PROGRAM of 2023
All events are free of charge!
DONATIONS WELCOME
The International Festival of Jewish culture “Shalom in All The World” saluts the Klaipėda!
This year’s International Jewish Culture Festival „SHALOM IN ALL THE WORLD“ focuses on the Jewish woman, her role and importance in history, culture, traditions, social life.
When we talk about a traditional Jewish woman, what comes to mind is a woman who is intelligent, constantly busy with various affairs, manages the household wisely, strictly adheres to the essential precepts intended only for her, and is devoted to raising children. In fact, it is actually not uncommon for her to earn money for a living, as her husband is constantly studying the Torah.
In history, we will meet many more than one Jewish woman who did not want to live acording to the principle: “The public space belongs to the man, the home space belongs to the woman”. The dominant role of the man meant that a woman’s role as a leader in society was almost impossible. But even so, Jewish women found ways to use their talents and assert their leadership in a man’s world.
To become acquainted with the different destinies of Jewish women in various period of history, their political, cultural, social activities, achievements, which are known all over the world, we warmly invite you to come along and participate in this year’s festival „SHALOM IN ALL THE WORLD“ events.
This year the festival „Shalom In All The World” will welcome special guests – Ambassador of Israel to Lithuania Ms.Hadas Wittenberg Silverstein.
This year, the festival will take place not only in Klaipėda, but also in Švėkšna and Gargždai.
From the 2nd of September to the 12th of October, we will be waiting to welcome you all to the exhibitions, fascinating meetings, movies, meaningful discussions, concerts, as well as creative workshops.
Together we will learn to sing in Yiddish and dance to the unforgettable sound of Jewish klezmer music. Together we will watch movies, listen to Jewish tales and talk about the lives of Jewish women both here in Lithuania, Israel and also in foreign lands. We will discover their destinies and recapture the memories of the past generations. We will honour and embrace the vibrancy, vitality, richness and diversity of Jewish culture in all its manifestations. All the time tempered with a profound understanding and empathy for all the heart felt sadness and all the beauty that resides there too, which will inspire us all to move forward and rejoice in the present day.
Youth, adults, families, regardless of age, education, interests are very welcome!
Be with us and among us!
3 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Art department
J. Janonio str. 9
The exhibition will run until 1th of October
Exhibition
“Memories of Plants”
At the Dovile Dagienė exhibition “Memories of Plants”, plant leaves are used as material onto which archival photographs of Vilnius children are transferred. The photographs show reflections of childhood found in the archives of the Vilna Gaon Museum of Jewish History. Like leaves fallen from trees, such photographs roamed the courtyards and streets in the territory of the Vilnius ghetto following its liquidation. The shadows of the painful past, unfulfilled destinies and dreams look at us from the framed leaves of the plants. Plants thus become distinctive monuments of time and memory.
More information about the artist >>>
5 p.m.
Klaipeda County Ieva Simonaityte Public Library
Herkaus Manto str. 25
Duration 1 h. 30 min.
Presentation, film
You are cordially invited to the discussion with Ambassador HE Ms Hadas Wittenberg Silverstein „WORK AND FAMILY BALANCE IN ISRAEL: THE CASE OF A DIPLOMAT“.
A screening of the cult Israeli movie „Blaumilch Canal“ (dir. Ephraim Kishon, 1969) will follow the discussion and start at 6 pm.
The film is kindly provided by the Embassy of Israel and is part of the project „Israeli cinema in your town“.
Film
„Blaumilch Canal“
1969 | Israel | directed by Ephraim Kishon | comedy satire
Blaumilch (Bomba Zur) is a patient in an asylum who manages to escape by sneaking onto a milk truck. He is dropped off in the middle of downtown Tel Aviv, where a road construction crew is busy making repairs. Blaumilch grabs a jackhammer and begins to dig a hole in the road. The police halt traffic, believing he is part of the road crew. The irate mayor demands an investigation and finds no one willing to admit that they were unaware of the hole-digging project. Through a series of bureaucratic bungles, departments clamor to receive credit for the unauthorized dig. Soon heavy equipment is called for to aid in the endeavor that everyone is afraid not to know about, as the hole becomes a canal that eventually reaches to the sea.
We thank the Embassy of Israel in Vilnius for their support in organizing the screening of the film.
5 p.m.
Klaipeda City
Municipality I.Kant
Public Library Pempininkai department
Taikos ave. 81A
Duration 1 hour
Film
„BEYLE: The Artist and Her Legacy“
2019 | USA | Yiddish & English | directed by Liz Walber and Christa Whitney | documentary
Yiddish and English language with Lithuanian subtitles.
Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman (1920–2013) was a woman whose life and work bridged the old world with the new. Following in the footsteps of her activist father and folk singer mother, she dedicated her life to preserving and transmitting Yiddish language and culture. Her influence reached across continents until her death in 2013, and lives on in a new generation. A poet and artist, Beyle was named a National Heritage Fellow in recognition for her invaluable contributions to traditional Jewish folk art.
We thank the Yiddish Book Center’s Wexler Oral History Project in USA, producer of the film for their support in organizing the screening of the film.
yiddishbookcenter.org/tell-your-story
5 p.m.
Klaipeda City
Municipality I.Kant
Public Library
Melnrage department
Molo str. 60
Duration 1 hour
Lecture/discussion
“From the kitchen to the revolution”
Born in Kaunas, Emma Goldman (1869-1940), considered the world’s most famous anarchist, wrote that her father was determined to marry her off when she was only fifteen. She vehemently protested and asked to be allowed to continue her education. This angered her father so much that he threw her French textbook into the fire and exclaimed, “Girls shouldn’t study too much!” All you have to pay a Jewish daughter is to prepare gefilte fish, thinly slice pasta and bear enough children for your husband!”
Emma Goldman is one of the most famous Lithuanian Jews who lived at the juncture of the 19th and 20th centuries. She was certainly not the only one who faced the family and society’s reluctance to admit that a woman’s activities and dreams should not be solely limited to stoking the home hearth.
Established gender roles prevailed, with men and women functioning in different culturally assigned spheres in the traditional Jewish community for many years.
In order to fully understand the history of Lithuanian Jews, it is necessary to include the stories and experiences of women.
During the lecture, the audience will hear what the role of women was in the traditional Jewish community until the 19 th century. how the role of women changed during the 19th century and what challenges women still faced in the 20th century.
The lecture will be held at the Synagogue of Švėkšna on the 9th of September 12 noon.
Address Liepų st., 12, Švėkšna
Saulė Valiūnaitė is a researcher of Lithuanian Jewish history and culture, a translator, a PhD student at Vilnius University, who is preparing a dissertation on the contribution of women to the processes of secular Jewish identity formation in interwar Vilnius.
4 p.m.
Klaipeda Puppet Theatre
Vežėjų str.4
Duration 1 hour
Family Afternoon
“Jewish Fairy Tales. What are they?”
Jewish fairytales, are interesting for both children and adults.
In the treasuryof the world nation, Jewish fairytales could almost melt: themes and plots, like those of other nations, similar characters, people, animals, miracles. Living next to each other for centuries, people of different traditions could not see or hear their neighbors, so they wove other motives into their stories.
So if you want to know what those Jewish tales are, come and listen to them!
Participants Actors of the the Klaipėda Jewish Community theater „Shatil“ and theater Head Nerijus Gedminas
Registration is required >>> Registration closed due to sufficient number of participants
The number of participants is limited.
5 p.m.
Klaipėda City Municipality Centre of Ethnic Culture
Daržų str. 10
Duration 1 hour
Lecture/discussion
“Women in the Jewish Theater”
Jewish actresses in interwar Lithuania were more proactive than Lithuanian women. They promoted the Jewish theater more actively, became theaters shareholders and even directors. Like many Jews, their fate was tragic.
In the lecture of Assoc. Professor, PhD Ina Pukelytė, while getting acquainted with the Jewish female actresses and their fates, the disappeared traces of the Jewish theater will be revealed before our eyes.
More information about the lecturer >>>
Photo: www.vle.lt
5 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Pempininkai department
Taikos ave. 81A
Duration 1 h. 50 min.
Film
„Ghetto“
2005 | Germany, Lithuania| directed by Audrius Juzėnas | historical war drama
This feature film is based on true events of the years of war. The action is set in Vilnius ghetto (1942–1943) during the years of Nazi occupation.
The film tells a fatal and extremely tragic story of passionate love and terrible hatred that started between a Nazi officer Kitel, former actor and jazz musician, and a star of the musical world, a Jewish girl Chaja. Due to this fatal love a theatre is founded in the Vilnius ghetto.
The inhabitants of the ghetto meet the opening of theatre with discontent and opposition. They feel humiliated by the blasphemous idea that here, where the mass killings of the Jewish population of Vilnius took place, that is in a cemetery, a theatre will exist.
5 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Pempininkai department
Taikos ave. 81A
Duration 1 h. 10 min.
Film
„Turn Left at the End of the World“
2004| Israel| director Avi Nesher | drama, romance
A group of families emigrates from India to Israel in the late sixties, seeking a better life in what they believe to be the first outpost of the West in Asia. To their surprise, they are sent to a new settlement in the middle of the desert, populated mostly by Moroccan Jews. The two cultures clash as the group tries to integrate into the community, and are faced by harsh realities. But despite the conflicts and prejudices, young love develops between two girls from opposite sides of the struggle. The film finds a perfect combination between humor and sentiment in a very real and very difficult situation.
The film is kindly provided by the Embassy of Israel and is part of the project „Israeli cinema in your town“.
We thank the Embassy of Israel in Vilnius for their support in organizing the screening of the film.
5 p.m.
Klaipeda Cultural Communication Centre
Didžioji vandens str. 2
The exhibition will run until 15th of October
Exhibition
“A WORLD OBSERVED 1940-2010: PHOTOGRAPHS BY DOROTHY BOHM”
A World Observed 1940–2010 is a major retrospective exhibition of the work of London-based photographer Dorothy Bohm, widely acknowledged as one of the leading figures in British photography. Born Dorothea Israelit in Königsberg, East Prussia (now Kaliningrad) in 1924, her Jewish family moved to Memel (now Klaipeda) in 1932, from where she was sent to the safety of England in June 1939. Dorothy Bohm passed away in the Spring 2023.
More information about the artist >>>
Exhibition to be dedicated to commemorate the National Memorial Day for the Genocide of Lithuanian Jews.
The exhibition is organized in cooperation with the Klaipėda Jewish Community.
Curators of the exhibition Monica Bohm-Duchen and Gintaras Česonis
Exhibition coordinator Rūta Jakštonienė
The film about renowned photographer Dorothy Bohm, who escapes Nazi Europe and goes on to spend a lifetime capturing humanity in her work “Seeing Daylight: The Photography of Dorothy Bohm” will be shown during the exhibition.
2018 | UK| directed by Richard Shawl | documentary, biographical
Photo: Julian Simmonds (www.telegraph.co.uk)
5.30 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Art department
J. Janonio st. 9
Duration 1 hour
Lecture
„Creativity against the Odds: Women Émigré Artists in Britain after 1933“
London-based art historian Monica Bohm-Duchen, daughter of the photographer Dorothy Bohm, will give an illustrated talk about the Jewish women photographers who found sanctuary in Britain from Nazi persecution, and set them in the wider context of women artists working in other media who also settled in the UK after 1933.
More about lecturer >>>
Photo: Marie-Louise von Motesiczky Self Portrait with Elias Canetti, 1960s, Manchester Art Gallery
3 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Melnrage department
Molo str. 60
Duration 1 hour
Lecture
„The extraordinary story of Helena Rubinstein“
A historina Kinga Banasik will tell an interesting story about a woman who achieved extraordinary fame, recognition, and success. The audience will get to know how Helena Rubinstein, a Jewish women with Polish roots, established and created the wonderful, known to these days cosmetic company. We will see many interesting photographs depicting Helena on every stage of her life, her wonderful apartments, beauty salons and more. Also will be shown Helena’s very first TV advert, created in 1929.
The lecture will be held at the Gargždai Regional Museum on the 24th of September 4 pm.
Address Sodo str. 5, Gargždai.
More information about the lecturer >>>
We thank the Polish Institute in Vilnius for their support in organizing the lecture.
5 p.m.
Klaipeda County Ieva Simonaityte Public Library
Herkaus Manto str. 25
Duration 1 h. 30 min.
Book presentation
“Irena Veisaitė – between books and people. Presentation of the book “Mūsų Irena“ („Our Irena”)”
In the book “Mūsų Irena“, professor Irena Veisaitė (1928–2020), pedagogue, theater critic, spiritus movens of the Open Lithuania Foundation, Holocaust witness, mediator of people and cultures, is remembered by 90 people who knew her more closely. The publication includes a large number of photos, Irena’s letters are abundantly quoted, revealing the difficult moments of her spiritual life. The book is intended for the general reader, at the same time it can serve as a source for topical studies of memory, identities, trauma narratives, cultural interactions, and everyday practices.
Participants:
- PhD R.Pažėraitė, author of the book, is a doctor of humanities, literary researcher, former professor of the Lithuanian University of Education and Vytautas Magnus University
- PhD.Lina Motuzienė is a director of the PI Thomas Mann Cultural Centre and Neringa Museums;
- V. Toleikis is a teacher, essayist, publicist;
- Gytis Vaškelis is a Head of the Publishing Centre,The Institute of Lithuanian Literature and Folklore.
The conversation will be moderated by professor of Klaipėda University PhD.Vygantas Vareikis.
More information about the moderator >>>
The book „Mūsų Irena“ will be available for purchase during the event.
Photo: Dainius Labutis (ELTA)
5 p.m.
Klaipeda County Ieva Simonaityte Public Library
Herkaus Manto str. 25
Duration 1 h.30 min.
Lecture
“Bagels and gefilte fish. Jewish cuisine as perceived by non-Jewish neighbors”
At this meeting, we will be introduced to (un)familiar Jewish cuisine and common stereotypes about Ashkenazi* cuisine, peculiarities of cooking, Jewish eating traditions and customs. It may sound unusual, but stereotypes regarding food preparation and consumption, accurately reveal ethnic and religious prejudices. This is an important, characteristic part of the image of our close Jewish neighbors in the eyes of the non-Jewish population.
The kitchen and cooking have traditionally been and are perceived as a “female occupation.” Dr. Svetlana Pogodina, based on the material collected during ethnographic expeditions, will tell us just how such a stereotypical perception in society often constructs a stereotypical image of a Jewish woman.
More about lecturer >>>
*Ashkenazi – are an ethnocultural Jewish community that was formed in Western, Eastren and Central Europe at the end of the first millennium. Ashkenazi is distinguished by historically formed customs and liturgical features. Lithuanian Jews or Litvaks are a territorial-linguistic subgroup of European Jews, the so-called Ashkenazi.
5.30 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Melnrage department
Molo str.60
Duration 1 h.
Book presentation
„Žydai lietuvių literatūroje. Nuo priešo iki sąjungininko” („Jews in Lithuanian literature. From an enemy to an ally“)
In the new book „Žydai lietuvių literatūroje.Nuo priešo iki sąjungininko” Vytautas Toleikis delves into a historically and culturally sensitive topic – the relationship between Lithuanians and Jews in Lithuanian-language fiction from the first texts to the Second World War and later. In the publication, V. Toleikis, invites us to rethink whether we can perceive the formative processes of the consciousness of the Lithuanian nation in the texts of a specific era, whether we can find manifestations of anti-Semitism, anti-Judaism in the texts, whether Lithuania was somehow different from other countries in the European context of that time.
The lecture will be held at the Gargždai Regional Museum on the 29th of September 4 pm.
Address Sodo str. 5, Gargždai.
More information about the lecturer >>>
The publication will be available for purchase during the event.
Image: www.lnb.lt
2 p.m.
Klaipėda City Municipality Center of National Cultures
K. Donelaičio str. 6B
Duration 1 hour
Concert
“Klezmer – come closer, look wider”
The event is cancelled. We are very sorry.
Clarinettist and composer Merlin Shepherd, an innovative force in the klezmer* renaissance and Polina Shepherd, a virtuosic vocalist, pianist and composer base their musical expression in East European Jewish culture – klezmer music and Yiddish song.
This time, you will hear a programme traditional music as well as freshly composed new songs to create an explosive mixture of powerful dance rhythms and profound melodies of the Shtetl, the Steppes, Eastern Bazaars and an echo of a fisherman’s song from Odessa.
The Concert will be performed by: Polina and Merlin Shepherd
More about artists >>>
*Klezmer music has its origins in Europe among the Ashkenazi Jews. The word is a Yiddish contraction of the Hebrew words for instrument (kley) and song (zemer). This traditional folk music borrows inspiration from music from the synagogue, Roma peoples, European folk musics, and even classical music. It is at its heart party music, and is often played at weddings and other festive events.
Boston Public Library information
Photo: www.polinashepherd.co.uk
12 p.m. (noon)
Klaipėda City Municipality Center of National Cultures
K. Donelaičio str. 6B
Duration 1 hour
Workshop
“Klezmer music and Yiddish song in style”
The event is cancelled. We are very sorry.
Merlin and Polina Shepherd Duo (UK)
Yiddish songs and klezmer music workshop for singers and instrumentalists.
Inclusive, informative and simply fun workshop for everybody.
More about artists >>>
Registration is required >>>
The number of participants is limited.
Free admission. Donations are welcome.
5 p.m.
Klaipėda City Municipality Center of National Cultures
K. Donelaičio str. 6B
Duration 1 hour
Film and informal acquaintance with Sara Levitanaite
The film “ŠVĖKŠNOS ŽYDŲ BENDRUOMENĖ: istorija ir paveldas” (“Švėkšna Jewish community: history and heritage”) presents the former Švėkšna (small town in Lithuania) Jewish community, its surviving and decayed heritage. The film tells about the town of Švėkšna, when there were many Jews living there, and shows the heritage that has survived in the town to this day. The main narrators of the film are Naftal Ziv (b. 1924), who survived the Holocaust and lives in Australia, and Klaipėda composer Benhard Calzon (b. 1948), the son of survivor Leja Mentaitė Calzonienė.
2020 | Lithuania| directed by Nerijus Brokas| documentary, biographical
“Mūsų Sara” (“Our Sarah”)
Sara Levitanaitė (Sarah Levitan) was born in 1917 in Švėkšna. She was the daughter of forest merchant Israel Levitan. Sarah had two sisters. Sara attended Švėkšna “Saulė” gymnasium, after graduating, she went to Kaunas. She acquired the profession of a pharmacist, during the II World War she met Asher Feldman and married him. Sara and Asher were active participants of the anti-fascist underground in the Kaunas ghetto. During one operation in the Kaunas ghetto, Sara Levitan-Feldman was killed…
The events will be presented by Monika Žąsytienė – museum curator, educator, guide of the Švėkšna exposition at the Šilutė Hugo Šojaus Museum. M. Žąsytienė is the author of the book “Švėkšna Jewish community XVII-XX centuries.”
Photo from M. Žąsytienė personal archive
5.30 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Melnrage department
Molo str. 60
Duration 1 hour
Workshop
Hop! Hop! Hop! Yiddish Dances with Valeria’s Klezmer Chariot
Yiddish dances are known to be “social dances” that are easy and fun to perform by anyone: walking steps or “slip-steps” form the basis to move in circles and spirals, in single lines and in couples. The lively and expressive Klezmer music is the background for these traditional dances having their roots within Eastern-European Ashkenazi Jewish communities. Participants will learn to move in Yiddish style with the steps and figures of different dances.
The workshop is open to anyone. Previous experience is not required.
More about artists >>>
Free admission. Donations are welcome.
Photo: www.valeriaclarinetta.com
5 p.m.
Klaipeda County Ieva Simonaityte Public Library
Herkaus Manto str. 25
Duration 1 hour
Lecture
„Ambitions & petitions. Various portraits of Memel Jewish women”
Everyone knows who Rabbi Rülf was. But what can we say about his wife? We know little about the Jewish women of Memel, but they played an important role. In this presentation, we will learn about the role of Jewish women in Memel households, as well as hear the stories of some of the former students of The Queen Augusta Victoria lyceum(now it is the Arts Faculty of the University of Klaipėda) who have gone on to international careers, such as the photographer Dorothy Bohm or the linguist Dorothee Metlitzki.
More about lecturer >>>
5.30 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Melnrage department
Molo str. 60
Duration 1 hour
Concert
„Valeria’s Klezmer Chariot“
Hop into the wonderland of Valeria’s Klezmer Chariot for a journey through joyous Eastern European moods! Let your feet jump high and your hands clap tight following the beats of playful accordion and tuba topped by virtuosic and passionate clarinet improvisations. The ensemble’s repertoire includes exotic arrangements of Klezmer and Balkan melodies, Yiddish and Hebrew songs, as well as original Klezmer compositions, written by the lead clarinettist, Valeria Conte, an Italian musician who lived across all of Scandinavia and halted in Stockholm to create an energetic Klezmer band with vibrant and eclectic musicians.
The concert will be performed by: Valeria Conte – clarinet and vocal (IT/SE), Isabel Douglass – accordion (US/DK), Stian Grimstad – tuba (NO/SE), Tomas Norberg – drums (SE).
More about artists >>>
Free admission. Donations are welcome.
Photo: www.valeriaclarinetta.com
4 p.m.
Klaipeda Stasys Simkus Conservatoire
S.Šimkaus str. 15
Duration 1 h. 30 min.
Concert
„From the songs of Knights Errants“
Tribute to the School of National Jewish Art Music
Singer Shirelle Dashevsky and pianist Evgeny Kosovsky will present a concert programs at the Jewish festival in Klaipeda in order to acquaint the European audience with the wonderful layer of Jewish culture and show the beauty of the legacy of the New Jewish School.
We will hear vocal miniatures in Yiddish and spiritual songs in Hebrew in the concert program.
A series of very special songs in Yiddish will be played – from the collection of the famous Jewish folklorist Moses Beregovskis, on topical topics to this day.
Genius and beautiful music by Mikail Gnessin and Alexander Kerin and touching singing from the heart.
More about artist >>>
Free admission. Donations are welcome.
Photo from Shirelle Dashevsky personal archive
5 p.m.
Klaipeda City Municipality I.Kant Public Library Pempininkai department
Taikos ave. 81A
Duration 1 hour
Film for the whole family
„Abulele“
2015| Israel| director Avi Nesher | advanture, animation, comedy
Adam’s older brother was killed in a car crash a year ago. His family has not been the same since. As his parents struggle to cope with their grief, Adam (10), plagued with guilt over his brother’s death, withdraws into his own inner world. But everything changes the day he meets Abulele.
The Abulele are ancient monsters, bear-sized. Local legend tell that they are extremely dangerous, but in fact they turn out to be quite friendly and playful creatures. Abulele quickly becomes Adam’s best and most secret friend.
What adventures will the boy and the monster have you will see in the family-friendly film “Abulele”.
The film is kindly provided by the Embassy of Israel and is part of the project „Israeli cinema in your town“.
We thank the Embassy of Israel in Vilnius for their support in organizing the screening of the film.
6 p.m.
Klaipeda St. Francis of Assisi Church
Savanorių str. 4
Duration 1 hour
Concert
“Ariela” a concert dedicated to Jewish women composers present by pianist Sigrid Hagn and violinist Sonja Novcic (Austria)
Sarah Feigin nee Kugel, Rosy Wertheim, Ruth Schonthal, Minna Keal, Viteslava Kapralova, Ilse Weber and many more… Hidden behind each name is a dramatic fate and unique compositional oeuvre which, with minor exceptions has remained unknown to the public. While the Holocaust wiped out the lives of many of these brave jewish women what remains is their musical heritage of unestimable value.
In awareness of the tragedy behind and the hope within this music, it has become a heart´s desire to perform these unknown but exciting and most relevant works, in order to commemorate and celebrate the women who composed it.
More about artists >>>
We thank the Embassy of Austria for their support in organizing the concert „Ariela“ in Klaipeda.
