Tag Archives: YI Love Jewish

YI Love JewishTo Host SUNDAY SCHMOOZE SERIES at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts

26 Thursday Sep 2024

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YILove Jewish
To Host a
Sunday Schmooze Series
at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts
Beginning in October

For Immediate Release
Contact:  Carol Kassie
carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244

September 26, 2024

CORAL SPRINGS, FL:  YILove Jewish (a division of the Yiddishkayt Initiative) will host a Sunday Schmooze series beginning October 13th at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts.  Each event will begin with coffee, bagels, and ‘schmoozing’ (‘talking with someone in a friendly and engaging way!’), followed by lively, educational, and entertaining programming.

 YI Love Jewish, founded by actor/producer/Jewish cultural activist Avi Hoffman and his mother, Miriam Hoffman, world-renowned scholar and professor of Yiddish language at Columbia University, is not-for-profit organization that celebrates and promotes Jewish history, life, and culture and their positive and far-reaching impact on the world. From performing arts, publishing, and education to language, philosophy and literature, YI offers a global clearinghouse of Jewish learning, culture and entertainment.

The Sunday Schmooze Series will offer a wide variety of programming and discussion opportunities and fits neatly into the YILove Jewish goal to utilize the arts to promote Jewish culture and identity both within and outside the Jewish community.

The first four programs to be offered are:

October 13th:  Anne Frank:  A discussion centering on how Anne Frank’s Diary influenced people’s perception of the Holocaust.  There will be a video interview with playwright Ron Elisha and star Alexis Fishman introducing their play Anne Being Frank, which will be presented at various venues in South Florida in November. 

November 17:  How are Jews portrayed in the media?  Igor Shteyrenberg, founder of the Miami Jewish Film Festival will discuss how Jewish culture has made its way into mainstream cinema.

December 22:  Chanukah Around the World.  How do Jews around the world celebrate?  Explore the different customs and traditional foods associated with ‘The Festival of Lights’ while enjoying latkes and donuts, and perhaps even playing a round or two of a dreidel game.

January 19:  Rhythm and Schmooze ‘Singalong’.  Join Avi Hoffman and Aaron Kula for a celebration of Jewish music.

For more information about YI Love Jewish and the Sunday Schmooze Series, and/or to purchase tickets, visit the organization’s website at https://yilovejewish.org or contact Sheri Smith – sheris@whyilovejewish.org / 561-254-5494 or Carol Kassie – carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244.

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Sunday Schmooze Series at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts
October 13/November 17/December 22/January 19
For tickets and Information:  https://yilovejewish.org
Single Schmooze tickets are $18 per person/series tickets are $54
All Schmoozes will take place from
11:30 am (Schmooze) 12 pm – 1:30 pm program at
The Coral Springs Center for the Arts
2885 Coral Springs Drive
Coral Springs, Florida 33065

Avi & Miriam Hoffman

CELEBRATING ‘YOSL’: The Legacy of Joe Papp – A Musical Celebration – June 22nd at the West Boca Community Theatre

29 Wednesday May 2024

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YI Love Jewish to Host “Celebrating ‘Yosl’” featuring a live concert event and celebrity video testimonials.

Theater icon Joseph Papp, aka Yosl Papirofsky, creator of the New York Shakespeare Festival and the Public Theater, to be remembered and honored virtually and live on his 103rd birthday.

For Immediate Release
Contact:  Sheri Smith
sheris@yilovejewish.org
Contact:  Carol Kassie
carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244

May 29, 2024
BOCA RATON, FL: He revolutionized theater as we know it today, and now Joseph Papp, born ‘Yosl Papirofsky’, will be the subject of a memorial/tribute concert on June 22ndat 7 pm, on what would have been his 103rd birthday. Celebrating Yosl – The Legacy of Joe Papp – A Musical Celebration will be presented by YI Love Jewish (a division of Yiddishkayt Initiative) at the West Boca Community Theatre in Boca Raton.

Celebrating Yosl will be hosted by YI Founder and CEO, world renowned actor and Jewish cultural activist Avi Hoffman, who was mentored by Papp in the 1980’s. The concert event will feature live, virtual, and pre-recorded celebrity testimonials.

“Joe Papp did more to revolutionize the world of theater than any impresario in the world,” says Hoffman, himself an internationally recognized entertainer and founder of YI, a global provider of Jewish cultural programming. Hoffman and his mother, retired author, journalist and Columbia University Professor Miriam Hoffman, became friends and colleagues of Papp in NYC in the 1980s, when they launched the Joseph Papp Yiddish Theatre. 

Joseph Papp

After Papp’s death, they continued a close association with Joe’s widow, Gail Merrifield-Papp, and his daughter Susan Papp-Lippman, who serves on the YI Board of Directors. 

Papp’s vision led him in 1957 to establish Free Shakespeare in Central Park. Ten years later, he created The Public Theater in the building that was formerly the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS), a haven for newly arrived refugees. The building was saved from demolition through Mr. Papp’s efforts after a long negotiation with the City of New York. It became the permanent home of the New York Shakespeare Festival/Joseph Papp Public Theatre (The Public) and is currently designated as a New York City Historical Landmark. 

At the Public, an innovative model was used for creating a new dynamic way of producing plays in a workshop-style manner that had never been tried before. The concept involved bringing writers, directors, designers, and actors together in one place to brainstorm and create the foundations for new and groundbreaking productions. Some of the iconic Broadway shows to evolve from these workshops include the original productions of Hair, A Chorus Line, and Runaways.

One of the signature events of Celebrating Yosl will feature Hoffman’s re-creation of Joe Papp at the Ballroom – a recounting, in Papp’s own words (based on transcripts, quotes, and material from the Papp Archives), of his Brooklyn Yiddish upbringing, his political struggles, and his reconceiving of the creative process. Hoffman will also share his own personal recollections of his relationship with Papp. 

Celebrating Yosl:  The Legacy of Joe Papp – A Musical Celebration will take place at 7 pm on June 22nd, 2024, at the West Boca Community Theatre, 12811 Glades Road, Boca Raton, FL 33498.

Tickets are $36 for the Live event and $72 for VIP/Special Seating and Backstage Access. Click HERE to purchase tickets.

For more information about Celebrating Yosl, please contact Sheri Smith at sheris@yilovejewish.org / 561-254-5494 or Carol Kassie at carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244.  Photos and graphics available on request.

To sponsor this event, please contact sheris@yilovejewish.org.

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Celebrating Yosl:  The Legacy of Joe Papp – A Musical Celebration
June 22nd at 7 pm
Tickets: $36/$72 (VIP Special Seating/Backstage Access)
To purchase tickets: https://tinyurl.com/3ze4jw89
West Boca Community Theatre
12811 Glades Road
Boca Raton, FL  33498
https://yilovejewish.org

About YI Love Jewish: YI Love Jewish is a division of Yiddishkayt Initiative (YI), a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization that builds Jewish engagement and forges multi-cultural connections through an immersive and varied range of programming for audiences around the globe. From performing arts, publishing and education to language, philosophy and literature, YI offers a global clearinghouse of Jewish culture and entertainment staffed by experts in subject matter and production. The organization works with a wide range of organizations, including the University of Miami’s Sue and Leonard Miller Center and the George Feldenkreis Program in Contemporary Judaic Studies and Federations, JCCs, synagogues, Hadassah chapters, Hillel chapters, men’s groups, women’s guilds, special interest clubs, youth groups, summer camp programs and educational institutions.

J

Broadcaster Arlene Herson To Be Honored at a Silent Auction at Boca Raton’s Gallery 22

08 Wednesday Mar 2023

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Broadcaster Arlene Herson
To Be Honored
at a Silent Auction at
Boca Raton’s Gallery 22

Proceeds to benefit YI Love Jewish’ mission to fight antisemitism through the arts.

For Immediate Release
Contact:  Alessandra Lasanta
Alessandra@yilovejewish.org / 888-945-6835
Contact:  Carol Kassie
carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244

March 8, 2023

BOCA RATON, FL:  Broadcaster/journalist/philanthropist Arlene Herson will be honored at a Silent Auction on March 22nd.  The event, which will take place at Boca Raton’s Gallery 22, will be co-sponsored by the gallery and YI Love Jewish.  The proceeds from the auction will benefit YI Love Jewish’ mission to fight antisemitism through the arts.

The Silent Auction will be hosted by Yaacov and Sue Heller and will feature works by a number of world-renowned artists including Laurence Gartel (Father of Digital Art), Martin Levin (Kristallnacht Series), Frank Stumer, Sir Kelly Fawaz, and Yaacov Heller.

Award-winning performer and YI CEO Avi Hoffman will act as master of ceremonies and pianist Phil Hinton will provide live music during the evening.

Tickets for the Silent Auction are $100 and available online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/557150571357. The ticket price includes entry into the event, the silent auction, live music, and wine and cheese. 

Arlene Herson’s illustrious career includes numerous interviews with famous and distinguished personalities on both radio and television.  She produced The Magic Flute with Victor Borge conducting, and the musical 1776 with members of Congress playing the Founding Fathers. She was appointed by President George W. Bush to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, by Governor Jeb Bush to the Florida Film & Entertainment Advisory Council, and by President George H.W. Bush to the Take Pride in America Advisory Board.  She is one of the few non-lawyers appointed to the Florida Bar Grievance Committee.

YI Love Jewish is a division of the Yiddishkayt Initiative, a not-for-profit organization that celebrates and promotes Jewish history, life, and culture and their positive and far-reaching impact on the world.

For more information about YI Love Jewish and the Silent Auction, visit the organization’s website at www.YILoveJewish.org, email info@yilovejewish.org or contact Alessandra Lasanta –alessandra@yilovejewish.org / 888-945-6835, or Carol Kassie – carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244.

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Fighting Antisemitism Through the Arts
A Silent Auction at Gallery 22 Honoring Arlene Herson
Wednesday, March 23, 2023, at 7:30 pm
Tickets: $100 (There are a limited number of tickets available)
For tickets:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/557150571357
The event will take place at
Gallery 22
320 Esplanade #53, Boca Raton, FL 33432

  • Arlene Herson

YI Love Jewish to Present Free Readings of Josef Mundi’s IT’S GOING AROUND

01 Wednesday Mar 2023

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YI Love Jewish
To Present Free Readings of
Josef Mundi’s Controversial Israeli Play
It’s Going Around


A new translation by Avi Hoffman will premiere in Boca Raton and Miami Beach in March

For Immediate Release
Contact:  Alessandra Lasanta
Alessandra@yilovejewish.org / 888-945-6835
Contact:  Carol Kassie
carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244

March 1, 2023
BOCA RATON/MIAMI BEACH, FL:  As part of the YI Love Play Reading Series, YI Love Jewish will present Avi Hoffman’s English translation of the controversial Hebrew thriller It’s Going Around by Josef Mundi, for audiences in Boca Raton and Miami Beach on March 26 and March 28, 2023. 

An award-winning Israeli psychodrama about idealism, identity, and insanity, It’s Going Around speculates as to what happens when Dr. Theodore Herzl, the Father of Zionism and the concept of a Jewish State in Palestine, meets Franz Kafka, noted author, playwright and assimilated Jew, in an insane asylum in modern-day Israel. This play is the only one in the history of the State of Israel to be shut down by the authorities in the 1960s; it was eventually reinstated by the Israeli Supreme Court, and ultimately became one of the most important and successful plays in the history of Israeli Theatre.

Avi Hoffman translated, adapted, and will direct the reading, and will take on the role of Franz Kafka.  It’s Going Around will also star South Florida favorites Dave Corey as Theodore Herzl and Ilana Isaacson as The Secretary.  The events are free however donations are always welcome.   To RSVP:  Click on https://yilovejewish.org/yiloveplayreadings/

YI Love Play Readings is sponsored by the Greater Miami Jewish Federation Jewish Incubator Grant 2023, and the Afran Foundation and is co-sponsored by Dr. Bruce and Lesley Zafran of Parkland, the Sue and Leonard Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies/George Feldenkreis Program in Judaic Studies at the University of Miami, The Betsy South Beach, Miami Beach JCC, the Alper JCC and the Adolph & Rose Levis JCC, Mo’s Deli, and the Yiddish Theatre Alliance. 

With a six-year history of seasonal play readings as a way to educate and entertain, YI Love Jewish now has developed a year-long series that includes scholarly lectures with an aim to highlight different aspects of Jewish life, culture, language, and history. Each of the 2022/2023  YI Love Play Readings will be performed and filmed in front of a live audience in Boca Raton and Miami after which they will be made available to schools, Jewish centers, cultural partners and online audiences across the world.  The It’s Going Around reading is part of the organization’s celebration of Israel’s 75th Anniversary.

For more information about YI Love Jewish visit the organization’s website at www.YILoveJewish.org, email info@yilovejewish.org or contact Alessandra Lasanta –alessandra@yilovejewish.org / 888-945-6835, or Carol Kassie – carol@carolkassie.com / 561-445-9244.
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It’s Going Around
By Josef Mundi
Translation by Avi Hoffman
March 26 & 28, 2023
Tickets:  Free (donations are welcome)
To reserve:  https://yilovejewish.org/yiloveplayreadings/
March 26 at 3 pm
Adolph & Rose Levis Jewish Community Center
21050 95th Avenue South
Boca Raton, FL  33428
March 28 at 7:30 pm
Miami Beach JCC,
4221 Pine Tree Dr.
Miami Beach, FL 33140


Avi Hoffman was recently awarded Congressional recognition, was invited to the Vatican to meet Pope Francis and was inducted into the Bronx Jewish Hall of Fame for his lifetime work advancing Jewish culture, Yiddishkayt and Holocaust awareness through the charity he founded the Yiddishkayt Initiative, Inc. (YILoveJewish.org). As an actor, he was nominated for a NY Drama Desk Award for his Yiddish language portrayal of Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman. He is best known for his Too Jewish Trilogy: Award winning one man shows Too Jewish, Too Jewish, Too! (PBS, Performer of the Year ’95 – NY Press Magazine; L.A. OVATION award – Best Actor In a Musical 2001; NY Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle award nominations) and his latest show Still Jewish After All These Years. On TV, he was featured as Sid Raskin in the Starz TV series Magic City, as well as on Netflix’ Bloodline,A&E’s The Glades and on the NBC series Law and Order. He starred in the International Award winning short Yiddish Films: Shehita (Best Thriller – HollyShorts Festival) , BOXED and the motion picture – The Imported Bridegroom. He was seen in the PBS documentary They Came For Good: A History of the Jews in the US. Avi has performed all over the world, has numerous acting and directing credits and has received multiple awards and nominations. Visit him at www.YILoveJewish.org

  • Josef Mundi
  • Ilana Isaacson
  • Dave Corey