The Museum of Jewish Heritage Announces Spring Programming

(New York, NY)— This spring, the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising with a season full of live theatrical performances, gatherings, virtual tours, and lectures.

“As we come up on the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, one of the most important moments of Jewish collective resistance during the Holocaust, it is important to host programming commemorating this historic event, which took place from April 19 to May 16, 1943,” says Museum President & CEO Jack Kliger. “The Museum is proud to once again provide visitors from New York and around the world with opportunities to learn about and embrace Jewish culture, history, and heritage.”

Among the Museum’s spring offerings are: Annual Gathering of Remembrance (April 16); Virtual Walking Tour: The Year of Remembrance of the Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Part 2 (April 19); The 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising: Resistance and Survival in the Holocaust (April 19); Spring Theater with The Braid: Remembrance of Things Present (April 20); Witness Theater: The Sound of Silence (April 23); and To Paint the Earth in Concert (May 4).

The Museum will host New York’s Annual Gathering of Remembrance on Sunday, April 16, 2023, at Temple Emanu-El. The annual program is the Museum’s offering to New York City and the world in observance of Yom HaShoah and the organization’s mission to “never forget,” to remember the dangers of intolerance, honor those who were lost during the Holocaust and those who survived, and together envision a brighter future. One of the Holocaust survivor speakers at this event, Ilana Yaari, is a survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto.

The Museum also continues its partnership with Our Travel Circle this spring to offer live-streamed virtual travel events that give viewers special on-the-ground experiences in locations worldwide with local guides. On April 19, travelers will explore the Warsaw ghetto in the second virtual walking tour focused on the history and location of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.

To celebrate the anniversary of the beginning of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, the Museum will host The 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising: Resistance and Survival in the Holocaust, a talk with Dr. Zachary Mazur where he will reflect on the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising as a powerful example of Jewish resistance and action in the face of Nazi oppression during the Holocaust. Mazur’s presentation draws upon never-before-seen sources and images that were discovered in the process of preparing the POLIN Museum’s temporary exhibition, Around Us a Sea of Fire, which addresses the civilian experience in bunkers and hideouts during the Uprising.

The Museum also continues its partnership with The Braid, formerly Jewish Women’s Theatre, which curates, produces and preserves stories grounded in Jewish culture and experience. On April 20, they will present the performance Remembrance of Things Present, which features empowering stories from the children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors. The production includes a story of a French resistance fighter’s daughter who is inspired to commit her own life to activism. The son and grandson of Tuvia Bielsky, the leader of the largest armed rescue of Jews by Jews during the Holocaust, knows what it means to inherit a hero’s legacy. Another story dramatizes the heartbreaking moment where a daughter realizes the impact of encouraging her father to give testimony. These and other memorable stories will leave you feeling empowered and inspired.

On April 23, the Museum will host Witness Theater, the culmination of seven months of heartfelt collaboration between five Holocaust survivors who have shared their stories with 16 high school students. On the stage, the survivors are narrators, while students re-enact their wartime experiences. This collective performance honors, shares, and celebrates the survivors and their stories and highlights the life-changing lessons they have imparted to the students. The performance will be followed by a talkback and Q&A with members of the performance and creative team.

On May 4, the Museum will host a performance of To Paint the Earth in Concert, the Richard Rodgers’ Award-winning musical that tells the story of the Jewish Underground in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1943 and its stunning decision to fight back. This performance commemorates the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and is the first-ever orchestrated concert version of the full musical.

Visitors are also encouraged to visit the Museum’s recently opened main exhibition, The Holocaust: What Hate Can Do, which features more than 1,250 original objects and survivor testimonies from the Museum’s collection. Together, these objects tell a global story through a local lens, rooted in objects donated by survivors and their families, many of whom settled in New York and nearby places. Tours are also available to experience the exhibition.

For more information and a full calendar of events, please visit the events page, which is continually updated with new program offerings. Select in-person events also are available online via livestream.

FOR CALENDAR LISTINGS

Annual Gathering of Remembrance
Sunday, April 16, 2023 | 2:00 PM (ET)
In-Person & Virtual
https://mjhnyc.org/agr
Every year, at the Annual Gathering of Remembrance, the Museum brings thousands together to say with one collective voice: we will never forget. Rooted in a city with one of the world’s largest communities of Holocaust survivors, this Yom HaShoah tribute has power that echoes across generations. At each Annual Gathering of Remembrance, we remember those survivors who we have lost over the year.

Virtual Walking Tour: The Year of Remembrance of the Heroes of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising Part 2
Wednesday April 19, 2023 | 11:00 AM (ET)
Virtual
https://mjhnyc.org/virtual-walking-tour-year-of-remembrance
The second of two tours of the Warsaw Ghetto commemorates the 80th anniversary of the beginning of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. On this live, virtual walking tour, we will delve into the history of the Uprising and the context in which it occurred. Starting on April 19, 1943, the Uprising was the largest act of military resistance taken by Jews during World War II and the first civic uprising in occupied Europe. Visit key sites related to the Uprising and learn about the bravery and courage of the Jewish fighters who fought for their freedom against the Nazi forces.

The 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising: Resistance and Survival in the Holocaust
Wednesday April 19, 2023 | 2:00 PM (ET)
Virtual
https://mjhnyc.org/1943-warsaw-ghetto-uprising
The 80th anniversary of the beginning of the momentous Warsaw Ghetto Uprising is on April 19th this year. In this talk, Dr. Zachary Mazur will reflect on the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising as a powerful example of Jewish resistance and action in the face of Nazi oppression during the Holocaust. Mazur’s presentation draws upon never-before-seen sources and images that were discovered in the process of preparing the POLIN Museum’s temporary exhibition Around Us a Sea of Fire, which addresses the civilian experience in bunkers and hideouts during the Uprising.

Spring Theater with The Braid: Remembrance of Things Present
Thursday April 20, 2023 | 7:00 PM – 8:30p PM (ET)
In-Person & Virtual
https://mjhnyc.org/spring-theater-with-the-braid
The story of the Holocaust continues far past liberation. Those born in the generations that followed especially feel the deep and resounding imprint in all aspects of their lives. In these surprisingly inspiring and heart-opening stories, we learn how the daughter of a French resistance fighter must choose between a life of activism and her own survival. We see how the son and grandson of Tuvia Bielsky, leader of the partisans, contend with the legacy of a hero. We’ll see the unexpected fear one grandson feels as he visits his family’s home in Germany, 65 years after his family fled the Nazis. As one daughter wonders if the price of encouraging her father to give testimony is greater than the benefit. Victims of the Holocaust are mourned, and those who survived have imprinted the next generations in innumerable ways.

Witness Theater: The Sound of Silence
Sunday April 23, 2023 | 3:00 PM– 4:30 PM (ET)
In-Person & Virtual
https://mjhnyc.org/witness-theater
Bear witness to the unique performance of Witness Theater, which is the culmination of seven months of heartfelt collaboration between five Holocaust survivors who have shared their stories with 16 high school students. On the stage, the survivors are narrators, while students re-enact their wartime experiences. This collective performance honors, shares, and celebrates the extraordinary survivors and their stories, and highlights the life-changing lessons they have imparted to the students. The performance will be followed by a talkback and Q&A with members of the performance and creative team.

To Paint the Earth
Thursday May 4, 2023 | 7:00 PM (ET)
In-Person & Virtual
https://mjhnyc.org/to-paint-the-earth
To Paint the Earth is the Richard Rodgers’ Award-winning musical that tells the story of the Jewish Underground in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1943 and its stunning decision to fight back. In the tradition of “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Les Misérables,” and inspired by memoirs, video, and first-hand accounts from survivors, To Paint the Earth is a sweeping musical about those who were pushed to the brink but refused to give up – ordinary people who, together, planned an armed rebellion despite the overwhelming challenges they faced.

This performance commemorates the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising and is the first-ever orchestrated concert version of the full musical.

HEALTH & SAFETY
For more detailed information on the Museum’s safety protocols and requirements, visit: https://mjhnyc.org/visitor-information/health-and-safety
MUSEUM HOURS
Sunday and Wednesday: 10 AM to 5 PM
Thursday: 10 AM to 8 PM
Friday: 10 AM to 5 PM
The Museum will be closed on all other days, on Jewish Holidays, and on Thanksgiving.

CONTACT
Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust
36 Battery Place, New York City
mjhnyc.org
646.437.4202

About the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust
The Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust is committed to the crucial mission of educating diverse visitors and community members about Jewish life and heritage before, during, and after the Holocaust. The third-largest Holocaust museum in the world, the Museum of Jewish Heritage anchors the southernmost tip of Manhattan, completing the cultural and educational landscape it shares with the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.

The Museum of Jewish Heritage maintains a Collection of almost 40,000 artifacts, photographs, documentary films, and survivor testimonies and contains classrooms, a 375-seat theater (Edmond J. Safra Hall), special exhibition galleries, a resource center for educators, and a memorial art installation, Garden of Stones, designed by internationally acclaimed sculptor Andy Goldsworthy.

The Museum’s current offerings include The Holocaust: What Hate Can Do, a major new exhibition offering a timely and expansive presentation of Holocaust history, on view in the main galleries. Also on view is Survivors: Faces of Life After the Holocaust, featuring photographer Martin Schoeller’s portraits of Holocaust survivors on view in the Rita Lowenstein Gallery. Opening this fall is the Museum’s first exhibition for visitors aged 9 and up, Courage to Act: Rescue in Denmark, which will bring the lessons of the Holocaust to life through the remarkable story of Danish collective resistance during World War II.

Each year, the Museum presents over 75 public programs, connecting our community in person and virtually through lectures, book talks, concerts, and more. For more info visit: http://mjhnyc.org/events. Museum receives general operating support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and New York State Council on the Arts.

For more information, visit: https://mjhnyc.org

###