Événement

SOUTHAMPTON JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL JULY 10, 2018

Sholem Aleichem: LAUGHING IN THE DARKNESS
July 10 7:30 pm
(2011) U.S.A., 93 minutes
Guest Speaker Kenneth Kaufman
A riveting portrait of the great writer whose stories became the basis of the Broadway musical Fiddler on the Roof. Sholem Aleichem: Laughing in the Darkness tells the tale of the rebellious genius who created an entirely new literature. Plumbing the depths of a Jewish world locked in crisis and on the cusp of profound change, he captured that world with brilliant humor. Sholem Aleichem was not just a witness to the creation of a new modern Jewish identity, but one of the very men who shaped it.
His work left lasting legacies in Israel and the Soviet Union, as well as in America where he died in 1916. His funeral, attended by some 200,000 people, was the largest public funeral New York City had ever witnessed and announced the arrival of the American Jewish community as a force to be reckoned with. In the following decades, Sholem Aleichems work, especially his Teyve stories, would be adapted for the stage and ultimately find international success through the musical adaptation of Fiddler on the Roof.
Kenneth Kaufman: Great Grandson of Sholem Kenneth Kaufman is the great grandson of Sholem Aleichem and has been instrumental in keeping his great grandfathers legacy alive on his yahrzeit. In his will, he asked that his descendants remember him with laughter rather than tears. He died 100 years ago and the family has carried on that tradition.
A veteran of the entertainment and communications industries, Kenneth Kaufman advises clients on entertainment and media law.
Before private practice, Ken served as senior vice president and general counsel of Showtime/The Movie Channel Inc. (now known as Showtime Networks Inc.); senior vice president, corporate affairs and general counsel at PolyGram Records Inc.; and as general counsel of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
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