Social distancing may prevent some people from dancing cheek to cheek these days, but Hershey Felder is offering up an alternative: a livestream theatrical performance of his play saluting the life and music of Irving Berlin. Known for his one-man shows exalting Beethoven, Chopin, Tchaikovsky and Leonard Bernstein, the actor, pianist and playwright made a…
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On Stage
The Matzo Chronicles
The show will go on (again) … and I, for one, can’t wait
Amid pandemic and economic turmoil, there is speculation about life “after” and what the new “normal” will look like. Change is inevitable, even in good…
Passover
Saturday Night Seder yields $2.6M for charity, 4 insights about being Jewish
With its glittering assembly of stars, jokes that worked and attendees who could, well, sing, it was the Zoom Seder you wished you had. The Saturday Night…
Theater
Mock trial for Shylock is ‘intellectual reality TV’
If you’ve always thought Shylock’s punishment in Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice” was harsh, you’re not alone. At his trial in the play, Shylock is…
Bay Area
Traveling Jewish Theatre’s Corey Fischer suffers serious brain bleed
Actor, director and playwright Corey Fischer, best known as co-founder of The Jewish Theatre, suffered a brain stem bleed on Dec. 3, according to his…
Celebrity Jews
‘Nanny: The Musical’; Gwyneth Paltrow’s ‘Goop’; farewell to Buck Henry
Oscar season is afoot and Jews are in the mix, with nominations for best director (Sam Mendes for “1917”) and best actor (Joaquin Phoenix for “Joker”).…
On Stage
‘Pianist of Willesden Lane’ returns to Bay Area
The one-woman show “The Pianist of Willesden Lane,” starring Mona Golabek on the piano, is returning to the Bay Area this month. Based on the 2002 book…
On Stage
Beach Blanket Babylon hangs up its hat
On New Year’s Eve, San Francisco will tip its cap for the last time to “Beach Blanket Babylon.” After 45 years of mad-hatted frivolity, the musical revue…
Art & About
Two luminous works of art on love and faith to see this holiday season
In a season of holiday events, I want to suggest two works of art that are timeless: a profoundly playful book about love, and a compelling film about…