Upcoming Events
FUNDRAISER:
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents its first fundraising event since the Pandemic, Casino Night, on Saturday, November 12th, 2022, at 7:30 PM at the Freehold Jewish Center. Place your bets and win great prizes during our raffle giveaway! The proceeds from this program will help support the Museum’s efforts to explore and exhibit the rich and unique 300-year history of the Jewish residents of Greater Monmouth County.
The evening will feature popular casino games: blackjack, craps, roulette, Texas Hold’em, and other professionally run casino games on Saturday, November 12th, 2022, @ 7:30 PM at the Freehold Jewish Center. Reserve your spot by October 12th to receive $50 in additional chips. Tickets for this fundraising event are $75 per person or $140 per couple. This includes admission to the event and $200 in chips. This event is open to the entire community.
Straight from Don’t Tell Mama in Manhattan, The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County will welcome Rabbi-turned-Cabaret singer, Deborah Zecher in a cabaret-style musical in-person and Zoom event on Sunday, September 18, 2022 at 4PM. Admission is $15 for Museum members, $20 for non-members. This program is presented in conjunction with the Museum’s exhibit on the 50th anniversary of the ordination of Rabbi Sally Priesand, America’s first ordained female rabbi, and is sponsored in part by members of
Monmouth Reform Temple.
Rabbi Deborah Zecher describes herself as “A rabbi who sings the Great American songbook and more. A cabaret singer who loves to tell stories. A storyteller who uses music and Jewish values to illustrate those stories.”
Rabbi Zecher grew up in Pennsylvania and wanted to become a rabbi from a young age. She was ordained in 1982, the 49th woman to be ordained following Rabbi Priesand. She served congregations in New York and Maryland, and as chaplain at American University and Williams College, before settling at a congregation in the Berkshires in Great Barrington, Massachusetts as both rabbi and cantor. In those years, she presented numerous concerts as fundraisers in a show that combined Biblical stories with Broadway songs - and her unique genre was born. In 2014 she launched a successful career as a cabaret singer, and she will bring her special program to the Museum this fall.
Seating is limited, so make reservations early for this delightful, in-person and Zoom program by visiting our website at www.jhmomc.org, or by calling 732-252-6990. You won’t want to miss it!
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents “The Woman in Gold” by Gustav Klimt, a talk led by Professor Maurice Mahler on Wednesday, October 26th, 2022 @ 2 PM. This program is available on Zoom ONLY. Tickets are $10 for members, $12 for non-members.
The Museum welcomes back Professor Maurice Mahler, to present a discussion on the famous painting known as “The Woman in Gold” by artist Gustav Klimt. Once stolen from a Jewish family in the run-up to World War II, the magnificent artwork had many owners until it’s permanent home. Learn how the painting was bought by Ronald Lauder, the son of Estee Lauder, for $130 million and is currently on display at the Neue Galerie Museum in Manhattan.
POSTPONED
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents The Dreyfus Affair: One of the Top Ten Trials in History, a talk by Sue Addelston on Sunday, November 13th, 2022 @ 2 PM. Tickets are $10 for members, $12 for non-members.
Learn about how the trial of an obscure French artillery captain changed the course of history, shook a major European nation to its foundation, inspired two extraordinary literary milestones, sundered families and friendships, and later resulted in the creation of the State of Israel.
Susan Addelston received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Hunter College and has taught high school studies and at Touro College in Manhattan. Addleston has spoken at area Hadassah and Brandeis meetings. She divides her time between Manhattan and Jackson Township, New Jersey. Addleston is very involved with the Ocean County Animal Facility in Jackson and encourages event attendees to bring dog or cat food to donate to the shelter.
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents: "An Afternoon with David Levy" on Wednesday, November 16th, 2022, at 2 PM. Admission is $5 for Museum members, $7 for non-members.
David Levy’s presentation will focus upon the observation, analysis, and evaluation of his art: an art that has evolved over fifty years: from Optical art to hard-edged representational painting, and after a hiatus of forty-two years, he is returning to optical art and moving toward abstract geometric painting.
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents: Mel Brooks “It’s Good to be King” with Broadway and TV historian John Kenrick on Sunday, November 20th, 2022 @ 2:00 PM. This is a Zoom and in-person program. Admission for this program is $10 for members and $12 for non-members.
Brooklyn native Mel Brooks became one of the most influential comic writers and filmmakers of our time. A humorous look at the life and career of a man who discovered how to offend and amuse generations of admirers. Mel Brooks has directed several classic film comedies, including The Producers, Blazing Saddles, and Young Frankenstein. Brooks has earned an Academy Award and Multiple Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Awards.
John Kenrick has worked in the theatre at every level from amateur to Broadway, eventually serving as personal assistant to Tony Award winning producers, including the team behind the original production of RENT. He is the creator of the educational website Musicals101.com, and his books include Musical Theatre: A History, which recently received a new 10th Anniversary edition.
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents The Florian Schantz Jazz Combo’s Songs from the Great American Songbook Concert on Sunday, December 4th, 2022 @ 2 PM. Tickets are $12 for members, $15 for non-members.
The Florian Schantz Jazz Combo was formed in 2012 by, then, nine-year-old Florian Schantz. Since then, the band has delighted audiences in hundreds of venues in greater NYC area and in Germany. Bios of the band are included below:
Florian Schantz (aged 20) is from Westfield, NJ and is the band leader. Florian plays the trumpet, cornet, fluegelhorn, valve
trombone, bass trumpet, the piccolo trumpet, the euphonium and numerous other instruments. He started playing the trumpet at age 6 and has been leading the band since he was 9 years old and has been playing trumpet professionally since he was 10. Florian has played over 650 engagements at venues all over NJ, NY, PA, CT and Germany including over 110 libraries. He has been featured in front page articles in the Courier News, Home News Tribune, Suburban News and
Westfield Leader. He won the internationally recognized Louis Armstrong award for trumpet at age 11. Florian is a junior at Kean University on a full four-year scholarship for music.
Rup Chattopadhyay is from Scotch Plains, NJ and is a professional trombone and tuba player with over two decades of experience in numerous bands of various genres. He began his musical career playing bass trombone and tuba with the Scotch Plains Fanwood High School Moonglowers Jazz Ensemble. At Rutgers University he spent much of his
time traveling across the country and internationally with the Rutgers Marching Band, Pep Band, and Glee Club as well as other projects.
Steve Kaplan is a retired music/ band teach from the Trenton area who specialized in performing ethnic cultural music from Eastern Europe, Middle East, Jewish, Yiddish, Ladino, and Israeli Folk music, dance and celebratory music. He performs with various musical groups on all sizes of saxophones, clarinets, flute, and keyboards
Margaret Schantz (aged 23) is from Westfield. She has been playing trumpet and fluegelhorn professionally with the band since 2013, playing with several other professional bands including the Sharpshooters Band of Northern NJ. She has also led her own band project playing Broadway standards. Margaret has received her BA and MS from Seton Hall University and works for US Bank.
Lowell Schantz is from Westfield, NJ; he has played guitar for over 30 years and has played in numerous jazz bands. He also plays the trumpet, baritone horn, alphorn and guitar professionally as well as numerous other instruments. He has been part of the jazz combo since its formation in 2012 and manages the band.
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents An Afternoon with Artist Harvey Levy on Sunday, December 11th, 2022 @ 2:00 PM. This is an in-person and Zoom event. Admission for this program is FREE for everyone and a light brunch spread will be available.
Harvey was educated in part by the School of Visual Arts and mostly by life and an imagination that is wild and whimsical, as well as a deep connection to the Torah. Harvey (Chaviv) Levy is a Sephardic Jew. In many of his pieces, one can find imagery that is especially Sephardic in both shapes and designs. Harvey’s works of art are usually packed full of intricate themes, design, and humor. One can completely enjoy the art from a distance, enjoying form and color, or spend a lot of time in viewing every inch of the page to appreciate the works real essence and totality of meaning.
The Jewish Heritage Museum of Monmouth County presents T-Klez in a Hanukkah Concert, on Sunday, December 25th, 2022, at 2 PM. Admission is $15 for members, $18 for non-members.
Expect an afternoon of both familiar tunes and music new to you. For example, they will play a Chanukah medley of popular tunes like S’vivon & Levivot you can sing along with. You’ll also hear selections in Yiddish and Ladino...and rare settings to familiar songs – for example, did you know that there is a beautiful melody to Maoz Tzur that was written in Italy in the 1700s? It sounds similar to the music of its time and place (i.e. “churchy”) the way some contemporary Jewish music sounds American!
Speaking of American, T-Klez will also play you a klezmer suite written in the 21st century by a musician born in the 1970s. It consists of a waltz, a jok and a freylekhs. A jok is a Romanian style circle dance popular at Jewish weddings in Europe and in the U.S. in the early 20th century; a freylekhs is a fast dance tune.
T-Klez’ musicians have well over 100 years of combined experience playing music.. David Licht is the founding percussionist of the Klezmatics, Psachya Septimus has accompanied stars like Avrohom Fried and Eitan Katz, and Dena Ressler, like David, has taught at KlezKamp and Yiddish New York. They love playing for JHMOMC audiences!