Over less than two decades the European Day of Jewish Culture has developed into one of the more recognisable international projects. Under its patronage, creators and visitors to cultural events who wish to learn more about Jewish heritage, culture, and arts meet every year on one Sunday in September, encompassing approximately thirty European countries. This year, the European Day of Jewish Culture is dedicated to women in Judaism and their role in contributing to the Jewish cultural heritage.
The European Day of Jewish Culture (EDJC) is celebrated in Slovenia since 2006. This year, we will mark it with events in Maribor, Lendava, Ljubljana, Negova, and Murska Sobota. The organizers in Lendava and Ljubljana will start the EDJC events as soon as Friday, 12 September: at the Lendava Synagogue at 18 p.m. with the recital of actress Polona Vetrih, followed by the book presentation Sitting down with the Jews of Prekmurje – a cookbook after scripture. On the same day at 19 p.m. the Association of Youth, Parents, and Children – SEZAM from Ljubljana is organizing an evening, dedicated to female story-tellers based on the book Fieta’s Vase. The next day the programme will continue in the Mini Theatre in Ljubljana at 20 p.m. with the theatre performance The Strawberry Girl. Most of the events of this year’s European Day of Jewish Culture will occur on Sunday, 14 September: in Maribor, at 11 a.m., Maribor Synagogue’s annual Open Doors Day will begin with the opening of the multimedia exhibition Shekhinah – 4 Matriarchs by the Austrian-German Jewish female artist and photographer Malin Gabriele Kundi. Also, on Sunday at 11 a.m., in Mini Theatre – Jewish Cultural Centre Ljubljana the events will star with the opening of the documentary exhibition The Jewish Cycle of Life / The Everyday Jewish Way of Life, followed by the book presentation Sitting down with the Jews of Prekmurje – a cookbook after scripture, and later, at 12:30, by the premiere of the virtual performance Shabbat Ha’Malka. In the afternoon, the programme will continue at 17 p.m.: in the Negova Castle with the opening of the exhibition Roma on the Move, followed by the concert of Jewish music with Klarisa Jovanović & Della Segodba, and the ensemble Kontra-Kvartet; as well as in Ljubljana with the lecture on Katja Delak, followed by a literary presentations of several Jewish writers and female poets at 18:30, and at 20 p.m. by the recital Let me listen to myself! The European Day of Jewish Culture 2014 in Slovenia will end on the October 5, at 17 p.m. with the opening of documentary exhibition Tracing Jewish Heritage in Slovenia and the book presentation Tracing Jewish Heritage: A Guidebook to Slovenia in the Pomurje Museum Murska Sobota.
Honorary Patron of the EDJC 2014 in Slovenia is Borut Pahor, President of the Republic of Slovenia. Admission to all events, except for the theatre performance “The Strawberry girl”, is free of charge.
Organisers: CJCH Synagogue Maribor, Kultprotur – Institute for Culture, Tourism and Promotion Gornja Radgona, Negova Castle, Pomurje Museum Murska Sobota, Institute for Culture and Promotion Lendava, Synagogue Lendava – Holocaust Museum, Galerie – Museum Lendava, Institute for Hungarian Minority’s Culture, Lendava Cultural Association, Research and Documentation Centre JAS, SEZAM – Association of Youth, Parents and Children, Mini Theatre, Jewish Cultural Centre Ljubljana
The EDJC 2014 was supported by: Pošta Slovenije, German Embassy Ljubljana, Mestna občina Maribor, Občina Gornja Radgona, Mestna občina Murska Sobota, Občina Lendava, Revolt AR Ltd., Mestna občina Ljubljana, Urad Republike Slovenije za mladino
