Sunday 10 June 2018
12:00-17:00
Highbury Fields
bigjewishsummerfete.com
We are excited to announce the programme of the Big Jewish Summer Fete, a free festival of Jewish culture, taking place on Sunday 10 June 2018 at Highbury Fields, Islington. The main stage will feature live performances by Don Kipper and the London Jewish Male Choir, and a stellar line-up of speakers will give talks at the Jewish Speakers’ Corner.
Set to perform a programme of Klezmer music, Don Kipper are a multi award-winning 7-piece ensemble playing a wide range of traditional musical forms reflecting the cultural diversity of North East London, from Turkish and Greek Folk Musics to Romani music and Klezmer. They are due to release their third album end of June 2018 and their performance at the Big Jewish Summer Fete is a special appearance prior to their new album launch concert.
London Jewish Male Choir will perform a programme of Yiddish songs. Currently directed by Joseph Finlay, the London Jewish Male Choir has a long history of entertaining audiences with high quality performances of a broad range of Jewish music. Founded in 1926 in London's East End, the choir has, for 90 years, sung at the most prestigious venues and toured across the world. Today they perform an diverse repertoire of Jewish music including: Yiddish, musical theatre, cantorial, folk music and contemporary music.
Another highlight of the event, the Jewish Speakers' Corner is to feature a series of short talks on Judaism and Jewish culture: from Jewish film or Yiddish songs, through personal stories and 'everything you always wanted to know about Judaism but were afraid to ask', to stand-up comedy and commentaries on law. Some of the speakers will include: Sheila Gewolb (Senior Vice President, Board of Deputies of British Jews), Joshua Rozenberg (law commentator) and David Schneer (Director of Jewish Studies, University of Colorado).
Other activities will include free Krav Maga classes, special workshops on Judaism, Jewish Escape Room, arts & crafts by the Jewish Museum, kosher ice cream and bagels, and a jam-packed programme of hands-on workshops, carnival rides, and entertainment.
The Big Jewish Summer Fete is a joyful celebration of Jewish culture for the whole Islington community. While celebrating Jewish culture and religion, the event is also open to all, Jews and non-Jews, promoting community cohesion during a free, family day out. This will be the second edition of the festival, having attracted over 1000 people in 2017.
The event is organised by Chabad Islington and generously supported by grants from BIG Lottery Fund, Arsenal in the Community, Islington Square, Tesco, Simon Marks Jewish Primary School and Funzing.
Find out more: bigjewishsummerfete.com