Tamar’s Brother

BY LAINIE FEFFERMAN I am so used to anachronous sexual politics in the Bible, but the sibling relationship in the story of Tamar’s rape hit me hard. I have no brothers by blood, but looking at a sibling as a perpetrator instead of an ally horrifies me on a primal level. I can’t imagine but

Beauty Links

BY JESSICA GROSS As usual, now that our LABA discussions have primed me toward BEAUTY, the subject has been leaping out at me from all corners, from the highbrow to the lowbrow: Critic Mark Harris examines the media’s willful refusal to acknowledge Melissa McCarthy’s dependable bankability and talent at performing diverse roles: “Critics can like or dislike

Rebecca Margolick and Maxx Berkowitz discuss “birds sing a pretty song.”

On Thursday, April 7, and Saturday, April 9, LABAlive will present two evenings of dance, interactive media and film from fellows Rebecca Margolick and Maxx Berkowitz. Here, Margolick, a dancer, and Berkowitz, a composer and graphic artist, talk about “birds sing a pretty song.” and the inspiration they found in our house of study. Tell us about your project. This project is

Quotes on Beauty

BY JESSICA GROSS Beauty, beauty everywhere. The latest quotes, for your reading pleasure: “When images of physical beauty serve to diminish the depth of a woman’s personhood, we should reject them. And when they seem to restore an appreciation of that which has been devalued, or to be attached to an open sense of expressiveness,

Lior Zalmanson discusses “Swipe Me Right”

On Thursday, March 17, LABAlive will present an evening of theater and subversive teachings exploring our relationship with beauty. The evening will feature teachings by Ruby Namdar and work by fellows Kendell Pickney, Joshua Max Feldman, and Lior Zalmanson, who will present his neo-cabaret, Swipe Me Right. Here, Zalmanson talks about his project and the inspiration he found in our house of study. Tell us about your

Kendell Pinkney discusses “Bread of Heaven”

On Thursday, March 17, LABAlive will present an evening of theater and subversive teachings exploring our relationship with beauty. The evening will feature teachings by Ruby Namdar and work by fellows Lior Zalmanson, Joshua Max Feldman, and Kendell Pinkney, who will present scenes from his piece in progress, Bread of Heaven. Here, Pinkney talks about his project and the inspiration he found in our house of study.

Joshua Max Feldman discusses “The Devil and the Wandering Jew”

On Thursday, March 17, LABAlive will present an evening of theater and subversive teachings exploring our relationship with beauty. The evening will feature teachings by Ruby Namdar and work by fellows Kendell Pickney, Lior Zalmanson, and Joshua Max Feldman, who will present scenes from his play in progress, The Devil and the Wandering Jew. Here, Feldman talks about his project and the inspiration he found in

For Sarah

BY SHANTI GRUMBINE Following LABA’s reading and discussion on Sarah, I couldn’t help but think about Sarah’s inability to bare a child in light of today’s technological advancements, including cloning, genetic modification, IVF (manual fertilization in a laboratory dish), and surrogacy. Sarah is barren until God builds her a womb at age ninety, after which

Words on Beauty

Words on Beauty

LABALive #1 Appreciating BEAUTY Is Not As Simple As It Seems. Next Thursday, LABA Fellows and the downtown community will join together for the first LABAlive event on BEAUTY. Join LABA Fellows Gon Ben Ari, Jessica Gross, and Gal Beckerman as they share new literary work based on their investigation of BEAUTY through Classical Jewish