Editor’s note: Due to the ongoing security situation, events listed below may be postponed or canceled. Check before booking, and stay safe.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11
Readers who fast and pray during Yom Kippur likely need no tips for today. Those who take a different path into Jewish meaning might consider learning about the clown ambulance.
The Clownbulance was established in 2015 by medical clowns. There are now around 100 such clowns who meet sick children and allow them to make a wish come true despite their painful treatments, not only in Jerusalem but all over Israel. These wishes include swimming with dolphins, riding a horse, or visiting the zoo.
The children’s families are never asked to pay for this little miracle. To support its initiative, the organization welcomes contributions. To learn more, and offer a donation, visit clownbulance.com/en/english.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 12
Watch the 2007 Russian film The Banishment at the Jerusalem Cinematheque, directed by Andrey Zvyagintsev. The lead role of Alex is played by Konstantin Lavronenko. Alex is married to Vera (played by Maria Bonnevie) and learns that his wife is expecting a child fathered by another man.
An adaptation to the 1953 novel The Laughing Matter by William Saroyan, this movie was lauded as “a mythic masterpiece” by The Daily Telegraph. Note: This is a slow-paced film.
8:30 p.m. NIS 24 per ticket. 11 Hebron Rd. In Russian, with Hebrew subtitles. Call (02) 565-4333 to book.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 13
Attend the Jerusalem premiere of the concert “To a Sea Horse – In the Orbit of Moondog” at the School of Visual Theater. This is an homage to American composer Louis Thomas Hardin (Moondog) offered as part of the Vitality Performance Conference.
Five Israeli talents (Yoni Silver, Ram Gabay, Yifeat Ziv, Erez Meyuhass, and Adam Scheflan) will play a rich, strange, complex concert in the footsteps of this brilliant musician.
8 p.m. NIS 50 per ticket. 11 Bezalel St. Call (02) 673-3435 for more info. The Vitality Conference begins on Sunday, October 13, and ends on Tuesday, October 15. The festival has many events on offer; learn more via visualtheatre.co.il/fests/en/fest/vitality-en.
MONDAY, OCTOBER 14
Get your Four Species (etrog, lulav, hadass, and arava) at the Mahaneh Yehuda market, as some 40 vendors will be offering everything you need to enjoy Sukkot. Just meandering down the lanes is a wonderful, colorful experience for anyone who enjoys the bustle of a marketplace.
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15
Enjoy the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra’s performance of “Chamber Beethoven” at the Brigham Young University Jerusalem Center for Near Eastern Studies concert hall. Violinist Julian Rachlin and pianist Evgeny Brakhman will play two works by Beethoven: Quintet in E Flat for Piano and Winds, Op, 16; and Septet in E Flat Major for Clarinet, Horn, Bassoon, Violin, Cello, and Double Bass, Op. 20.
8 p.m. Free upon pre-registration. 1 Hadassah Lempel St. Call (02) 626-5666 to book.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16
Learn about the life of rabbi, educator, and playwright Emil Bernhard Cohn by visiting the Leo Baeck Institute Jerusalem website and reading about its exciting Library of Lost Books project.
The initiative tracks down books looted by the Nazis in 1942, which were part of the Berlin Higher Institute for Jewish Studies. Only 5,000 volumes out of the 60,000 originally held there have been traced to collections all over the world.
The yearly calendars that Cohn wrote were designed to teach children about Jewish values and history. They included art, crossword puzzles, Hassidic tales, and even basic facts about the origin of Jewish surnames.
Visit libraryoflostbooks.com for an online experience of the Lost Books project or leobaeck.org to learn about this special Jerusalem academic center, which keeps German-Jewish culture and history alive with panel discussions, lectures, and other events.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17
Enjoy the divine blues of Lazer Lloyd (Lloyd Paul Blumen) at the Yellow Submarine. Born in the US, Lloyd met Shlomo Carlebach in 1993 and decided to turn his life around, become religiously observant, and live in Israel.
The result was the 2012 album My Own Blues, lauded by the Israeli blues community as one of the best albums in this genre ever made in this country. This is a chance to listen to a living master of the blues in the capital.
Doors open at 9 p.m.; the show starts at 10 p.m. Sitting performance. NIS 80 per ticket. 13 Harekevim St. Call (02) 679-4040 to book.
Throwing a special event? Opening an art exhibition or a new bar? Bringing in a guest speaker to introduce a fascinating topic? Email hagay_hacohen@yahoo.com and let In Jerusalem know about it. Write “Jerusalem Highlights” in the subject line. Although all information is welcome, we cannot guarantee it will be featured in the column.