Festival Schedule 2024

In 1980, a wealthy businessman named Carl Fletcher is kidnapped from his driveway, brutalized, and held for ransom. He is returned to his wife and kids less than a week later, only slightly the worse, and the family moves on with their lives, resuming their prized places in the saga of the American dream, comforted in the realization that though their money may have been what endangered them, it is also what assured them their safety.

But now, nearly forty years later, it’s clear that perhaps nobody ever got over anything, after all. Carl has spent the ensuing years secretly seeking closure to the matter of his kidnapping, while his wife, Ruth, has spent her potential protecting her husband’s emotional health. Their three grown children aren’t doing much better: Nathan’s chronic fear won’t allow him to advance at his law firm; Beamer, a Hollywood screenwriter, will consume anything—substance, foodstuff, women—in order to numb his own perpetual terror; and Jenny has spent her life so bent on proving that she’s not a product of her family’s pathology that she has come to define it. As they hover at the delicate precipice of a different kind of survival, they learn that the family fortune has dwindled to just about nothing, and they must face desperate questions about how much their wealth has played a part in both their lives’ successes and failures.

Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s new book Long Island Compromise spans the entirety of one family’s history, winding through decades and generations, all the way to the outrageous present, and confronting the mainstays of American Jewish life: tradition, the pursuit of success, the terror of history, fear of the future, old wives’ tales, evil eyes, ambition, achievement, boredom, dybbuks, inheritance, pyramid schemes, right-wing capitalists, beta-blockers, psychics, and the mostly unspoken love and shared experience that unite a family forever.

Brodesser-Akner will be in conversation about the book with New York Times–bestselling author Meg Wolitzer

Do you have a story you want to tell but you don’t know where to begin? All ages, from tweens to seniors, are invited to a one-hour workshop led by journalist and author Beth Harpaz on how to jumpstart the writing process. We’ll take inspiration from some great Jewish writers; we’ll talk about using moments, details and memories to craft a meaningful story, and we’ll spend a few minutes writing together. Paper and pen will be provided — or bring your laptop or favorite journal.

How do ideas about gender and masculinity intersect with notions of what it means to be American and what it means to be Jewish? In a conversation moderated by Dr. Laura Shaw Frank, educator and Director of Contemporary Jewish Life at the American Jewish Committee, three scholars, Ronnie Grinberg, Miriam Eve Mora, and Sarah Imhoff approach these questions from three unique perspectives. Grinberg’s book Write like a Man: Jewish Masculinity and the New York Intellectuals is an in-depth examination of the “New York Intellectuals” and their ideas about gender, particularly their embrace of what can be described as a “secular Jewish machismo.” Mora’s book Carrying a Big Schtick: Jewish Acculturation and Masculinity in the Twentieth Century details changing notions about Jewish masculinity through history and how these ideas have been both embraced and rejected by American Jewish men. Imhoff’s book Masculinity and the Making of American Judaism argues that American Jewish men in the early 20th century were seen as embodying a masculinity different from what was considered traditional American masculinity.

Featuring four Jewish debut authors, Danny Goodman (Amerikaland), Sarah Seltzer (The Singer Sisters), Lauren Aliza Green (The World After Alice), and Sasha Vasilyuk (Your Presence is Mandatory), this panel explores what it means to be a Jewish author and sheds light on the experience of writing and publishing a debut novel. They will be in conversation with Susan Weidman Schneider, editor in chief of Lilith Magazine

Throughout the twentieth century many Jews became prominent in fields such as literature, comedy, film, and sports. This panel will explore three such figures through recently released biographies. Stephanie Butnick, founding co-host of the Unorthodox podcast, will be in conversation with authors Rachelle Bergstein (The Genius of Judy), Grace Kessler Overbeke (The First Lady of Laughs), and Jeffrey Gurock (Marty Glickman) about the famous figures chronicled in their books

Growing up, Rebecca Clarren only knew the major plot points of her tenacious immigrant family’s origins. Her great-great-grandparents and their six children fled antisemitism in Russia and ultimately settled on a homestead in South Dakota, becoming an American immigrant success story. What none of Clarren’s ancestors ever mentioned was that their land, the foundation for much of their wealth, had been cruelly taken from the Lakota by the United States government. In The Cost of Free Land, Clarren melds investigative reporting with personal family history to reveal the intertwined stories of her family and the Lakota, and the devastating cycle of loss of Indigenous land, culture, and resources that continues today. Clarren will be in conversation with Sarah Podemski, award-winning multidisciplinary artist.

What makes a love story “Jewish”? Lior Zaltzman, deputy managing editor of Kveller, moderates this conversation between three acclaimed romance authors, Ali Rosen (Alternate Endings/Recipe for Second Chances), Hannah Reynolds (Summer Nights and Meteorites), and Hannah Orenstein (Meant to Be Mine), about how Judaism factors into the romances they write. Whether this means centering Jewish characters, including aspects of Jewish culture and heritage, or simply writing love stories as Jewish authors.

Women were once thought to have written Yiddish poetry and diaries, but not prose? Yet there are lots of Yiddish novels and short stories by women! Why weren’t they better known? Their works are being translated more often than ever before. Join translators Ellen Cassedy and Anita Norich as they discuss their (and others’) recent translations, and the joys and challenges of translating these long-neglected treasures. They will be in conversation with Lisa Newman, Director of Publishing and Public Programs at the Yiddish Book Center.

The work of authors Elyssa Friedland (Last Summer at the Golden Hotel), Caroline Leavitt (Days of Wonder), Reuven Fenton (Goyhood), and Elizabeth Harris (How to Sleep at Night) span a wide range of topics and genres, but their writing is united by a focus on Jewish characters. Moderated by journalist Julia Gergely, this panel will explore what it means to write Jewish characters in works of fiction and what this process looks like for each author.

J.D. Salinger remains one of America’s best known but least understood writers. His 1951 book, The Catcher in the Rye, lives on as one of the most iconic American novels of all time. Yet after his commercial and literary success, Salinger soon retreated to a rural town in New Hampshire and lived in seclusion for the rest of his life. He wrote nearly every day, but didn’t publish any of his work after 1965. He became famous for not wanting to be famous.

His story, however, is not over. His son, Matt, has been sorting through the unpublished writing Salinger left behind after his death in 2010. Most of these stories will be released soon, and are heavily influenced by his years in seclusion. Stephen B. Shepard’s new book Salinger’s Soul tells of his traumatic experience in WWII, as well as his transition from the Judaism of his youth to his is embrace of a form of Hinduism known as Vedanta, which would influence his post Catcher fiction. Yet Salinger veered from Vedanta in one crucial way: he didn’t heed its dictum to lead a life of celibacy. In all, his wartime experience, his religious beliefs, and his romantic relationships defined his life in seclusion and influenced his writing.

Shepard will be in conversation about the book with Lisa Newman, Director of Publishing and Public Programs at the Yiddish Book Center.

Delia Ephron had struggled through several years of heartbreak. She’d lost her sister, Nora, and then her husband, Jerry, both to cancer. She channeled her grief the best way she knew: by writing a New York Times op-ed. The piece caught the attention of Peter, a Bay Area psychiatrist, who emailed her to commiserate. After several weeks of exchanging emails and sixties folk songs, he flew east to see her. They were crazy, utterly, in love. But this was not a rom-com: four months later she was diagnosed with AML, a fierce leukemia. In Left on Tenth, Ephron enchants as she seesaws us between tears and laughter, navigating the suicidal lows of enduring cutting-edge treatment and the giddy highs of a second chance at love. With Peter and her close girlfriends by her side, with startling clarity, warmth, and honesty about facing death, Ephron invites us to join her team of warriors and become believers ourselves. Now, the book has been adapted into a play that is currently playing on Broadway. Ephron will be in conversation with Amy Schwartz, Moment Magazine’s Book & Opinion Editor.

In the wake of the Holocaust, survivors worked to rebuild their lives and attempt to move forward after facing the horrors of World War II. In this panel discussion moderated by New York Times staff reporter Sarah Maslin Nir, authors Seth Stern (Speaking Yiddish to Chickens) and Sandra Fox (The Jews of Summer) will discuss the different ways that Holocaust survivors dealt with the aftermath of the Holocaust, from becoming chicken farmers to starting Jewish summer camps, and how this has affected Jewish life in the current day.

On Being Jewish Now is an intimate collection of meaningful, smart, funny, sad, emotional, and inspiring essays from today’s authors and advocates about what it means to be Jewish, how things have changed since the attacks on October 7th, 2023, and the unique culture that brings this group together. This panel will feature three authors featured in the book: Bradley Tusk, Ali Rosen, and Samantha Ettus. The panel will be moderated by Zibby Owens.

In Dr. Ruth’s final book, The Joy of Connections, the iconic therapist offers an urgent guide to combating loneliness with 100 ways to increase connectivity right now, based on insights from her life story and her unparalleled career.

When Surgeon General Vivek Murthy sounded the alarm that loneliness “represents an urgent public health concern”—exacerbated by social media overuse, the residual effects of the pandemic, and the lack of meaningful relationships—trusted therapist Dr. Ruth K. Westheimer knew that her unique perspective and expertise could help. Long beloved for breaking stigmas around sexual problems, Dr. Ruth made it her mission to help individuals break free from the bonds of hopelessness and isolation.

We are social animals. We have a shared desire to connect and create lasting relationships with the people around us. But the heaviness of loneliness can make this feel impossible. Dr. Ruth, with Emmy Award–winning journalist Allison Gilbert and longtime collaborator Pierre Lehu, tackles the subject with compassion and her trademark no-nonsense approach. She provides practical and creative strategies for finding friends, community, and intimacy. And it’s anchored by Dr. Ruth’s own story, from the horrific loneliness of losing her family in the Holocaust to living in an orphanage to rebuilding her life in America and eventually becoming a world-renowned sex therapist.

Gilbert will be in conversation about the book with Rachel Wright, host of The Wright Conversations podcast.

Noah Rinsky, the creator of the viral social media account @oldjewishmen, brings readers an in-depth guide to the ten Old Jewish Men archetypes, ranging from the New York Schlub to the Tough Guy to the Grumpy Intellectual. In conversation with Jonah Bromwich, reporter for The New York Times, Noah will provide insight on topics such as the art of the schmooze and may even answer burning questions like why Old Jewish Men eat so much cottage cheese and melon, and if Larry David and Bernie Sanders have the same barber.

Can fantasy, fairy tales, and paranormal stories be deeply Jewish? Moderated by Veronica Schanoes, author and scholar of Jewish presences in fairy tales, and featuring authors A.R. Vishny (Night Owls) and Laura R. Samotin (The Sins on Their Bones), this panel will examine the ways in which Jewish characters and heritage can enrich the fantasy and paranormal genres.

Diary of a Young Girl, adapted for the stage and screen as The Diary of Anne Frank, is arguably one of the most widely read Jewish books of all time. Before Holocaust education curricula were introduced across the United States, millions of people learned about the Holocaust through Anne Frank’s experience. Now, even as new generations of students are discovering Anne’s Diary, bans of the work are gaining traction.

Dr. Lauren Bairnsfeather, CEO of the Anne Frank Center USA, and Adam Langer, executive editor of The Forward and creator of the “Playing Anne Frank” podcast, will explore how Anne’s story has generated acclaim and censure and how her message can persist.

Come join your fellow poets for an afternoon of writing and celebrating Jewish poetry. We will study a few great poems and write our own work based on what those poems inspire in us. By the end of this writing hour, you will have at least one new poem and an opportunity to connect with your fellow New York writers.

Although many books and films have been made about the Holocaust, new stories are still being uncovered. This panel will cover two such narratives  which have been chronicled in recent books. Chris Heath, author of No Road Leading Back; Elizabeth White, one of the co-authors of The Counterfeit Countess; and Jack Fairweather, author of The Prosecutor will discuss how they found these untold stories, their research, and the process of writing the books. The discussion will be moderated by Debórah Dwork, Director of the Center for the Study of the Holocaust, Genocide, and Crimes Against Humanity at the Graduate Center – CUNY.

This panel will highlight three different stories of women and how they overcame personal and societal struggles to become successful today. Evelyn Frick, Associate Editor for Hey Alma, will be in conversation with Sara Glass, author of Kissing Girls on Shabbat; F.K. Clementi, author of South of My Dreams; and Bonny Reichert, author of How to Share an Egg.

Consider the joys and challenges of Yiddish translation in this workshop hosted by Anita Norich, Collegiate Professor Emerita of English and Judaic Studies at the University of Michigan. Attendees will look at translation choices made by Norich and other translators, and discuss why certain choices were made and their effect on readers. She will also examine multiple translations of the same text and consider how idioms can be translated

Conceived by Israeli-American Avner Yonai and directed by renowned multi-instrumentalist Mike Marshall, the Ger Mandolin Orchestra resurrects a little-known musical form that was once-widely popular across eastern Europe and in North American immigrant communities. The group brings to life a unique repertoire of Jewish, East European folk and light classical music, using the complete range of mandolin family instruments (mandolin, mandola, octave mandolin, mandocello, mandobass). Their rare and moving concert appearances over the last dozen years have been met with overwhelming audience and critical acclaim.

Now, in its first foray into “new” music, the Orchestra will premiere repertoire from one of Poland’s most prolific and idiosyncratic artists. Pianist/composer Marcin

Masecki is known for his virtuosic fusion of styles spanning jazz, classical, and folk, blurring the line between high art and popular entertainment. “Gersuita” is a 6-part cycle of compositions created by Masecki specifically for the Ger Mandolin Orchestra.

In its full version, the piece was first presented in Toronto in March 2024, during an extraordinary concert at the Glenn Gould Studio. This new chapter in the history of what seemed to be a forgotten art form, the mandolin orchestra, was rewarded with a nearly 10-minute standing ovation from the audience.