Events Archive

Cinema Yiddishland: Mir Kumen On (Poland, 1935)

On the occasion of the 120th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish Museum in Prague, we invite you to the film series “Cinema Yiddishland,” which presents Yiddish culture as a living space and an inexhaustible source of artistic inspiration. The program connects pre-war films that evoke the long-vanished worlds of Eastern European Jewish communities with contemporary works for which Yiddish serves above all as a creative language.

Directed by Lodz native Aleksander Ford and financed by the Jewish Labor movement in Poland, Mir Kumen On (Children Must Laugh) is one of the few surviving documentaries about Jewish life in Poland before WWII. This institutional film was produced to raise funds for the Vladimir Medem Sanitarium which, noted for its modern and spacious facilities, stood as the embodiment of health and enlightenment, in striking contrast to the grim images of urban Polish-Jewish poverty.
The sanitarium's theme song, “Mir Kumen On” (Here We Come), punctuates the film with a sense of hope and accomplishment. The Bund's optimistic internationalism, exemplified by the children's endearing performances, permeates the film, creating powerful yet unintended ironies for post-Holocaust audiences.
A post-screening discussion will be led by Karolina Szymaniak, a leading Polish Yiddish scholar.
Language: Yiddish, with English and Czech subtitles, 63 min.

Online ticket purchase via GoOut or on the Ponrepo Cinema website.

Full admission – 120 CZK
Reduced admission – 100 CZK
Ponrepo Cinema members – 60 CZK

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Open Synagogues Day

The Jewish Museum in Prague is commemorating the 120th anniversary of its founding this year. To mark this occasion, we cordially invite you to Josefov for the Synagogue Open Day. This extraordinary day offers a unique opportunity to visit the entire exceptional complex of monuments in the Prague Jewish Town free of charge.

A rich accompanying program also awaits you throughout the day: music and dance, a new exhibition by photographer Karel Cudlín, a lecture on Jewish vegetarian cuisine, and a series of themed guided tours. Families with children will also find plenty to enjoy — an interactive scavenger hunt and theatre performances for younger visitors have been prepared.

Come and celebrate 120 years of the museum with us and discover the unique stories told by Prague’s Jewish monuments!

The event is held with the support of the Jewish Community of Prague.

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Ladino—More than a Language: On the Culture of Sephardic Jews with Nesim Bencoya, Director of the Izmir Jewish Heritage Project

Ladino—a form of fifteenth-century Castilian Spanish enriched with elements from Hebrew, Arabic, Greek and Turkish, as well as from Balkan and Romance languages—is the ancient language of Sephardic Jews. Despite a dramatic decline in the number of native speakers, its legacy remains alive. This is because Ladino is not just a language, but a powerful cultural code expressed through music, literature, clothing, culinary arts, life-cycle traditions, domestic culture, the organization of social life, and more.
 
With the aid of musical and visual examples, Nesim Bencoya will be sharing his personal and professional experiences and explaining the role that the language and its associated culture play in contemporary efforts to preserve Jewish cultural heritage in Izmir, Turkey.
 
Event hosted by Michaela Sidenberg, Chief Curator of the Jewish Museum in Prague.
In association with Instituto Cervantes, with simultaneous interpretation from English into Czech.

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The Cultural Legacy of Jewish Communities in Present-Day Turkey: Izmir

The Jewish presence in Izmir—one of the oldest cities in the Mediterranean, formerly known as Smyrna—dates back to antiquity. The local Jewish community experienced an unprecedented period of prosperity, particularly during the seventeenth century, when Izmir became a major cultural, religious, and commercial center for Sephardic Jews. During the same period, the city also attracted followers of Sabbatai Zevi, the controversial founder of the messianic movement. 
 
An evening with Nesim Bencoya, Director of the Izmir Jewish Heritage Project, hosted by Michaela Sidenberg, Chief Curator of the Jewish Museum in Prague.
In association with the Instituto Cervantes de Praga.
Language: English.

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The Dybbuk (Poland, 1937)

On the occasion of the 120th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish Museum in Prague, we invite you to the film series “Cinema Yiddishland,” which presents Yiddish culture as a living space and an inexhaustible source of artistic inspiration. The program connects pre-war films that evoke the long-vanished worlds of Eastern European Jewish communities with contemporary works for which Yiddish serves above all as a creative language.

The legendary film The Dybbuk, based on the play “Between Two Worlds” by S. An-sky tells the story of a restless spirit that possesses the body of a young woman after a failed ritual. This visionary film, marked by a tragic ending, was a true aesthetic revolution in its time, using mysticism as a means of exploring religious belief. The supernatural here functions as a force that stands in opposition to social reality and historical circumstances.
The film will be introduced by Hebraist Karolina Kašeová.
Director: Michał Waszyński
Language: Yiddish, with English and Czech subtitles, 125 min.

Online ticket purchase via GoOut or on the Ponrepo Cinema website.

Full admission – 120 CZK
Reduced admission – 100 CZK
Ponrepo Cinema members – 60 CZK

More information…

Panel Discussion: The Significance of Jewish Museums in Contemporary Europe

Take part in a discussion that will launch the celebrations of the 120th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish Museum in Prague. Pavla Niklová (Director of the Jewish Museum in Prague), Joanna Fikus (Head of the Exhibition Department of the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews), and Barbara Staudinger (Director of the Jewish Museum Vienna) will debate the role of Jewish museums today, opening a dialogue with the public, and the preparation of exhibitions. The discussion will be moderated by historian Michal Frankl.
The event will be simultaneously interpreted from English into Czech.
 

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Concert "Their Music Lives Beyond: Viktor Ullmann and Other Artists - Victims of World War II"

On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, a concert with an accompanying programme will honour Czechoslovak composers and foreign artists who were victims of the Holocaust or Nazi persecution.

Program
17:30 - Lecture by musicologist and translator Magdalena Živná on the personality and work of Viktor Ullmann and presentation of the Czech translation of Ullmann's monograph by German musicologist Ingo Schultz.
19:00 - Chamber concert with compositions by Viktor Ullmann, Pavel Haas, Hans Krása, Rudolf Karl and Sylva Stejskalová performed by Irena Troupová (soprano), Ondřej Holub (tenor) and Jan Dušek (piano).

Co-organizers: the Austrian Cultural Forum in Prague, the Jewish Community of Prague, NOEMI Arts&Media

Entrance fee is voluntary at the venue. 

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The Light of Hanukkah: Tradition, Music and Hope at the Spanish Synagogue

Join us for a unique evening in the beautiful Spanish Synagogue to celebrate Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, through music, tradition, and hope. Following a welcome from Pavla Niklová, Director of the Jewish Museum in Prague, the program will feature a concert of enchanting Hanukkah melodies, accompanied by the historic organ, performed by Jelena Nosková, pianist of the National Theatre. Rabbi David Maxa will share insights into the deeper meaning of this holiday. Together, we will light the Hanukkah candles as a symbol of the triumph of light over darkness and reflect on traditions that unite us across generations. Whether you seek to reconnect with your family roots or are simply curious, this evening is open to all who wish to embrace the beauty and message of the Festival of Lights. The event is organized by the Jewish Museum in Prague in collaboration with the progressive Jewish community Ec chajim in Prague. The evening will be moderated by journalist Anna Nosková, Chair of Ec chajim.

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The history of the Jews in the Bohemian lands in four languages. Debate with members of the international author team.

In May 2024, Bar Ilan University Press published the Hebrew version of Prague and Beyond. Jews in the Bohemian Lands, which represents the fourth language version of the unique history of Jews in the Czech lands from the early modern period to the present day, published in Czech and German alongside the English original. In this publication, nine experts from five countries share with the reader their previous research based on new archival research and a different perspective on Jewish history. Their primary focus is not the history of state policy toward Jews, but the impact that the specific legal, religious, and social status of Jews in society had on individual Jewish communities, Jewish families and individuals, and their relations with their neighbours. The book is also accompanied by a unique demographic appendix on selected Jewish communities, prepared by Lenka Matušíková and Helena Klímová. Most of the authors will take part in the debate, including Benjamin Frommer, Ines Koeltzsch, Martina Niedhammer, Michal Frankl, Michael Miller and Kateřina Čapková. The moderator will be Hebraist Pavel Sládek from the Department of Middle Eastern Studies at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University. The debate will be held in English and will be simultaneously interpreted.

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Guided tour of the exhibition The Samsa Enigma

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On Wednesday, June 26, the curator of Oded Ezer's exhibition "The Samsa Enigma" and our chief curator Michaela Sidenberg prepared a unique guided tour of the exhibition.

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