Between Two Worlds: Jewish Theatre Making in Renaissance Mantua

Europe during the Renaissance was a challenging place for religious minorities. Nevertheless, there were places, such as Mantua in the Northern Italian peninsula, which offered a safe haven for Jews that allowed them to express themselves in ways not possible elsewhere. Jews not only maintained cultural and religious rituals within their community but also found ways to use theatre as a means to connect spiritually and artistically with the world around them.

In this unique combination of lecture and performed reading, Professor Erith Jaffe-Berg speaks about her recent publication, Jewish Theatre Making in Mantua, 1520-1650. During the lecture, actors from theatre dybbuk bring selections from the theatrical works mentioned therein vividly to life.