Editor’s note: Due to Operation Roaring Lion, this week’s column will mostly offer highlights that can be enjoyed from the relative safety of the nearest bomb shelter. Follow the instructions of the IDF Home Front Command and stay safe.
Friday, March 27
Parents of young children might enjoy exposing them to the art of Marcel Janco (1895-1984) in a series of online puzzles, named after him, created by the Ein Hod Museum.
Janco was an artist working in both the Dada school and the Ofakim Hadashim group. These puzzles were created from several of his paintings. Among them are Maccabi; A Ma’apilim Ship; and The Road to Jerusalem.
The ma’apilim were Jews who came to the Land of Israel before the Jewish state was established, despite officials of the British Mandate government declaring them unwanted and removing them by force if they were captured.
To explore the online games, visit www.jancodada.co.il. Free. Hebrew site. Coloring pages based on more paintings in the collection will be added soon.
Saturday, March 28
Head to the Mazkeka and rock to the rage of the punk band Xeiot. Band members include Sahaf Sinai, Noya Kela, Yonatan Rosenwaks, and Eyal Roe. Their album Thanks God, Sorry was released by the Haifa-based Shukri label earlier this year.
3 Shoshan St. Performance at 9 p.m. NIS 60. Call (02) 582-2090 to book. NIS 28 per digital album. See xeiot.bandcamp.com/album/--2
Sunday, March 29
The National Library of Israel has many available bomb shelters, which makes it that rare cultural institution that can continue to operate during these unusual times. Parents and grandparents, with young children (ages seven and older), are invited to enjoy an hour and a half of looking for a lost map in a fun activity, designed along the lines of an escape room.
1 Kaplan St. Offered every hour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. NIS 45 per child. NIS 36 per adult. NIS 27 for senior citizens. Hebrew-language activity. Visit www.nli.org.il/he/visit/family-visit/lost-map-mystery for more.
Monday, March 30
Treat yourself to a tasty kosher dairy meal at the Botanical Gardens Caffit Café. Situated on a lake, the location has a bomb shelter. Enjoy a full meal with the salmon shwarma option.
Those with a sweet tooth will relish the Basque cheesecake and chocolate fondant.
1 Yehuda Burla St. Call (02) 648-0003 to book. Visit caffit.co.il for more. Hebrew site.
Tuesday, March 31
Celebrate fresh Jerusalem theater talents with several online productions of the Incubator Theater. Those fluent in Hebrew might enjoy the comedy musical Victory Is Not Important.
Written by Yael Tal, the performance is a loving and sly look at the fictional life of an religiously observant girl growing up in 1990s Jerusalem. Those who seek the comfort of the familiar might prefer to watch The Tragedy of Macbeth.
Visit www.youtube.com/@incubator1. In Hebrew.
✱ Today is the last day to stream Israeli films online at the low cost of NIS 10 per rental, thanks to the generosity of the Jerusalem Cinematheque Israel Film Archive.
The variety includes Noodle, a 2007 comedy directed by Ayelet Menahemi about an airline stewardess (Mili Avital) who is tasked with looking after the young son of her cleaning woman, who works in Israel illegally and has been arrested.
Those seeking to expand their horizons will relish Without a Homeland, an unusual 1956 production starring Shoshana Damari as a Jewish Yemenite woman who – after Arabs murder her parents when she was a baby – is raised as a Muslim, reconnects to her Jewish legacy, and decides to build a home in Israel.
Made along the same line of the Egyptian film hits of that era by Nori Habib, it is a rare cinema telling of the experience of Mizrahi Jews.
Visit jfc.org.il/en for more. The code is PEACE26.
Wednesday, April 1
Watch King David Report, produced by the Gesher Theater, in this 2020 performance directed by Yevgeny Arye. The play is based on the biblical-style novel by Stefan Heym.
Released in East Germany in 1972, the novel is a monologue of a wise scribe – Ethan the Ezrahite – who must find a balance between the politics of the court and his own desire to leave behind a true account of the current moment, while keeping his head connected to the rest of his body.
Heym was a Jewish writer who left the US to live in the socialist state of East Germany; this work is usually seen as a veiled critique of that regime. The Hebrew performance is shown with English subtitles.
Visit shortlink.uk/1mbyw for more. Free.
Thursday, April 2
During these tense times, Haifa’s six museums are offering a rich variety of online content for adults and children.
Children might enjoy the Lego Print, a filmed workshop now available online created by the Hermann Struck Museum. The National Maritime Museum offers Little Ocean, a special workshop in which children can make their own small sea. Available online as a series of easy-to-follow slides, parents can use it to enjoy an imagination-rich time with their little ones.
Adults who missed one of the past exhibitions can take an e-tour and catch up on A Century of Japanese Design at the Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art.
Visit shorturl.at/WfKgg. Free. Hebrew site.
Throwing a special event? Opening an art exhibition or a new bar? Bringing in a guest speaker to introduce a fascinating topic? Email hagay_hacohen@yahoo.com and let In Jerusalem know about it. Write “Jerusalem Highlights” in the subject line. Although all information is welcome, we cannot guarantee it will be featured in the column.