Jewish organizations are invited to submit their upcoming events to the our What’s Happening section. Events are placed on the Ledger website on Tuesday afternoons. Deadline for submission of calendar items is the previous Tuesday. Send items to: judiej@ jewishledger.com.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 23

Bluegrass in New Haven
The Bluegrass Characters Revue will present “A Tribute to Phil Zimmerman and Stacy Phillips” at 7:30 pm on at Congregation Beth El – Keser Israel, 85 Harrison St. Also performing is Kol Kahol, a group of young musicians drawing inspiration from bluegrass musicians like Stacy Phillips, as well as contemporary Jewish bands such as the Klezmatics, the Moshav Band, and Nefesh Mountain. Masks required; no food or beverages will be permitted. Admission is free, but the musicians will pass the hat. 

MONDAY, JANUARY 3

Learning life’s lessons on Rosh Chodesh
“Nobody’s Perfect Lessons for a Lifetime of Parenting” is the topic of this month’s Rosh Chodesh for Women and Men session, which will be held on Zoom Jan. 3 at 7:30 p.m. Each Rosh Chodesh gathering uses as its core text 30 Lessons for Living by Karl Pillemer. The book relates life lessons learned, as Pillemer interviews older people, using their life experiences to help us navigate the road ahead. Hosted by Congregation Shir Ami of Greenwich, All of these Rosh Chodesh discussions are “stand alone” and you do not have to have read the book to participate. To register and receive the Zoom link (which will be emailed to registrants on the morning of the event), call (203) 900-7976 or email shirami.info@gmail.com.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5

The Many Faces of Anti Semitism: The Hare With The Amber Eye
Take a virtual tour of the Jewish Museum’s exhibition drawn from Edmund de Waal’s celebrated memoir, “The Hare With the Amber Eye.” trace the Ephrussi family’s rise and fall through artwork by artists including Claude Monet and Auguste Renoir,. At the exhibition’s centerpiece is the rare collection of miniature antique sculptures that a maid hid in her mattress during World War II.

The talk is FREE and will be held on Zoom, Jan. 11, 7:30-8:30 p.m. For more information, visit ujajcc.org. To register for all four programs in the series, email karen@ujajcc.org and include your name, email and phone number.

SATURDAY, JANUARY 8

“Some of My Songs” with Mike Latini
The JCC in Sherman presents “Some of My Songs,” a concert featuring Mike Latini with special guest Susanna Marker, on Jan. 8 at 7 p.m. (snow date: Jan. 15, 7 p.m.) Latini’s latest album, “2020 Visions,” written during and largely about the pandemic, is being released in conjunction with the concert. The concert will be held indoors at JCC in Sherman, 9 Rte. 39 South. Masks required, regardless of vaccination status. Reservation required. Tickets may be purchased online at jccinsherman.org, info@jccinsherman.org, (860) 355-8050. Tickets: $20/members; $25/non-members. 

TUESDAY, JANUARY 11

The Many Faces of Anti Semitism: Tainted Glory In Handel’s Messiah
Renowned musicologist Michael Marissen, author of Tainted Glory in Handel’s Messiah: The Unsettling History of the World’s Most Beloved Choral Work, will deliver a virtual talk as part of the UJA/JCC Greenwich 4-part antisemitism lecture series. Every Christmas and Easter, audiences thrill to performances of Handel’s Messiah, but they would be appalled to learn the full extent of its meaning. Popular musicologist Michael Marissen uncovers a disturbing message of anti-Judaism buried within its joyous celebration. Gain unsettling insights into one of the world’s best- loved works of religious music. The talk is FREE and will be held on Zoom, Jan. 11, 7:30-8:30 p.m. For more information, visit ujajcc.org. To register for all four programs in the series, email karen@ujajcc.org and include your name, email and phone number.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 12

“What You Need to Know About Jewish Family Names,” a free Zoom event presented by the Jewish Historical Society of Greater New Haven and the JCC of Greater New Haven, with Dr. Sallyann, Amdur Sack, a pioneer and international leade rin modern Jewish genealogy., 7 p.m. Register:
https://jewishfederationofgreaternewha.regfox.com/what-you-need-to-know-about-jewish-family-names

MONDAY, JANUARY 17

“Sublime Slime!” in Greenwich
UJA-JCC Greenwich will host “Sublime Slime!” For children ages 3 and up on Zoom on Jan. 17 at 10:30 a.m. Led by Jaden of Jaden’s Craft Shack, kids will be able to customize slime color and scent. RSVP by Jan. 5 to ujajcc.org. Fee: $25/includes complete slime kit (pick p kids Jan. 10-14 during business hours from UJA-JCC office.

TUESDAY, JANUARY 25

Men’s Paddle & Beer Night in Greenwich
Hosted by UJA-JCC Greenwich, Men’s Paddle & Beer Night will be held by the Fire Pit at the new Innis Arden Paddle Hut in Greenwich. Proceeds will help fund the presence of the community’s new security adviser, a program to help make Jewish Greenwich safer,, more prepared and proactively responsive to antisemitic incidents. Tickets: $350 For more information or to register: ujajcc.org.

SATURDAY JANUARY 29

“The City Without Jews,” film and musical presentation
Jews are hounded by mobs and driven from Vienna in the 1924 expressionist film, “The City Without Jews,” based on the satirical novel by Hugo Bettauer. World-renowned musicians Alicia Svigals and Donald Sosin will play their collaborative score that has brought audiences to their feet at Lincoln Center, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival, and other venues in the U.S. and Europe. To be held Jan. 29 at 7 p.m. The concert will be held indoors at the JCC in Sherman, 9 Rte. 39 South. Masks required, regardless of vaccination status. Reservation required: jccinsherman.org, info@jccinsherman.org, (860) 355-8050. Tickets: $20/members; $25/non-members. 

SATURDAY, JANUARY 29

“The City Without Jews” on film in Sherman
The silent film “The City Without Jews” will be screened on Jan. 29, 7 p.m., indoors at the JCC in Sherman, 9 Rte 39 South. The silent film will be accompanied by live music featuring world-renowned musicians Alicia Svigals and Donald Sosin. 

The film, based on the satirical novel by Hugo Bettauer, tells the story of Jews in Vienna who are hounded by mobs and driven from their homes, was produced in 1924 and rediscovered in 2015. It is a chilling premonition of the Holocaust and cost Bettauer his life. Presented with commentary by film scholar Noah Isenberg (UT Austin) and a recently restored soundtrack, it is one of few surviving Austrian Expressionist films, and the magnum opus of the great director H.K. Breslauer. The film’s premise is the political rise of the Christian Social Party, which orders all Jews to evacuate Austria. In the ensuing months, the sober reality of a society without Jews sets in, as cultural institutions close and cafes are replaced with beer halls.

Reservations required. Email jccinsherman.org. Tickets: $20/members; $25/nonmembers. Masks required regardless of vaccination status. 

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4

“A Winter (Jewish) Experience” for young adults
Urban For and UConn Hillel are co-hosting “A Winter (Jewish) Experience” for adults ages 21 to 39, on Feb. 4, 7-9 p.m., at UConn Hillel at UConn Hillel, 54 N Eagleville Rd, Storrs. Guests are also welcome to participate in a spiritual prayer service to be held at 6 p.m. The optional service will be followed at 7 p.m. by dinner, and at 8 p.m. guests may enjoy socializing with friends, old and new, and/or playing pool and ping pong. Guests may join at any point during the course of the evening. Must be vaccinated to attend. Dress is business casual. The evening is FREE and open to all. To RSVP: https://www.urbandor.org/event-details/a-winter-jewish-experience.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 5

On Stage: “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee”
The B’nai Jacob Players (BJP)will present the hit Broadway musical “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” on Saturday evening, Feb. 5. The cast and crew were only two weeks away from the play’s April 2019 opening, when COVID hit, leading to the long shutdown. Now, the play is back on schedule, with most of the intergenerational cast eager to go curtain up. Original formed in the 1970s, BJP was re-launched in 1992 by Ken Sperling z”l, with a large scale production of Fiddler on the Roof. Since then, the troupe has mounted a total of 14 musicals and comedies, which earned them a Solomon Schechter award. For tickets and more information, email barbaragoldstein@bnaijacob.org , or call (203) 389-2111.