to download Guide - Michael-Ann Russell Jewish Community Center

Rabbi Norman Mussman Cultural Arts Department
film & lecture series
Jewish Stories on the Silver Screen - Film & Lecture Series
Wednesdays, January 23, February 6, and February 20
Instructor: Elaine Rudner
A mini-series with a Jewish focus…featuring three films spanning three different decades.
In addition to enjoying critically acclaimed films, there will be discussion with facilitator,
Elaine Rudner, exploring what changes may be seen in the Jewish narrative and also in
the portrait being painted of Jews and the Jewish community… on “the big screen.”
Films will be shown at the MAR-JCC
12:30 pm-Light refreshments will be served: 12:45 pm- Program begins
Free to MAR-JCC members, Quality of Life, and Silver Sneakers
All others (refreshment fee) $3
•HESTER STREET 1975
A wonderful film which earned an Oscar nomination for Carol Kane, brings a touch of “Yiddishkeit” to its
dramatization of Abraham Cahan’s story of immigrant life on the Lower East Side of New York.
•THE MUSIC BOX 1989
Hungarian immigrant Mike Laszlo has done well since arriving in the United States 50 years ago. He finds himself
accused of being a notorious war criminal and insists that his daughter defend him in court. Questions of
memory and emotion make this film an intense courtroom thriller.
•LIBERTY HEIGHTS 1999
Named after a Baltimore neighborhoold, this is Barry Levinson’s most specifically Jewish film. It offers a snapshot
of the changing times in America, in 1954. It’s mature, funny, and represents personal cinema of the best kind!
About our Instructor: Elaine Rudner is a teacher, lecturer, and discussion facilitator who has been involved in
Jewish education in South Florida for more than 40 years. She has devoted her career to all phases of Jewish
education and has taught/lectured at schools, Elder Hostels, adult camps, Jewish Community Centers, Jewish
organizations, synagogues, and Lifelong Learning Lecture Series of several universities.
Understanding The Middle East
Wednesdays, January 16, 23, 30, & February 6, 10-11:30am
Instructor: Lawrence Muscant
A four part series that that will explore the roots of the Middle East conflict, the ongoing changing political and
religious landscape of the region, the impact of the “Arab Spring” on Israel and the world stage, and the
impact of Israel’s foreign policy in its relations with the United States, Europe, and other world powers.
About our Instructor: Currently serving as the Branch Director of the North Dade Branch of the Greater Miami
Jewish Federation, Lawrence Muscant received his BA in Political Science from Concordia University, while also
graduating from the School of Community and Public Affairs. He received his MA in Political Science from
Carleton University, with a focus on international relations and Middle Eastern Studies, and continues there as a
PhD candidate in Philosophy, where he is writing on American foreign policy in the Middle East. Lawrence
previously served as the Acting Executive Director of “The David Project,” an international non-profit Israel-
Middle East education and advocacy organization; has spoken across the globe about the Middle East
conflict; and co-taught the Arab-Israeli Conflict course at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst.
Open to the community at no charge
“With the support of the Miami-Dade County
Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural
Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor
and Board of County Commissioners.”
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