The Schmooze lies at the intersection of high and low culture. Here, the latest developments and trends in Jewish art, books, dance, film, music, media, television and theater are all assimilated into one handy pop culture blog.
The Schmooze
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Power Couple Behind ‘Handle With Care ‘
“Handle With Care” starts with a loud monologue unintelligible to most audience members because it’s in Hebrew. True, that’s not how plays typically begin — at least outside of Tel Aviv — but somehow it all works. In fact, The New York Times called the show “hilarious and heartwarming.” While top billing goes to Carol…
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Mamet, Schm-amet
You know that awkward moment when you ask a really famous person what they do for a living? Of course not. Because you, like most mere mortals, do not hang out with really famous people on a daily basis. Unfortunately for Lindsay Lohan, she does. So when LiLo happened to be sitting next to screenwriter/playwright/film…
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Family Intrigue,’Handle With Care’
Celebrate 2014 by going to see “Handle With Care” at the Westside Theatre Downstairs and relish a delicious, funny play that raises the concept of farklempt to new heights. There’s stunning, statuesque Charlotte Cohn as Hebrew spouting Ayalet whose “Safta’s” (grandmother’s) coffin has vanished in the wilds of Virginia. The hilarious provincial van driver Terrence…
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Jonah Hill and ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’
Jonah Hill has reached a new high. The 30-year-old comic actor is co-starring with Leonardo DiCaprio in Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street,” which opened December 25. On December 19, Hill spoke at “Reel Pieces,” the Annette Insdorf series at the 92Y. Hill comes across as a man with integrity, intensity, intelligence, and someone…
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7 Best Classical Concerts of 2013
Of the many great classical music events this year in New York, seven with some Jewish content particularly stood out: 1: Mozart collaborated on three operas with librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte, who was born to a Jewish family in the Ghetto of Venice. All three are among the greatest ever written, and explore issues of…
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Gal Gadot Gets Wonder Woman Off Chest
(JTA) — Gal Gadot, the Israeli supermodel recently cast as Wonder Woman in the upcoming movie “Man of Steel,” opened up on an Israeli talk show about her new role. The slender Gadot has received significant criticism from Wonder Woman fans about her physique. Some claim she is too thin and too flat-chested to properly…
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5 Jewish Books To Read in 2014
At this time of year, I’m confronted with the many books published in 2013 that I haven’t yet managed to read. It seems that every day another “best-of” list materializes to remind me of the recurrent truth: There’s just never enough time to get to all of the books that I’d like to read, not…
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My Marvin Hamlisch Moment
The only thing wrong with the latest American Masters profile is the title. Officially it’s “Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love.” More accurately, it should have been “Marvin Hamlisch: Mensch.” Hamlisch was a musician of almost unrivaled accomplishment. He provided the music for numerous plays (“A Chorus Line,” “They’re Playing Our Song”) and films…
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Shimon Peres Doesn’t Know Words to ‘Jingle Bells’
(JTA) — Israeli President Shimon Peres sent out a mostly boilerplate Christmas greeting yesterday, but what jumped out at me were the video’s first 22 seconds, where Peres stands at the center of a group of kids dressed in Santa suits, all singing “Jingle Bells,” accompanied by a piano. Discerning viewers will note, though, that…
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Alex Borstein talks ‘Family Guy’ and ‘Getting On’
Alex Borstein interrupts her stint as a horticultural voyeur to take a phone call. “I’m standing on something to see my neighbour’s deck and her new flower pots,” she explains. “They’re really fancy and kind of put my deck to shame.” It’s hard to believe that Borstein has time to smell or look at the…
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What Did Jewish Celebrities Do For Christmas?
For Jews, Christmas is a time to switch off, relax, be first in line to see the Christmas blockbuster releases and eat Chinese food by the soft glow of the TV. And in this case, celebrities really are just like us — how did your favorite Jewish stars celebrate Christmas? Find out: Sarah Silverman sent…
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