and many other businesses have reinvented themselves in response to the crisis.

Hudson Square a Gateway to the Future
Courtesy: Hudson Square BID

By mid-March Adafruit, a maker of tools, equipment, and electronics, pivoted. Now it creates face shields for healthcare workers and electronic components for much-needed ventilators. Now, the company is making personal protective equipment and essential items available to all New Yorkers on its website.

Then there’s Vivvi. The employer-sponsored childcare center provides its 12-hour services exclusively to medical professionals and other essential employees on a drop-in emergency basis.

The neighborhood also is home to Deborah Miller Catering and Great Performances, which would normally be catering spring galas and other big events. But today, the companies feed frontline workers and the homebound elderly.

“While our creative businesses work on technologies, messaging and communications to get us through to tomorrow, the local businesses that support them are helping us get through today,” says Ellen Baer, president of the Hudson Square Business Improvement District. “We’re proud to serve this resilient and forward-looking community.”

The Hudson Square BID and its businesses are harnessing their resources and strengths to aid in the neighborhood’s recovery.

And although the answers aren’t all figured out, business districts can’t afford to just think about today. There will be a tomorrow and the Hudson Square BID is preparing for it.

Categories
Events Health NYC Theater

Broadway’s Best for Breast Cancer!

The Marlene Meyerson JCC Manhattan is raising the curtain on a five-episode virtual health and wellness series, Broadway’s Best for Breast Cancer!, led by Hamilton star Mandy Gonzalez.

Caroline Kohles

The series is part of JCC’s cancer care partnership with Breastlink New York, an initiative that offers complementary care to those living with breast cancer.

This free series kicks off on Monday, June 1, and airs every Monday at 6:00 pm. It’s co-hosted by Caroline Kohles, senior director of health and wellness programming at the JCC.

“People living with cancer right now are anxious and afraid,” Kohles says. “They are going to be sheltering in place for much longer than the rest of us because their immune systems are so compromised. They need practices and tools to help with the fear and anxiety and a bit of entertainment to distract them and keep them focused and positive.”

“Together we will laugh, cry, and learn—while boosting our health,” says Gonzalez, who is currently battling breast cancer. “Along the way, I will share my personal journey with cancer. I will also share how my theater skills and loved ones got me through some tough times.”

Currently starring as Angelica Schuyler in the megahit Hamilton (until the Broadway shutdown in March), Gonzalez also originated and starred as Nina Rosario in the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical In The Heights, for which she received a Drama Desk Award. She has starred as Elphaba in the Broadway production of Wicked, for which she was honored with a Broadway.com Award for Best Replacement. She also appeared on Broadway in Aida, Lennon, and Dance of the Vampires, and Off-Broadway in Eli’s Comin’.

Shows feature guest Broadway stars, who offer guidance to those facing health challenges during the pandemic.

Each is followed by a live Q&A on Facebook Live. You can register online in advance here.

The series will feature appearances by Dr. Alison Estabrook, renowned breast surgeon and co-founder of Breastlink New York. The June 1 episode will feature a conversation with Krysta Rodriguez (Spring Awakening, The Addams Family, In the Heights), and guidance from positive psychologist Maria Sirois, a master teacher, facilitator, author, and international consultant who focuses on the resilience of the human spirit when under pressure and/or during the significant transition.

Subsequent episodes of Broadway’s Best for Breast Cancer! will feature health and wellness experts, as well as Broadway stars:

  • Episode 2 (June 8): Kerry Butler, who delivered award-nominated and/or -winning performances in Broadway’s Mean Girls, Xanadu and Hairspray; and, international best-selling author and research psychologist Kelly McGonigal, discussing the joy of movement and the healing power of music.
  • Episode 3 (June 15): James Monroe Iglehart, best known for his Tony Award-winning performance as the Genie in Aladdin on Broadway; and, Kathy Washburn, founder of Carved by Cancer, a support network for cancer survivors, discussing the taboo topic of sexuality and cancer and how creativity can be unleashed with “masterdates.”
  • Episode 4 (June 22): Telly Leung, best known for appearances in Aladdin, Allegiance, and In-Transit on Broadway; and, a special guest to be announced at a later date.
  • Episode 5 (June 29): Javier Muñoz, best known for his performances in Hamilton and In the Heights; and, a special guest to be announced at a later date.

Broadway’s Best for Breast Cancer! is endorsed by JCC community partners Sharsheret, The Nia Technique, and The American Cancer Society. It’s just one part of the JCC’s robust array of health and wellness programs for cancer care, all of them free for those in treatment or at risk for breast cancer.

The Broadway’s Best for Breast Cancer! series is promoting the First Virtual Shirley Kohn JCC Spa Day for Women with Breast Cancer on June 28 (learn more information here). People can visit jccmanhattan.org/cancer-care for a complete schedule, course descriptions, and to register.

Categories
Art Education News NYC Outdoor

Pioneering Women in New York City

Pioneering Women in New York City
Photo courtesy of Monumental Women

Here’s a chance for kids to show off their best artwork – and highlight the power of women!

Monumental Women is giving kids a chance to have their artwork featured at the historic unveiling of the Women’s Right Pioneers Monument that features Sojourner Truth, Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

Monumental Women is a nonprofit that is bringing the first statue of real women to Central Park. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization moved its in-person Put Her on a Pedestal workshop online. The workshop teaches young people about the Women’s Suffrage movement and prompts them to design a monument honoring a suffrage leader who inspires them.

 

Pioneering Women in New York City
Photo from MonumentalWomen.org

 

Some of the stellar submissions will be displayed at the Women’s Rights Pioneers Monument unveiling ceremony on August 26th.

The workshop is particularly timely: August 26, 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, when American women won the right to vote.

Monumental Women specifically chose this day to unveil the Women’s Rights Pioneers Monument and symbolically “break the bronze ceiling” in Central Park. There are currently only statues honoring historic men and fictional female characters such as Alice in Wonderland, Mother Goose, and Juliet (with Romeo).

For more information about the workshop, visit Monumental Women at monumentalwomen.org (and click on the “Education” tab).