A festival of Jewish culture is coming to the Rady Jewish Community Centre.

Tarbut: Festival of Jewish Culture will take place Nov. 17 to 25 at the Tuxedo area landmark. Entering its third season, the festival brings together visual arts, literature, films, music and more into one nine-day event.

Festival director Tamar Barr said anyone planning to attend Tarbut can expect a diverse selection of offerings.

"(The festival) is really something for everyone. It’s high calibre, most of the entertainment is from out of town… it’s really top notch," Barr said.

"(There’s) great entertainment for everyone, regardless of their background."

Barr said one of the highlights of the festival will be Fiddler in the Golden Land, an evening of musical entertainment and a recollection of the early days in Winnipeg’s North End.

Sandi Krawchenko Altner, a former Winnipegger and author of the best-selling historical novel Ravenscraig, will lead a discussion about the people who first settled in the North End.  

Festival organizers are encouraging everyone who has a connection or affection for the North End to join them for the event.

"It’s a special evening because it really brings us back to the time when people settled in the North End, and the former pioneers," Barr said.

Krawchenko Altner, who now lives in Florida, said while she will be reading passages from Ravenscraig, which is mostly about early Jewish settlers in Winnipeg, she’s hoping it will prompt other people to share their own stories.

"I’m hoping people will come with the idea they can look at the North End all of these decades later thinking about things that were really good about it (in the past)," said Krawchenko Altner, who grew up in West Kildonan.

Krawchenko Altner said she wants the evening to be a celebration of pride, but doesn’t want to gloss over the difficulties early settlers faced.

"There’s a lot in (Ravenscraig) that deals with how hard it was to be a kid in the North End," Krawchenko Altner said.

"I’m hoping people in the audience will have stories to share about (their own) experiences."
Krawchenko Altner said in addition to celebrating the community’s cultural diversity, she hopes the event provides people an opportunity to renew acquaintances with the people they grew up with in the North End.

"If that is the one outcome of this I’d be so pleased — (people) seeing someone (they) haven’t seen in decades and talking about (their) parents, that would be a really neat thing."

For more information on the festival, a full schedule, or to purchase tickets for any of the festival’s events go to radyjcc.com, or call 204-477-7510.

danielle.finch@canstarnews.com