Film screening 1 hour, 31 minutes; In Yiddish and English with subtitles; followed by discussion

We are thrilled to bring to Beth Am the recently fully restored 1975 classic Hester Street, the story of Jewish immigrants who come to the Lower East Side of New York City in 1896 from Eastern Europe to make their way in the Goldena Medina. Based on Abraham Cahan’s novella Yekl: A Tale of the New York Ghetto, and written and directed by Joan Micklin Silver, a pioneer female filmmaker, this black-and-white masterpiece stars Carol Kane who received an Oscar nomination for her performance as Gitl, the greenhorn wife. Her husband Yankel (aka Jake) is determined to assimilate, spurning Gitl for her traditional ways while conducting an affair with a liberated dancer, Mamie. 

Hester Street was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 2011 as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”. It’s a gem you will not want to miss!

To receive an email reminder prior to each film, please contact Natalie Bivas at nataliebivas@gmail.com.

The Shabbat Jewish Film Series is made possible by the Aptekar Family Fund for Film.