In Person Courses   

In this drawing class, members will try various exercises to hone visual acuity to make more accurate renderings of what is seen. Members will attempt different attitudinal exercises to loosen and heighten their approaches to making statements with their drawings. Composition, tone, and line  will be introduced and practiced during in-class work as well as take-home drawing projects. Media will be standard dry media, such as pencil, charcoal, and colored pencil.

When Jews first arrived in America, they saw the New World as a place for new and welcoming beginnings. When larger numbers arrived in the late 19th and early 20th century, they spoke of "der goldener medina," or the golden land. This class will examine how the Jewish experience in America did or did not live up to those expectations. To what extent are recent Anti-Semitic incidents outliers or symptomatic of the Jewish experience in America?

This course will discuss two Shakespearean favorites, Much Ado about Nothing and Romeo and Juliet, one comedy and one tragedy. Members will try to understand these plays in their historical context, just as Shakespeare’s contemporaries might have understood them. In addition to text study, participants will view some works of art that shed light on the plays. The class will also discuss films of the plays: Branagh’s Much Ado About Nothing and Zeffirelli’s Romeo and Juliet. 

NOTE: Class time will not be used for viewing films. Members will have two options for film viewing: borrowing or purchasing the DVD or viewing on a streaming service.

Sholem Aleichem’s Fiddler on the Roof won fame with its portrayal of Tevya and his daughters. But this portrayal was from a male writer’s viewpoint. What additional insights might a female writer of that time have provided? Unfortunately, few stories by Yiddish women writers were available in English. Thanks to the women’s movement, Jewish feminists in the 1990s found and translated women’s stories. The sixteen stories in Yenta Mash’s On the Landing, finally published in 2018, reveal the events of these women’s lives—from shtetl to Gulag to Israel. During each class session, a lecture will lead into discussion of two of Mash’s stories.

Improv is play. Imagine for the next 90 minutes that everything you say or do will be right. You cannot make a mistake. No scripts. Nothing to remember. No wrong answers. Just have fun! Your rich collection of life experiences, assorted objects, and literary prompts inspire the games and short scenes. “Yes and …” means you listen and agree with your partner’s suggestions, then add something of your own to move the scene forward. Your partner does the same for you. You leave refreshed with the sound of laughter to brighten your day.

Words like “trauma,” “trauma-informed,” and “resiliency” are in the news, online, and around us. But what do these mean? Is there anything we can do as individuals to be more trauma-informed? This course will focus on what trauma is and how resiliency can be used to help ourselves and others. We will learn how trauma impacts both individuals and systems. Members will discuss resiliency and growth in response to life challenges. Finally, members will learn basic resiliency skills and how to implement them to overcome challenges and grow.