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Jewish Journal

Connect. Inform. Inspire.

December 3, 2024

UCLA Student Judicial Board to Hear Complaint Against Cultural Affairs Commissioner

California, News /

The UCLA Undergraduate Students Association Council (USAC) Judicial Board announced in a Dec. 3 Instagram post that it will be “formally considering” a Petition for Consideration alleging that Cultural Affairs Commissioner (CAC) Alicia Verdugo discriminated against Jewish students when hiring staff members in the fall.

As previously reported by the Journal, the complaint, filed by Bella Brannon, editor-in-chief of the Ha’Am student-run newsmagazine at UCLA, featured documents and texts they claimed were from the Verdugo-run CAC stating that “we reserve the right to remove any staff member who dispels [sic] anti[-]Blackness, colorism, racism, white supremacy, zionism [sic], xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, ableism, and any/all other hateful/bigoted ideologies.” The petition also included a transcript of a group message where Verdugo told series heads: “lots of zionists are applying — please do your research when you look at applicants and I will share a doc of no hire list during retreat.” Brannon was one of three openly Jewish applicants who were rejected by the CAC, according to the petition.

In response to the allegations in the petition, Verdugo told Ha’Am “the Cultural Affairs Commission (CAC) is an organization that has historically, and continuously, stood with marginalized and vulnerable populations. As such we do not tolerate or endorse hateful rhetoric or actions of any kind from the world, the university, and especially our staff members. As CAC aims to continue being an organization that fights for the protections and inclusion of marginalized, we will continue to hold our staff to a standard that puts the safety and needs of the communities we serve first.”

The Judicial Board’s announcement stated that they are “granting” Brannon’s petition and are “formally considering the case.” A preliminary hearing will take place via Zoom on Dec. 10 at 4 pm PST and witness lists will be due the following day.

Brannon said in a statement via text message to the Journal, “We’re grateful to the Judicial Board for advancing our case. Verdugo not only violated USAC guidelines but also federal discrimination laws through their hiring policies. We have a preponderance of evidence ready to present, including a statement Verdugo provided to Ha’Am that effectively reinforces the allegations. I hope for a fair trial and trust that, if our concerns are heard, appropriate action will be taken to remove Verdugo from their position.”

“We’re grateful to the Judicial Board for advancing our case. Verdugo not only violated USAC guidelines but also federal discrimination laws through their hiring policies.” – Bella Brannon

She added: “Students, parents, and faculty have raised concerns about Verdugo’s behavior for years. I am personally aware of numerous complaints submitted to the university, including allegations from Jewish students who report that Verdugo’s actions have caused them to fear for their physical safety. At what point will the university take decisive action? How much longer will it allow its reputation to be tarnished by the behavior of one individual?”

Benjamin Katz, the author of the Ha’Am report that first reported on the story, told the Journal: “We are very pleased that the Judicial Board has decided to take on this case. This decision marks an important step forward in rekindling the relationship between Jewish students and the student government responsible for representing them.”

UCLA said in a statement on Dec. 2 in response to the Journal’s initial reporting on the matter: “UCLA unequivocally condemns discrimination in all forms. We are actively reviewing this complaint as it is absolutely critical that every single member of our community is evaluated fairly for opportunities within student government.”

The CAC did not immediately respond to the Journal’s request for comment.

UCLA Student Judicial Board to Hear Complaint Against Cultural Affairs Commissioner Read More »

Piven Talks About ‘The Performance’ 15 Years in the Making

Film /

Is it ever okay to dance for the devil?

That’s a question posed in the new film “The Performance” starring Jeremy Piven as Harold May, a Jewish tap dancer who in the 1930s heads to Europe after not finding big paydays in his beloved America.

He’s offered a great sum of money for one show, and at the last minute, learns it is for Adolf Hitler, who evil is well known, though World War II hasn’t begun yet.

“I think Harold has never, unfortunately, had success, he’s broke and he’s not a kid,” Piven said. “He’s always wanted a family, and the stakes couldn’t be higher. You don’t ever judge your characters. You just play them from their point of view. This was before the Holocaust so he’s trying to convince himself that no matter what it’s going to be alright. It’s an incredible opportunity and it would be foolish to let this slip through his fingers and he’s in so deep that turning back isn’t an option.”

The film is based on a short story of the same name by Arthur Miller. Piven’s mother, Joyce, who founded the Piven Theatre with her husband, Bryne, in in Evanston, Illinois, showed her son the story many years ago. He trusted her sensibility and thought it would be a good film for him.

“My mother, who has been my acting teacher since I was nine years old, handed me the Arthur Miller short story,” Piven recalled. “She’s not a frivolous person. When she hands me something, it’s real. One of the sins in Kabballah is talking too much with a lot of empty words or promises. She’s very succinct, honest, direct and authentic. I read it and was blown away.”

Piven boasts some impressive tap-dancing scenes. He said failure to get funding over many years became a blessing in disguise.

“I’m very delusional,” Piven said. “I think I can do anything, and I think that is an actor’s superpower, because you don’t get in your own way, and you try anything, and you fall on your face. You have to be okay with failure. I just thought, okay, I’ll just learn how to tap dance.’ Every year, I tried to get the money, and they said no, I just got better at tap and 15 years later, I was able to play the role.”

“The Performance” co-stars Robert Carlyle as Damian Fugler, a German man who believes that by bringing Harold to Hitler, he will rise in power and prestige.

Fugler utters the most inexplicable line of the film, when Harold shocks him by revealing he is Jewish.

Piven said the story is “the best illustration of the absurdity of antisemitism I’ve ever seen in my life and to be able to tell a story like that is something that Shakespeare’s says, ‘devoutly to be wished for.’”

While there is no clear solution to Jew hatred, Piven said it is important to be proactive.

“The more we look into it, we realize people are uninformed and ill-informed,” he said. “There are a lot of people who still dispute the Holocaust, or they don’t have a reference for Oct. 7. We have to guide them to the truth.”

“There are a lot of people who still dispute the Holocaust, or they don’t have a reference for Oct. 7. We have to guide them to the truth.”

Is Piven surprised by the rise in antisemitism in the last few years?

“I am,” he said. “There are those that say I shouldn’t be, but I am.”

The movie is about a man who is deeply appreciated for his dancing skills but when he reveals his religion, his future is in doubt. More than 85 years later, Jews are still targeted.

“We need a film like this right now,” Piven said. “This is a way to get to people. Tell them a story. Show them a side they haven’t seen. It makes them think from someone else’s perspective and that’s not so easy. I can tweet and rail against injustices or do what I do best, which is to tell a story.”

Asked if he pictured himself starring in a film relating to the Holocaust when he studied it, he said he never thought that far ahead.

“Looking back, I would have people in my circle back then saying ‘enough with the Holocaust. We heard it. There are other tragedies out there.’ I didn’t realize how antisemitic that was until later. It’s like, why are you guys so angry that we have this ideology of Never Again? Why does that threaten you?’”

It is unclear if the current antisemitism will cause Jewish actors to change their names at greater rates. Piven said even if his name was more Jewish sounding, he would not have changed it like his character in the film who uses the last name of May instead of Markowitz.

At a recent standup performance, Piven mentioned being Jewish several times and said he rapped his haftorah for his bar mitzvah and was terrible. Piven confirmed he did have a bar mitzvah and it wasn’t great, though the rap part was a joke for the stage.

“I’m very proud of my heritage,” he said, adding that he knew of no other way to be and credited his upbringing.

“The Performance” was directed by his sister, Shira Piven. While some might think it would be a strange experience to be directed by a sibling, he said it was organic and a great experience as they grew up together working at their family theater. He said his sister had some key directorial notes, including a certain tone in a scene where he addresses his dance troupe and needs to raise morale. He touted her talent and an actress and director.

Piven is best known for winning three Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Awards for his portrayal of powerful Hollywood agent Ari Gold on HBO’s hit show “Entourage” in which his client Vincent Chase (Adrienne Grenier) lives with his buddies and they party hard in Los Angeles. If Gold was Harold’s agent, would he tell him to accept or refuse the gig dancing for Hitler?

Piven said that was a very “meta” question and he’d have to think about it. The role of Ari Gold was based on Ari Emanuel, now CEO of Endeavor, who Piven referred to as a “prolific genius.”

He feels a great deal of gratitude for the film finally being made and released after 15 years of different roadblocks. But viewing Piven as a different character than the one he is known for will not be one of them.

“People see the performance and they forget about Ari Gold, and they say, ‘you disappeared,’” Piven said. “The reality is I didn’t disappear. I reappeared.”

Piven Talks About ‘The Performance’ 15 Years in the Making Read More »

‘Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’ Star Michael Zegen Talks About New Play and Dishes Dating Advice

Theater /

Michael Zegen has etched his place in the hearts of Jewish fans for his brilliant banter with Rachel Brosnahan as they portrayed Joel and Midge with unforgettable conversations on the Amazon hit series “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”

In “Strategic Love Play” at Minetta Lane Theatre in Manhattan, he plays Adam, a funny and self-deprecating guy who thinks his date might be a dud. Heléne Yorke plays Jenny, who is nervous and aggressive from the jump. With the emotional baggage these two have, if the play took place on an airplane, it would get expensive.

Michael Zegen and Helene York as Adam and Jenny in “Strategic Love Play.”

It’s a firecracker of a play with two people who sit at a table and the stakes seesaw and we don’t know if the characters will want to kill or kiss each other. The script, by “Succession” writer Miriam Battye, keeps the tension at a brisk boil. Produced by Audible Theater, “Strategic Love Play” is about the kind of dates we don’t see on stage or on screen.

Was it hard to go from the magic he made with Brosnahan, where both characters loved each other, to this play, where it’s a first date full of animosity?

“Luckily, I was able to have a co-star in Heléne Yorke,” Zegen said. “She could have chemistry with anything and anybody… That could have been a disaster if I hated my co-star.”

It’s an understatement to say Adam and Jenny start off on the wrong foot. At first, we think it might end as a five-minute speed-date. Both are defensive.  Adam does something with a bag of Lay’s potato chips (as someone who was once nearly addicted to this snack, I was intrigued by this) but breaks a cardinal rule of dating that could put the night in jeopardy. But can they overcome the obstacles in their way?

Who among us has not been on a date with someone who reeked of dirty laundry, but perhaps after a while, the smell dissipated?

Jenny has a trick up her sleeve and it’s a shocker.

In only 90 minutes, the conversation takes some twists and turns, and the ending is certainly unexpected. There is one insult Adam says that angers the audience.

“It’s a terrible thing to say,” Zegen said of what his character’s verbal joust. “Every night, it gets a big reaction, and I love it. It’s my job to get a big reaction out of the audience.”

Zegen and Yorke play off each other well and have a strange chemistry that works. He says she is fishing for compliments. She tells him he is not a nice guy, using a word from the male anatomy.

Asked about advice for Jewish singles, Zegen said it is important to be honest about what is important to someone.

“As a Jew, I feel like if being important to you is being Jewish, you need to say it outright if you are dating a Jew or not, mention how important it is to you,” Zegen said.

Zegen said his fiancé, actress Jennifer Damiano, converted to Judaism on Nov. 25.

“We talked about it early on and she knew how important it was to me and my family,” Zegen said. “… It’s beautiful that she did it for me. It’s a huge deal.”

The couple met when they starred in the musical “Bob & Ted & Carol & Alice” a play based on the 1969 film with the same name.

As for any signs that someone might not be suitable to date, Zegen said there is one that stands out.

“Somebody who’s rude to a waiter or waitress, that’s a big red flag,” he said. “You don’t want to be with somebody who looks at people as less than. We’re all human beings and deserve to be treated equally.”

In “Strategic Love Play” the characters get equal time, take the same shots at each other, and the feelings are heated. The show has a lot of laughs and the truth that in some cases, one has to get past people’s facades to try to get to who they really are.  If you’re looking for typical puffery, this show is not for you. If you’re interested in taking a dive into the minefields that singles face while dating and being told by friends and family that they are doing things wrong, you should get your tickets now.

Zegen asked if JDate still exists (it does but people also use JSwipe and other apps) and he said he knew there was a need for a play like this.

“When I read it, I immediately knew I wanted to do it because it was so funny and relatable,” he said. “I thought it would resonate with young people who are on the apps and dating websites. It was lightning in a bottle for me.”

“When I read it, I immediately knew I wanted to do it because it was so funny and relatable. I thought it would resonate with young people who are on the apps and dating websites. It was lightning in a bottle for me.”

Zegen can also be seen as mafia man Andrew Falcone in Max’s “The Penguin” where Zegen has a key scene with a barely recognizable Colin Farrell. He also played an infamous Jewish gangster on the HBO hit “Boardwalk Empire.”

“There was nothing more fun than playing Bugsy Siegel,” Zegen said. “I wish that had continued and we got to see more of him.”

Asked which role was similar to the real Michael, he said there is a little bit of him if everything, but as he owns no gun and doesn’t run a club like Joel did, he pointed to a role from a play he did more than a decade ago called “Bad Jews.”

Written by Joshua Harmon, the 2013 play at the Roundabout Theater centered on two cousins battling over their dead grandfather’s chai necklace, which had been smuggled under his tongue in a concentration camp.  Zegen explained his character was more secular and his cousin was a woman who wanted it for religious reasons.

As for the biggest challenge of “Strategic Love Play,” Zegen said it was clear.

“There are so many lines and it’s two of us,” he said.  “I’d never done a two-hander. It’s the kind of thing where if one person forgets a line it’s panic. But we’ve been doing it enough to this point, if someone does forget a line, we’re well-equipped.”

Directed by Katie Posner, “Strategic Love Play” poignantly examines crucial questions all singles face: how truthful and vulnerable should we allow ourselves to be on dates, and how can we avoid making an unbearable blunder. It’s an emotional tightrope where you’re barefoot and no one will catch you if you fall. It’s also educational and might save you from turning off a potential soulmate. The play reminds you in a land of lies, nobody’s Abe Lincoln, nobody’s Pinocchio and you have to trust your gut, though it’s a good idea to have some strategy.

“Strategic Love Play” runs through December 7 at Minetta Lane Theatre.

‘Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’ Star Michael Zegen Talks About New Play and Dishes Dating Advice Read More »

BJE Names Miriam Heller Stern as Incoming Chief Executive Officer

Community /

BJE: Builders of Jewish Education has named Miriam Heller Stern its incoming chief executive officer, effective July 1, 2025.

Stern, a longtime Jewish professor and academic leader, succeeds Gil Graff, who led BJE for more than three decades and in early-2023 announced his intention to retire by the end of the 2024-2025 academic year.

Stern, currently the director of the school of education at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (HUC-JIR), where she also served as vice provost for educational strategy, brings two decades of experience in Jewish educational leadership to BJE, BJE Board President Craig Rutenberg said in a statement announcing Stern’s hiring.

“We are thrilled to have engaged Dr. Miriam Heller Stern, and excited to benefit from her vision, creativity, and demonstrated leadership skills, which will lead the BJE and ensure the continuing impact of BJE in advancing its vital mission,” Rutenberg said.

By June of next year, Stern will be at BJE full time and, coinciding with Graff’s retirement, will assume leadership of the agency on July 1.

But for now, Stern plans to continue her work at HUC-JIR, a graduate and professional school serving the Reform movement, through the spring semester while also supporting BJE program planning for 2025-2026, beginning in January.

Stern’s hiring follows a year-long transition process. With the support of a $300,000 Next Stage grant from the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, BJE engaged a search firm to identity a successor to Graff.

Rutenberg, who headed the search committee, said the decision to hire Stern was “unanimous.”

Stern is a frequent presenter at academic and professional conferences, including sessions offered by BJE, and on webinars and podcasts. She is an alumna of Brandeis University, and she earned her PhD in social sciences, policy and educational practice at Stanford University as a Wexner Graduate Fellow.

Stern was in Jerusalem attending a Jewish education conference at the time the Journal went to press and was not immediately available for additional comment on her hiring.

On her website, she says her work happens at the “intersection of education, Judaism, creativity, pedagogy, leadership and history—with an eye toward designing the future.”

She is also a scholar-in-residence at the Covenant Foundation, where she is developing her work on Jewish creativity, the arts and education, and she serves on the boards of Shalhevet High School and Jewish arts organization theatre dybbuk.

In a statement, Stern said, “It is an honor to have the opportunity to lead Builders of Jewish Education during such a consequential moment in Jewish history, when high quality Jewish education is not just essential to ensure an imagined future, but to deliver Jewish wisdom and tell the Jewish story in the present.”

Throughout her career, Stern has argued for placing creativity at the center of Jewish education. As such, she has embraced organizations such as Moishe House that have inspired novel approaches to Jewish learning.

Graff said Stern is uniquely qualified to drive BJE’s continued success going forward.

“I can think of no one better suited than Miriam Heller Stern to lead BJE,” he said. “Her strategic thinking, educational leadership, partnership with educational institutions and foundations with an interest in Jewish education, and experience with the broad range of schools with which BJE works, represent a unique combination, bringing tremendous strength to BJE.”

In a phone interview, the BJE leader expressed gratitude that the agency had found the right person to carry the torch as it seeks to engage the next generation of Jewish families.

“I can’t articulate enough superlatives and delight how wonderful it is to have such a wonderful person leading the organization forward,” Graff said. “She brings a tremendous background, skill, creativity and vision, and she’ll serve well the mission of BJE.”

Founded in 1937, BJE is a donor-supported organization focused on fostering high-quality Jewish education throughout Los Angeles. The organization provides resources for nearly 140 Jewish day schools in the L.A. community, ranging from early childhood through 12th grade as well as part-time religious schools. Resources provided by BJE include professional development opportunities for Jewish educators as well as grants and endowments designed to make Jewish education more affordable.

Currently, there are 33 full time BJE-accredited, K-12 Jewish private schools in greater Los Angeles, with more than 20,000 children enrolled in a various type of Jewish school, whether a preschool, a part-time religious school or a full-time day school.

Shortly after her hiring was announced, Stern emailed this statement to the Journal: “As I spend this week with a diverse cohort of Jewish educational voices from around the world, I am inspired to think together about creative approaches to the challenges our people face and the ways that Jewish education can serve as a tool for resilience and renewal at this moment.”

BJE Names Miriam Heller Stern as Incoming Chief Executive Officer Read More »