This historian’s classic ideas about memory fuel a new drama about Oct. 7 and Jewish identity

August 25, 2026

By PAMELA S. NADELL

In a lifetime of theater-going I have never heard the word “historiography” on stage.

But that is exactly what the Tony-Award winning playwright Jonathan Spector served up in his astonishing new play “Birthright.”

In its first...

As Christopher Nolan revives ‘The Odyssey,’ a scholar finds links between Homer and the Hebrew Bible

July 16, 2026

By ANDREW SILOW-CARROLL

(JTA) — Even before its release on Friday, buzz over Christopher Nolan’s much-anticipated film adaptation, “The Odyssey,” is introducing a new generation to Homer’s tale of shipwrecks, monsters, gods and the long road home. But what does an...

Adam Sandler officiates Taylor Swift-Travis Kelce wedding, fueling theories about singer’s Israel stance

July 07, 2026

By GRACE GILSON

(JTA) — A Jewish comedian who played one of cinema’s most notable Israeli characters took center stage — literally — at Taylor Swift’s wedding at Madison Square Garden on Friday.

Adam Sandler officiated the ceremony between Swift...

Bamba blankets NYC after Park Slope Food Coop vote to boycott Israeli products. What’s next?

June 04, 2026

By JACKIE HAJDENBERG

(New York Jewish Week via JTA) — Jewish institutions are responding to a boycott of Israeli products at a Brooklyn grocery store by buying up Bamba.

Four thousand free bags of the Israeli peanut butter-flavored snack made...

Finalists announced for lucrative Jewish literary award

June 02, 2026

By LISA KEYS

(JTA) — Amir Tibon’s memoir about his family’s ordeal during the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel and Laura Hobson Faure’s history of Jewish children who fled from Germany to France during World War II are among the...

London police are ‘reviewing’ video of Helen Mirren being called ‘an evil Zionist’

May 29, 2026

By SHIRA LI BARTOV

(JTA) — London police are reviewing footage that showed actress Helen Mirren being called “an evil Zionist b—h” by a person on the street.

The video, which circulated widely online this week, records Mirren walking with...

For the first time, a kosher restaurant has won a Michelin star

May 29, 2026

By GRACE GILSON

(JTA) — As golden confetti rained down around him Thursday, Israeli chef Raz Shabtai broke down in tears and was embraced by his cheering staff.

Moments earlier, a livestreamed Michelin ceremony had announced that his Miami restaurant,...

Children’s book of ‘The Tenth Man’ tells true story of Congregation Anshe Sfard

May 21, 2026

By ALAN SMASON

Artie Bennett knew a good story when he heard one. But this story was one he knew intimately as the protagonist – the so-called “tenth man” – was his wife Leah’s first cousin, Alex Brown.

The children’s...

Israel’s Noam Bettan takes 2nd at Eurovision, buoyed by scrutinized public vote

May 17, 2026

By PHILISSA CRAMER

(JTA) — The Israeli contestant in the Eurovision Song Contest won second place for the second year in a row, drawing a strong public vote despite protests over Israel’s inclusion in the contest.

Noam Bettan and his...

Michael Jackson biopic revives legend of Jewish music mogul who battled MTV’s ‘color barrier’

May 08, 2026

By STEPHEN SILVER

(JTA) — About halfway through “Michael,” the new blockbuster biopic of Michael Jackson, there is a scene in which Jackson (played by his nephew Jafaar) and his lawyer, John Branca (Miles Teller), are sitting with the president...