Related Blog Posts on Arts and Culture and Film

Let’s start at the very beginning…

Cantor Lauren Phillips Fogelman
September 7, 2023
As we are amidst the season of new beginnings - new Jewish year, new school year, and new Torah cycle - we have a wonderful opportunity to explore the many Broadway composers who were inspired by the Biblical beginnings of the Book of Genesis.

Frank Stella: "Had Gadya" and Jewish Themes

Jean Bloch Rosensaft
August 23, 2023
One might not immediately associate Frank Stella (b. 1936), the American painter, sculptor, and printmaker noted for his work in the areas of minimalism and post-painterly abstraction, with a lyrical poem that concludes the traditional Passover meal.

Barbie and The Bomb: The Jewish Roots of This Summer's Blockbusters

Wes Hopper
August 21, 2023
Much has been made of this summer’s blockbuster movie phenomena, Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Christopher Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” which were released on the same weekend. The films have become a strange double feature, both bound to the same cultural moment. While they seem to have little in common, both films depict maverick Jewish thinkers whose ideals created seismic shifts in the world. 

Siman Tov U’Mazal Tov: Astrology and Judaism

Crystal Hill
March 9, 2023
Judaism's relationship with astrology is one that has many twists and turns. Jewish interest in the zodiac can be traced back to the time of the Babylonian exile, which is evidenced by the fact that many of the Hebrew names of the constellations are actually Hebraicized versions of the original Assyrian names.