LA Jewish Symphony Anniversary, OBKLA Preps Meals, Jews of Color Discussion

Notable people and events in the Jewish LA community.

[additional-authors]

Ryan Torok

May 2, 2024

Los Angeles Jewish Symphony Founding Artistic Director and Conductor Noreen Green leads LAJS in a performance of “Jerusalem of Gold.” Photo by Sheldon Botler Photography

On April 14, the Los Angeles Jewish Symphony (LAJS) performed before a full house at Wilshire Boulevard Temple’s Resnick Family Campus, formally known as University Synagogue, as part of the symphony’s 30th anniversary celebration.

(From left) WBT Senior Cantor Lisa Peicott and young artist Eden Kontesz.
Photo by Sheldon Botler Photography

Featuring LAJS Founding Concertmaster Mark Kashper, Cantor Lisa Peicott, Cantor Ilan Davidson and young artist Eden Kontesz, the milestone concert returned LAJS to the site of their 1994 debut concert. Among other pieces, Kontesz sang “Light a Candle,” and Davidson wowed the sold-out crowd with Stephen Sondheim’s beloved Broadway tune “Being Alive.”

The repertoire, drawn from throughout the LAJS’s 30-year history, exemplified the breadth and importance of the LAJS’s mission, with works by such composers as Leonard Bernstein, Shony Alex Braun, Sharon Farber, Kurt Weill and others.

Of the event, John Lavitt of the Hollywood Times wrote, “Dr. [Noreen] Green led her talented orchestra in a series of pieces that reflected the group’s history and mission…the diverse offerings highlighted the value of the LAJS as a part of the Los Angeles cultural landscape.”

Food influencers turn out to Pico-Robertson based Our Big Kitchen Los Angeles to create gourmet meals for those in need. In L.A. County, an estimated one-million households are considered food insecure, according to a 2023 study by the USC Dornsife Center for Economic and Social Research. Courtesy of OBKLA

On March 20, Our Big Kitchen Los Angeles (OBKLA) held a special event for food influencers who were invited by legendary food host and recipe developer Dini Klein of Prep + Rally to come together and use their skills to create beautiful gourmet meals for those in need.

Under instruction from OBKLA Chef Joseph Johnson, attendees learned the art of making homemade gnocchi from scratch, infused with lemons from @wonderfulseedlesslemons, whilst enjoying artisanal cocktails by @thenaturalmixologist and a gorgeous graze table from @thegrazela.

“This event truly showcased the versatility of the OBKLA space for infusing every celebration, such as a birthday, bar or bat Mitzvah, a date night or singles event with a dose of chesed, kindness and feeding people in need,” OBKLA Executive Director Yossi Segelman said.

Based in a 4,600 square-foot space in Pico-Robertson, OBKLA is a community-run, non-denominational kitchen that prepares meals for distribution to those in need throughout Los Angeles.

From left: “Black Power, Jewish Politics” author Marc Dollinger and Jews of Color Initiative CEO Ilana Kaufman at the Skirball Cultural Center. Courtesy of Jews of Color Initiative

More than 100 attendees turned out to “Black Power, Jewish Politics.”

The April 17 event at the Skirball Cultural Center featured author Marc Dollinger (“Black Power, Jewish Politics: Reinventing the Alliance in the 1960s”) in conversation with Jews of Color Initiative CEO Ilana Kaufman.

The book release and communal dialogue program was brought to life as part of a unique partnership between Jews of Color Initiative (JoCI) and Skirball Cultural Center.

“It was a healing evening to see academic and intellectual inquiry, a process of refinement that helps us reflect and rectify our past, and I was grateful to hear many others felt the same,” said Grace Osborne, the Los Angeles program coordinator at JoCI.

Supported by Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, JoCI aims to advance racial equity in this country’s Jewish community by ensuring Jewish institutions “reflect the multiracial reality of the Jewish people,” according to the organization’s website.