Alex Minkin created an online Jewish Brazil website outlining various volunteer opportunities for Jews traveling in Brazil. Visit TicunBrasil for information on how you can volunteer in Brazil!

Alexander Alabin was born in Odessa, Ukraine in 1969. In 1984 after graduating from high school he was accepted into the State College of Medicine and graduated from there with a Physician’s Assistant Diploma in 1992. Shortly after graduation he decided to switch to music as he was already playing guitar and piano on a near professional level and composing original music. In 1992 Alex immigrated to the United States of America. The range of venues and gigs that Alex has played in ranges from The New York City Subway System (those were the days!) to Carnegie Hall, The Windows of the World Restaurant , and The German Consulate. In 1997 he was accepted into the New School University in New York City; and in 2001 he completed his BFA majoring in Jazz Composition and Arranging. Today, Alex works as a Music Therapist in a Nursing Home and Rehabilitating Center, where he combines music and medicine; as well as an original composer at the Village Playback Theater.

CROSSING BOUNDARIES

Alex’s project was the “Crossing Boundaries” Improv Show at The Playback Theatre – a project dedicated to stories of immigration. The performance addressed issues and problems related to immigration and how people’s traditions, beliefs and views are affected through acculturation into this country. Playback Theatre uses a talented cast of actors and musicians (including our own Alex Alabin) to perform a completely improvised show based on the immigration stories of audience members.  The event was held on June 10^th, 2010 at Village Playback Theatre on 14^th Street.

Alex Zhuravsky works as an occupational therapist in Brooklyn.  For his project he decided to bring his skills as a therapist to the senior community of Brooklyn.  Alex organized workshop sessions at the Shorefront Y to teach Russian Jewish seniors how they can better improve their flexibility as well as physical rehabilitation, and fall prevention.

Soprano Anya Fidelia made her professional debut at the Caramoor International Festival in the summer of 2005 where she returned during subsequent seasons to work on the roles of Leonora in Verdi’s Il Trovatore as well as Leonora in La Forza del Destino. Ms. Fidelia also appeared in numerous concerts with the company.

Ms. Fidelia’s recent and current seasons include the roles of Suor Angelica; Georgetta in Il Tabarro; Santuzza in Cavaleria Rusticana; Tatyana in Eugene Onegin; Leonora in Il Trovatore; Blanche de la Force in the Dialogues of the Carmelites; Mimi in La Boheme as well as the title roles of Puccini’s Tosca and Madame Butterfly throughout Europe and US. Ms. Fidelia’s domestic and international engagement highlights also include numerous appearances at The Metropolitan Opera Guild; recitals with International Rachmaninov Society in New York City presided by Vladimir Ashkenazy and for the UN VIP guests of the UN Russian Mission, sponsored and hosted by Mayor Bloomberg among others.

Past seasons highlights included such roles as Puccini’s Tosca, Mozart’s Donna Anna and Countess at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia; appearance in Stefan Weisman’s new opera “Darkling” with the American Opera Projects; a soundtrack for Tribeca Film Festival award winner documentary “Jack Smith and the Destruction of Atlantis” and Cannes Festival award winner documentary “Bye-bye, Babushka!”  as well as the tour of France with the New York Opera Society.

Roots: The Classics

Anya’s project is a cultural series that provides a global overview of Jewish representation in classical arts. The program will explore the importance of Jewish input into the universal culture, thus exposing impressive Jewish achievement outside of the walls of our own community and culture, while still maintaining a strong Jewish identity.  The events will involve music, art, and spoken word.

Anna Rozenblat is a New York based freelance photographer specializing in weddings and events photography, as well as fashion and experimental work. After studying art at Art Students League, and graphic design at FIT, Anna finally chose photography as her medium of choice for its ability to instantly capture spirit, depth and the essence of passing moments.

YIDISHE MAME

Anna’s  project is called “Yidishe Mame”. It brings together a group of several young rising photographers within the Russian Jewish community that will collaborate on creating a body of work for an exhibit that will honor our elder generation, and creatively explore immigrant Jewish identity.

Danny Braz was born in Odessa and immigrated to the United States in 1978 with his parents.  A graduate of New York University, Danny continues to take part in many special events, particularly Community Theater, music and fundraising functions.  Since relocating to Staten Island in 1999, Danny’s passion for entertaining has become evident in many ways.  From organizing ‘Karaoke for a Cause’ at the American Cancer Society’s fundraiser, to participating at the Staten Island Film Festival, to performing with his band at the Borough President’s Beach Festival, Danny always abounds with fresh ideas and limitless energy.  His most recent project was “Jewpardy! Live!”

David Bas organized a workshop and tour at the Jewish Children’s Museum for children and families on May 9th. The workshop was followed by a discussion on the  the influence of Jewish roots/traditions on our parenting choices. Check out pictures from the event in the Cojeco photo gallery!

Diana Sorkin is an Award winning artist with a passion for all things creative. She has been creating mural sculptures and fine art for over 20 years. She is from Moscow, Russia and is the mother of two beautiful kids.  Diana had a chance to learn about her own culture through various COJECO programs including a trip to Israel and her MiniGrant Project. Diane’s project allowed her to bring the wonder of a Bar and Bat Mitzvah to Russian-speaking adults living in Long Island.

Dmitry Khavin began his film career at the Odessa Film Studios in Odessa, Ukraine. Since 1992 he has lived in the US, where he works as a director, editor and camera operator on documentaries and television programs for HBO, PBS, Discovery, MTV, and Link TV.

ACROSS THE NARROW BRIDGE

This winter the JCC of Manhattan hosted a screening of the documentary “Across the Narrow Bridge” by Dmitriy Khavin. For his project, Dmitriy traveled with a group of first generation Americans of a Soviet Jewish background to Ukraine to learn about the Jewish history of the region and document the experience on film.  The film screening opened to a full house and included a discussion with the director and several participants in the Ukraine trip.

Elena Zaveleva who was recently awarded the Shapiro Family Fellowship will be putting on a Jewish Fashion Show, with new designs that integrate Jewish fashions and styles from various time periods. The Line will be called “Shmata.”

Born in Kiev, Ukraine, Yelizaveta Grebenyuk emigrated to the U.S. with her family in 1992. She grew up in New Jersey, where she started first grade. As she gradually became Americanized, in an attempt to assimilate she began introducing herself as Lisa (a name she heard on a then popular TV show “Saved by the Bell”). She enjoyed a typical suburban adolescence, participating in a myriad of extracurricular activities, working part-time, and dreaming of living in New York City. It wasn’t until her late teen years that she started to reconnect to her Russian roots, making a concerted effort to regain fluency in Russian.

A pivotal point in her life came when she matriculated Hunter College on a full scholarship and moved to Manhattan. There she began taking Russian Literature courses and met several Russian-Jewish people with whom she became fast friends. These first few connections led to a circle of people that was highly influential in her life; individuals with a well-developed sense of Russian-Jewish identity. Upon their recommendation, Lisa went on the Birthright Israel program, where she began to grapple with her Jewish identity for the first time. Two years later, she went on a volunteer trip to Israel with the organization Livnot ULehibanot. The hikes through the vast Israeli desert allowed her a spiritual insight into Judaism beyond just its cultural framework. Lisa then joined the leadership training program with EZRA USA, a Russian-Jewish organization that helped her realize her potential as an organizer in the community.

After college she worked as Director of Operations for a real estate firm in Manhattan but continued to search for a creative outlet.

MISHPUCHA FAMILY CAMPING

During the BluePrint Fellowship, Lisa worked on her Minigrant project which she received from COJECO in 2009. The project was a camping weekend retreat in Lake Taghkanic State Park called “Mishpucha Family Camping.” The retreat hosted 32 families and engaged both children and adults with workshops and seminars including photography, arts and crafts, sing-a-long, Scavenger Hunt, Jewish environmental values and composting with the Jewish Farm School, and hiking.  The event was such a success that families were asking to be signed up for next year’s event at the last day of the program.  After such an exciting run, Yelizaveta has decided to open her own non-profit that would create family events for Russian Jewish families. Check out pictures from the event here!

Born and raised in Odessa, Ukraine, Eugene Klig immigrated to the US at the tender age of 15. After graduating high school and obtaining an engineering degree from Stony Brook University, Eugene worked for a telecommunication company, until a sudden change of heart set him on the journey of non-profit work in the Russian-Jewish community. Such drastic change came about with the help of a CWW minigrant project, as it provided him with an opportunity to explore possibilities in this line of work prior to fully committing to it. Eugene’s MiniGrant is the KinoFERMA film festival designed to showcase works of Russian-Jewish filmmakers and animators residing in United States.  The first screenings took place in New York City and were followed by screenings in San Francisco and Toronto.

Evelina Ioselev works as an events planner in NYC.  She has been instrumental in planning events within the Russian Jewish community as well as helping her fellow BluePrinters.

Felix Lipov is in the process of creating a photography website of Jewish sites and travel pictures from all over the world. Felik’s project will be called “JewTrek.”

Ilona Melyokhin works as a Program Coordinator at the Shorefront Y in Brooklyn, NY.

Luba Proger and Leonid Khanin have been collaborating since 2004 under the name L2coLab.
Their combined multidisciplinary education and experience in fine art, architecture and photography has allowed them to create a number of innovative art projects. Their work has been exhibited over the years in  various art venues.

In the past six years L2coLAB has been involved in multidisciplinary art and theater projects, addressing ideas of inner beauty, multiculturalism, and belonging. They are experimenting with immersive environments by use of space, innovative video and audio sampling techniques that stimulate viewers’ perception between themselves and their environment.

They are currently working on a series of projects to explore identity within the immigrant community, where they investigate the identity search influenced by the political and cultural movements of the Soviet society, and its influence on the integration of the immigrant community within modern American society.

Luba Proger has a background and education in fine arts, graphic design, and photography.  Upon moving to the United States, Luba continued her studies and earned a degree in photography and graphic design from the Pratt Institute, NYC.

Luba Proger has been making photographs for over a decade. In the past five years she got involved in curatorial work, where she conceived, and developed a number of arts, photography and theater projects. She currently resides and works in New York City.

Leonid Khanin is an architect and an artist. He has been involved in a variety of art projects utilizing conceptual design and realization. His art projects combine set design, video and photography.

PURIM SPIEL SHADOW THEATER

In 2008 Leonid Khanin received a Mini-Grant from to COJECO. Leonid created a unique theatre experience through a staging of The Purim Spiel Shadow Theater which gave new life to the Jewish tradition of the Purim Spiel. The show was performed on an inflatable sphere and accompanied by new musical arrangements of well-known songs from Russian cartoons. Pics here!

60 REFLECTIONS

In 2008 Luba Proger received a Mini-Grant from COJECO to realize a photography installation 60 Reflections.  The installation celebrates the 60th year of Israel’s independence and the profound influence that Israel has had on so many Russian-speaking Jews. Twenty-seven individuals contributed sixty images that together present a photographic panorama of how each one sees and celebrates Israel, and finds common bonds and a shared commitment to the Jewish state on the 60th anniversary of its birth.

PROJECT OKNA

Project OKNA is a multimedia installation inspired by diverse individual views and personal stories on the subject of Jewish identity coming from people in the Russian-speaking community. Through an artistic interpretation the project explores the unique juxtaposition of the Soviet/Russian past and Jewish identity. Pics here!

The event took place at the Nuyorican Poets Café on May 13^th and drew in over 100 participants.  The installation event culminated in a musical performance by PSOY KOROLENKO.

Masha Shkolnik is a journalist and a songwriter who was born in Moscow, Russia and moved to the USA 12 years ago. Masha is known for her journalistic career with RTVi cable network as a reporter followed by working as a host and a manager for Russian radio stations in New York such as Novaya Zhizn’ and Davidzon Radio. Masha has recorded twoCDs with her songs and is working on recording the 3rd.  Masha develops her career in the area of learning and development; as her hobby she organizes creative events and camps for kids –www.children123.com. She is also a mother of two.  Masha’s articles, poems, lyrics, and MP3s as well as CDs for sale can be found at
www.mashashkolnik.com

BUBBE MAISER

Masha’s project is the creation of a CD – “Bubbe Maiser” –  which includes stories for kids read by our own Grandmothers as well as a  parallel event for kids during Sukkot.

Michael Girshin immigrated to the United States from Moscow in 1996 at the age of 25.  He lives in New York City and currently works as an anesthesiologist at the Metropolitan Hospital.

PING THING

Michael created a Table Tennis fundraiser for the Israeli charity “Save A Child’s Heart” on June 17th at SLATE bar in Chelsea, NY. The event raised $7,000 for charity and had over 150 participants.  “Save A Child’s Heart” provides life-saving cardiac surgery and other life saving procedures for children from developing countries.

The Russian-born soprano Nika Leoni has toured internationally, appearing in opera and concert at theaters throughout the United States, Germany, Austria, Italy, England, Poland, and the Czech Republic. Her performance repertoire ranges from large-scale opera roles to intimate art songs, and she also made her recent debut as a dramatic actress/singer in a Broadway-style musical play.  Earlier this year, Nika Leoni’s first recorded album of Russian Romances and Traditional Songs titled “Dark Eyes” was released on Larion Records.

QUEEN ESTHER

The Russian-born soprano Nika Leoni has toured internationally, appearing in opera and concert at theaters throughout the United States, Germany, Austria, Italy, England, Poland, and the Czech Republic. As a participant of the MiniGrant Project, Ms. Leoni produced a short opera “Queen Ester” by Albert Markov for Russian-speaking children based on the traditional Purim holiday theme.  The opera was staged in costumes and sung in Russian by professional singers accompanied by a small chamber ensemble.  It was presented as part of a Purim celebration at the JCC-Manhattan on February 28^th, 2010; because of demand Nika decided to stage an additional showing of the event. Over 300 people came to the event.

Olga Monastyrskaya immigrated to the United States with her family at the age of 16. Having graduated from Parsons School of Design in 2003, she has been working as a graphic designer in advertising and publishing industries. Olga has 5 years of classical art school education both from the Ukraine and the United States.

Olga says, “My story is not in any way different… Being such, I am convinced that through the form of visual expression, it will spark a beautiful dialogue with other artists who have their unique stories to tell as well as with the audience, who I hope will recognize their internal and external world in the works on view.”

Russians Take Over Chelsea!

In her art exhibition titled “Recognizing History or What Became of My Red Star“, Olga brought  together the presently disintegrated community of Russian-Jewish visual artists who foster similar passions for the past they share, the present they live in, and the future that they are building.

The exhibition opened on July 8th at ICOGallery at 606 West 26th Street and was an enormous success. Over 500 people came to the opening and enjoyed a wonderful night of music, mingling, and art! Check out pics from the event here.

A mail art exhibit “Ticket to Jerusalem” by Radik Shvarts was held at the JCC of Manhattan in April. Radik was born in the Ukraine, graduated from an Arts college in Belarus, and immigrated to the US in 1994. His International Mail Art Project “Ticket To Jerusalem” invited people from all over the world to create and mail in their “ideal” handmade art-tickets. All entries are exhibited online at http://tickettojerusalem.com. Most of them will also be exhibited in the US and Israel and featured in a book “Ticket to Jerusalem” that will be published in 2010.  The opening event had approximately 100 participants, and over 200 entries from people in Israel, Russia, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Spain, Greece, Italy, Estonia, Holland, and the United States.  The project allowed people from all over the world to express their love of Israel through a creative medium.  The exhibition stayed at the JCC Manhattan for a month after the opening.

This project was made possible through a grant by the Blueprint Fellowship project of COJECO and The Jewish Agency for Israel, funded by the UJA-Federation of NY and Genesis Philanthropy Group.

Ritaly Rappaport’s project is Peace Play Live! A Structured “debate game” exchange introducing the concept of Peace Play over two sessions. PeacePlay is an interactive and educational online environment where individuals engaged in a conflict can express their point of view, voice ideas, resolve differences and explore the possibility of peace.  PeacePlay will be a user-driven and user-moderated strategic simulation of the Arab-Israeli peace process alongside a comprehensive subject matter library. The strategic simulation allows individuals to express their point of view, while the subject matter library ensures that the experience is an educational one.  Since the simulation is user-driven, it is interactive with other users – all of whom get a chance to voice their ideas for their possibility of peace.  Lastly, to ensure that the experience is a constructive one, the focus will be on resolving differences and finding ways to overcome challenges – by employing game elements that reward positive contributions.

Veronica Price dabbles in many things.  She is an entrepreneur who owns a photography company and designs innovative jewelry, while working as a marketing expert for a consulting firm that develop technology startups in NYC.  She holds a degree in Psychobiology from Binghamton University.

Veronica was born in Kharkov and raised in Khmelnitsky Ukraine. She immigrated to the US during the early 1988 wave and settled in Brooklyn with her family where she found herself as the only Russian immigrant in a junior high school class full of tough Italian-American kids.  Veronica reconnected with her immigrant roots in high school and college inside a group of diverse and friendly nerds, one that may only be found in NY, a welcoming immigrant capital. Veronica has taken part in and chaired many Russian-Jewish initiatives in NYC and looks forward to helping create stronger identities in creative ways.

WECOMETOAMERIKA

Veronica has a profound love of New York City which led her to organize a day long, 150 participant strong scavenger hunt of the historic Lower East Side in the Fall of 2008 (We|Come to America) as the first COJECO MiniGrant project. Check out pictures from the event in the Cojeco photogallery!

WECOMETOAMERIKA – KINGS COUNTY

Veronica’s BluePrint project will be a similar Jewish Scavenger Hunt in Brooklyn with the New York Russian Jewish Youth Council – which will follow in the Jewish footsteps of Brooklyn immigrants.

vydavy sindikat (Misha Sklar/Zhenya Plechkina) is a Brooklyn-based artist collective. The collective’s activities include video, performance art, poetry and architecture. In recent years, vydavy sindikat participated in numerous shows in the United States and in Europe. Works of vydavy sindikat are in the collections of the  State Museum of Architecture (Moscow), Buchenwald Museum of Art (Germany), The Stein Archive of Russian Immerge Books (The Netherlands) and private collections.

SOLOMON’S CHAIR

The Jewish Children’s Museum will host “Solomon’s Chair” in the fall of 2010 by the Brooklyn-based artist collective called vydavy sindikat . Solomon’s Chair is an interactive art installation that will portray different Jewish Holidays targeted to children ages 3-6.

JOSHUA VENTURE GROUP

We are also excited to note that after her experience with the MiniGrant Project, Zhenya Plechkina applied and was chosen out of hundreds of people to become the First Russian Joshua Ventures fellow.  Zhenya will be implementing a Children’s Art Initiative for Russian-speaking Jewish communities around JCC’s in New York City.  The Children’s Art Initiative is a new idea that will combine the creation of an arts publication with teaching artist residencies for children age 4-18. This project seeks to raise the status of children’s creative skills as writers and artists by having them publish their own materials to with a wider audience, bringing art into the lives of young people. This initiative will empower children in the Russian-Jewish community and beyond to develop their individual creative expression through authentic arts practice and to transform learning about Judaism into an exciting, hands-on experience.

Yelizaveta is in the process of creating a Photography exhibit “The Challenges We Face” – a project that represents the challenges of RSJ émigrés in understanding their Jewish identity. Yelizaveta works at the Metropolitan Opera.