Nu, May is Jewish American Heritage Month. Who Knew?

 

I certainly was not aware that May is Jewish American Heritage Month.   I knew that February was Black History month, and that March is Women's History Month, and that Pride Month is in June.  I didn't realize that Jewish American Heritage  was this month.  (By the way, Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month is also in May.  Which makes sense, because if you count from 2000 years ago, Israel (Judea) is officially Asia. 

May is also Older Americans Month.  This is the time that Israel, Florida, and the Jews all align as one.  Did I mention Chinese food on Christmas Eve?  I was about to.  It is all coming together!

Some of the many prominent Jewish Americans.  I am not prominent enough to be on this list

But despite the obviousness of all these co-occurences, plus the fact that I am a Jewish American, I somehow missed the memo.

JAHM began as an effort by the Jewish Museum of Florida and South Florida Jewish community leaders. Through the bi-partisan efforts of Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-23) and the late Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, JAHM was established in 2006 by President George W. Bush to honor the contributions and achievements of Jewish Americans and to educate all Americans.

 It’s been continued every year since then by Presidential Proclamation. 

Other notable milestones include the formation of a national advisory committee in 2007 to drive the effort forward; NASA Astronaut Garrett Reisman, a New Jersey native and University of Pennsylvania graduate, carrying the original JAHM proclamation into space in 2010, and President and First Lady Barack and Michelle Obama hosting the first-ever White House reception in honor of JAHM that same year. 

In 2018, The Weitzman  National Museum of American Jewish History. (Hereafter known as The Weitzman) became the home of JAHM and now leads the nationwide effort. Located in Philadelphia, the Weitzman does a great job of cataloging and promoting American Jewish culture.  Especially in light of the recent rise of anti-semitism in the US, and the unrest that is on college campuses, 

If you are looking for additional Jewish American Heritage Month events around the country, here's a list maintained by The Weitzman. 

https://jewishamericanheritage.org/events/2024-events-in-your-community/


There are many more events happening around the country, and the list above has a pretty comprehensive list of them.  


Last year, an amazing concert by Frank London and the Klezmer Brass All-Stars (in association with Joshua Nelson and the Kosher Gospel Singers) was held to celebrate.  When Klezmer meets Gospel, the results are electric!

Here it is for your listening and viewing entertainment.
(If you can't see the video below, log in here to view it)

Music Review: Keith Munslow's Exclamation Point!

I've known Keith Munslow for just about 30 years  I first met him in 1991 when he was performing for the Big Nazo Puppets, and I spent a short stint with them performing as a masked actor/puppeteer.  We probably did 8-10 gigs together as part of Big Nazo.  (Hmmmm... thinking back on it, I mostly did holiday themed shows with Keith.  We did a Halloween show, a Thanksgiving show, a Christmas show, and oh, yeah, a fair housing show at a Catholic School.  Is fair housing a holiday?  It definitely should be!)

Keith is a brilliant musician and performer, and over the years I've watched him grow as an artist.  I'm a big fan of his work.  I've seen musicals he's written, watched improvs he's directed, rocked out to his blues bands, and listened with delight to his children's music.  I've also eaten at diners with him at 3 am.  When I was directing the now defunct Bright Night Providence, the New Year's Festival, I hired Keith as often as I could, both for his kid's programming and then at night, if he was available, for an adult swing/blues program.  

What makes Keith a great performer are two things:  his virtuosity as a musician and his sense of humor.   Both of these are on display on his latest family music album Exclamation Point! 

Keith manages to meld a number of different musical styles, and makes them original and entertaining and fun to listen to.  On this album, he's got jazz numbers, show tunes, a tango, straight hard rock, and probably a few other styles I don't know.  All of them are original, and feature a combination of Keith's clever word play, bouncing rhythms, and sense of play.  

I'm especially fond of Drummin' Is Free, which is a rap/drum corp song (Keith is known as a piano player, but he is an excellent drummer.  One of the funniest improvs I ever saw him do was him playing Marching band cadences as the folk song of his people.  I was in high school band too, and they are folk songs!)  

 I also really like Waiting For The Pizza, a song that is a rollicking western number about anticipation and the meta song These Are Not The Words, which is about a guy who doesn't know the words to the song. I know that feeling really well!

There are 11 songs on the album, and all of them are worth listening to and will get your toes tapping and the muscles of your mouth curling upward into a smile.  And that's Keith's real virtuosity-- his ability to entertain.

You can purchase Exclamation Point! on Apple Itunes or directly from Keith on his website.  (and while you are there, check out his other albums, and songs including the newly released Poultry-geist sensation Ghost Chicken, and Benny's The Musical, a theatrical love album to one of Rhode Island's most beloved stores (that sadly has gone belly up)

 

Djembe (Drum With Us)

Djembe The Show is a high energy and exciting interactive drumming show that has a lot to recommend it.

It's making its premiere in Chicago at the Apollo Theatre for a limited run.

There is a drum in every seat at Djembe
Audience is encouraged to drum along!

•  It's interactive.  There are djembe drums at every seat, and there are portions of the show where the audience is invited to drum along.   It's a lot of fun, although it does take a bit of will power to NOT drum during the non-invited parts!

• It's educational.  The show takes you on a worldwide history of the djembe beat, stopping down in places like Brazil, Cuba, America, and the Middle East.  It draws a pretty straight line from African drum music to ragtime to pop hits.   

• It's masterful.  The drummers in the show are fantastic, especially the African drummers Fodé Lavia Camara and Abou Sylla.  Singer Rashada Dawan is also great as she sings and dances. And Broadway star Ben Hope is very engaging and funny (although it was a bit of a weird choice to have this amazing show about African drummers, and they somehow MC it with a white guy who is clearly the least masterful drummer on the stage)
(and after drumming for five minutes, you get even more amazed at these drummers who seem to be able to go for hours.  Iron hands!)

•It's multicultural.  As mentioned above, the cast is a mix of races, and in the show, they go to a number of places.  The originator of the show Doug Manual is English and white and the director West Hyler is an American and white.  They touch down on a number of different cultures telling the story of the djembe beat.  And the support musicians are different ages, races, and (well, not genders.  There's only one woman in the show)

•It's fun.  You leave the theatre feeling energized and happy.  Part of that is the fact that you just made music with 400 other people.  That's a great feeling!

The night I went the audience had a great time!

My only criticism/concern about the show is the idea of cultural appropriation.  Even though a lot of African artists are involved in the telling of the story, there's a sense that the show is viewing this from an American sensibility, and not an African sensibility.  I personally don't have a problem with this, but I could see others having a problem, and I want to point it out.

From my perspective, I was so glad that I went, and I could totally see this as a show equally available for school kids or a family audience as well as an all adult audience.  It's a rare show that manages to crack that, and these guys did it.



The other thing is that it can get pretty loud with all those people drumming.  If you have sensitive ears, bring earplugs!

Djembe The Show is playing at the Apollo Theatre, 2540 N Lincoln Ave in the Lincoln Park neighborhood. For tickets and additional information, visit  https://www.djembetheshow.com/

You can also get discounted tickets on occasion at Goldstar.

EARWORM: Chicago based Animal Farm releases 2nd Kindie album: We Are One

Chicago Kindie band Animal Farm is getting ready to release their second album for kids and families, We Are One.  They are celebrating that fact with a joy-filled live show at 11 am on   Sunday, August 26th at The Den Theatre  (1331 N. Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60622)

Pre-order the album on Amazon.

The band uses animal characters to tell stories and get their message across.  Sometimes the message is humorous and fun-filled and sometimes it's a positive life-lesson or even a lesson about fairness or the environment.  Through songs, skits, stories, and audience participation, Animal Farm gives kids and their families positive messages and fun times.

Animal Farm features David Ladon and Seth Adams, who originally met in Boston in 2008.  They started the band in 2010 and by 2013 they had both moved to Chicago, and added husband and wife team Thor Bremer and Stephanie Young to fill out their sound.    I met David Ladon last year when he became my son's teacher at the Workmen's Circle Sunday school.  I can attest that David and his compadres are full of energy, joie de vivre, and equal amounts education and entertainment.  They are good people to have around your kids!



I've listened to their latest album, and I really enjoy their ability to meld characters and music together.  They have a number of influences, including novelty music, klezmer, rock and roll, jazz, and Latin music, to name a few.

Below, I've included a video of the band performing one of their crowd favorite songs, Cranky Pants, which is on the new album.

Some of my favorite tracks off their latest album including Totes McGoat about an angry goat who needs to let some stuff go, which has a little bit of a Beatles feel, and It Always Could Be Worse, about a kid whose problems are always being one-upped by different animals, including a giraffe with a 6 foot long sore throat.

This song has a vaudeville feeling.  I also really like the song The Abyss , about what is going on way down under the ocean.  Other songs that are great include Awesome Possum, Cranky Pants, and the title track We Are One.

Here's a video of the band performing Awesome Possum, which has an old-school Elvis Costello feeling.

 

Animal Farm is an official touring artist for Urban Gateways, the premier community arts programming organization for youth in Chicago, and is a recipient of the 2018 Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events Individual Artist Program Grant.

We Are One will be released on August 24 and will be available at CDBaby, iTunes, bandcamp, and other major outlets.  It will also be available at the event on Sunday August 26.

Animal Farm painting by Amanda Atkins

Fans will be able to pick up copies of We Are One and the previous Animal Farm CD, Run Free, along with stickers, t-shirts, and temporary tattoos. There will also be coloring stations with free coloring pages where kids can color in their favorite Animal Farm characters.

WHEN: 11:00 a.m. Sunday, August 26, 2018.
WHERE: The Den Theatre, 1331 N. Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60622
ADMISSION: $5 for kids 12 and under. $10 for humans over 12.
TO PURCHASE TICKETS: Visit Eventbrite HERE.
MORE INFORMATION: 303-908-8732  or Visit the Animal Farm website

YIVO Festival Events All summer long

YIVO is a society dedicated to the preservation of Yiddish language and culture.  It's based in NY, but it's also got a pretty strong base here in Chicago.  As a result, YIVO this summer has been producing all kinds of Yiddish oriented culture events.  I missed the first half of them, but the second half are going on over the next 6 weeks, and they are pretty great.  Lectures about Jewish humor, Jewish music, and literature, as well as klezmer and other kinds of Jewish music performances will happen.  And they are mostly free!  Check out the full scope of what they are doing on their website:

http://www.chicagoyivo.org/

TUESDAY, JULY 24 7:00 pm
Northbrook Public Library 1201 Cedar Ln, Northbrook, IL

Rabbi Barry Schechter, Congregation Kol Emeth, Skokie: “Yiddish and Laughter"

BARRY SCHECHTER, Rabbi of Congregation Kol Emeth in Skokie, is well-known for his Jewish humor presentations. His audiences have included synagogues and Jewish organizations in Chicago, Milwaukee and New York, Catholic groups in Chicago, universities in the U.S. and Britain, and Jewish organizations in Germany and Poland. Free and open to the public.

THURSDAY, JULY 26 2:00 pm
Northtown Library 6435 N. California Ave, Chicago
MUSIC Steve Gibons: “The Vanishing Worlds Project"

 More information to come. Free and open to the public.

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 1 2:00 pm
Highland Park Public Library 494 Laurel Ave, Highland Park
LECTURE David Chack: “Jewish Americans and Their Music"

The American songbook is well represented by American Jewish songwriters, but rarely do we talk about the Jewish cultural influences they brought to the songs most Americans sing. From Harold Arlen's "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," to Paul Simon's "Sounds of Silence," to Carole King's "You've Got a Friend" - these great American Jewish music-makers brought their Jewish identities to their art. David Chack, a professor in theatre at The Theatre School at DePaul University will explore these and more historically, contextually and artistically. Free and open to the public.

TUESDAY AUGUST 7 2:00 pm
Wilmette Public Library 1242 Wilmette Ave, Wilmette

 LECTURE Jeffry Mallow: Yosl Rakover Speaks to God: The Strange History of a Holocaust Narrative.

Jeffry V. Mallow is Professor of Physics Emeritus, Loyola University and Honorary Chair, Chicago YIVO Society. Professor Mallow has translated the Rakover book from Yiddish. He will discuss the conflict over the story's origin, its relevance to Christian-Jewish relations, and its possible connection to Holocaust denial. Free and open to the public.

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 8 2:00 pm
Congregation Etz Chaim 1710 S. Highland Ave, Lombard, IL

MUSIC Bibi Marcell: “An Afternoon of Yiddish Nostalgia,” vocals with guitar. Gail Mangurten, piano More information to come. Free and open to the public.

TUESDAY AUGUST 14 2:00 pm
Northbrook Public Library 1201 Cedar Ln, Northbrook, IL
MUSIC Lustik Duo: “Klezmer and Yiddish Songs,”

Eleonore Weill, Jake Shulman-Ment International Yiddish music power couple Eleonore Weill and Jake Shulman-Ment share an exceptionally expressive and intimate understanding of klezmer and Yiddish folk song. In this program, they perform songs, dances, and spiritual melodies. Combining music they have played since childhood with material they have collected along their many roads through Europe and North America, as well as original compositions, they explore the boundaries of Yiddish music with creative repertoire, instrumentation, and interpretation. Free and open to the public.

WEDNESDAY AUGUST 22 7:00 pm
Morton Grove Public Library 6140 Lincoln Ave. Morton Grove, IL

MUSIC Duo Controverso: Kurt Bjorling, clarinet; Annette Bjorling, klezmer harp More information to come. Free and open to the public.

Win Two Tickets to See Raffi in Chicago on April 8!

Raffi is one of the foremost children's singer/songwriters in the world.  He's turning 70 this year, and to celebrate, he's doing a  #belugagrads special tour.  Many of the kids who first turned on to Raffi now have kids themselves, and are therefore "Beluga Grads."  The concert will be an amazing singalong for kids and families.

He'll be coming to Chicago (The Harris Theatre at Millenium Park 205 E. Randolph Drive ) on Saturday, April 8, and we've got a special arrangement to give two tickets away to the show! Read on for details on how to win your tickets!

Raffi has had an amazing career for over 40 years as a singer, songwriter, producer, author, lecturer, and tireless advocate for children. He is best known for his work as a children’s entertainer and advocate whose string of gold and platinum-selling recordings includes his iconic song, “Baby Beluga,” He was once called “the most popular children’s singer in the English-speaking world” by the Washington Post and “Canada’s all-time children’s champion” by the Toronto Star.

 Raffi is a recipient of the Order of Canada and the United Nations’ Earth Achievement Award. He has published three books for adults and holds four honorary degrees.

“I love singing with and for children and families,” says Raffi. “In 2018, I look forward to hearing more ‘Beluga Grads’ and their kids singing favorites like “Baby Beluga,” “Down By The Bay,” “Bananaphone!” plus more from my recent Best of Raffi album.”

In 2010, Raffi founded the non-profit Centre for Child Honouring. With the motto “Respecting Earth & Child,” the Centre is at the heart of a global movement that views honoring children as the best way to create sustainable, peacemaking societies. The concerts that he is preparing will all benefit that Center.

For more about Raffi or the Centre, visit www.raffinews.com or www.childhonouring.org.

HOW TO WIN TICKETS TO SEE RAFFI IN CHICAGO

There are a number of ways to get entered into the giveaway, including spreading the word on Facebook, Twitter, or checking Raffi out on Amazon.  However,  the easiest and best way to enter is to honor Raffi's career, and just do something nice for a kid.  See the entry form below for details.  The giveaway ends on March 28, so enter today!

a Rafflecopter giveaway




If you just want to buy tickets for the Chicago date, they range from $29.50 to $75.Tickets are on sale now for the Harris Theater performances.  The VIP $75 tickets will include an opportunity to meet Raffi in person after the show. (Please note, the tickets in the giveaway do not include that opportunity.)

Here are some of the other dates, in case you live in a different city:

Saturday, April 7, 2018 - Minneapolis, MN - Pantages Playhouse - 1:00 PM

Sunday, April 8, 2018 - Chicago, IL - Harris Theatre - 1:00 PM

Saturday, May 5, 2018 - Fresno, CA - Tower Theatre - 1:00 PM

Sunday, May 6, 2018 - Modesto, CA - Gallo Centre for the Arts - 1:00 PM

Saturday, June 2, 2018 - Kingston, ON - Grand Theatre - 1:00 PM

Sunday, June 3, 2018 - Kitchener, ON - Centre in the Square - 1:00 PM

Saturday, June 9, 2018 - London, ON - Centennial Hall - 1:00 PM

Sunday, June 10, 2018 - Toronto, ON - Roy Thomson Hall - 1:00 PM

Saturday, June 23, 2018 - Burlington, VT - Flynn Centre - 1:00 PM

Sunday, June 24, 2018 - Concord, NH - Capitol Centre - 1:00 PM

To get tickets to those events or to find out more, visit Raffi's Concert Page.

Okee Dokee Brothers Add 2nd show! Chicago Sept 23

Due to the 11 am show selling out, Old Town School of Folk Music has added another show for the Grammy award winning duo The Okee Dokee Brothers.

 I've extolled the Okee Dokee brothers (Joe Mailander and Justin Lansing, not actually brothers) before (when their book Can You Canoe came out).


I'm a big fan of their music and their style of music:  A little bit folk, a little bit pop, but full of life and the wonders of having adventures.  And perfect for the whole family!

The Okee Dokee brothers aren't really brothers,
but they have a lot of fun outside!

Since that time they've won a Grammy, had an interstitial series on Kid's Place Live, and have continued to create music, write songs, and encourage kids and their families to get creative and get outdoors.

Now you've got a chance to see them live on stage, and it's well worth bringing your family, plunking down your credit card and having some fun.



Saturday, September 23 at 1:30 pm 

Old Town School of Folk Music,
4544 N Lincoln Avenue in Chicago
Tickets: $14 general
More info/Purchase online: OLD TOWN SCHOOL OF FOLK MUSIC

Find out more about the brothers at http://www.okeedokee.org

And here are some Amazon links to get you ready for the show!

   

fyi: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I only recommend products or services that I use personally and/or believe will add value to my readers.  I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

REVIEW: Rain- Beatles Tribute

I had the opportunity to see the show RAIN, which is at the Oriental Theatre in downtown Chicago through April 2. Billed as “the next best thing to seeing The Beatles!” (Associated Press), the cast of RAIN performs a chronology of The Beatles' discography live onstage, including some very complex songs that the Beatles performed in studio, but never before a live audience.

The show was great fun and a stroll down memory lane.  It was also a great reminder of how prolific the Beatles were, and how amazing they were.  Wikipedia tells me that the Beatles recorded 407 songs, and wrote 237. The cast performed just a small fraction, and they were wonderful note-for-note renditions.  The actors also looked somewhat like their doppelgangers-- the guy playing McCartney looked a lot like him, as did George.  Ringo and John were a little less similar but still successful.

The show starts as a chronology piece-- through the use of video, they bring us to the Ed Sullivan show, where the moptopped Beatles made their American debut.

 Later in the show, the video brings us to Shea Stadium.

 In the second act, the cast performs the entirety of the album Sergeant Pepper (which the Beatles never performed in concert) in the trademarked band uniforms and mustaches and later brings us to Abbey Road where the band  records their final album. The night I saw it there were two encore sets, and the second one was an extended version of "Hey Jude".  Disappointingly, they did not play "Let It Be."  But, hey, they couldn't play EVERY song.


The cast of RAIN has been together longer than The Beatles, and their teamwork and professionalism shows.  The music is great, although it took me a while to get past the verisimilitude thing.  Although this wasn't a play, the performers are clearly acting like the Beatles, but not as the Beatles.  That is to say, we saw John, Paul, George, and Ringo, but they weren't playing as those names, and there was no idea that I should expect them to actually be them or pretend to be them.  They were themselves, but themselves acting as the Beatles.  Let's face it, I overthought it.  Once I got beyond that, I didn't have a problem. 

Buy Beatles albums on Amazon.com

The only thing I wasn't 100% on was the video screens.

They were used very effectively to place us in time (Ed Sullivan show, Abbey Road, Shea Stadium etc) and there were some concert videos of both audience and performers that would be displayed up there, which were engaging and also kept the people upstairs and farther away engaged.

But some of the songs had cutesy video scenarios as their backdrop, and many of those looked like they were just bad Powerpoint presentations.   I am guessing that they are remnants of previous shows from years ago.  They need to be tossed and re-done.

The rendition of Sergeant Pepper's entire album was pretty amazing, especially that last chord from "A Day In The Life"  They must be using subwoofers, because I felt a barrage of sound in my body from that one chord.

Within the first encore they played some political songs, including "Revolution" "Get Back" and strangely "Give Peace A Chance."  I say strangely because that is not strictly a Beatles song.  Lennon wrote it with Yoko during his infamous "Bed In"and released it with her.  He was technically still a Beatle then, but it was without any of the other guys.  Still it was quite moving, and very a propo considering our current political situation here in the US.

 It was a reminder of how ensconced in social change and justice The Beatles were, while at the same time making popular music gold.

No matter what your current relationship to the Beatles is, you will find something to love about this show.  There was quite a lot of singing along (both encouraged and spontaneous) At one point the singers ask everyone under 18 to sing, and the crowd gets notably quieter.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE IN CHICAGO

3/28 Tuesday at 7:30 PM
3/29 Wednesday at 7:30 PM
3/30 Thursday at 7:30 PM
3/31 Friday at 7:30 PM
4/1 Saturday at 2 PM and 8 PM
4/2 Sunday at 2 PM and 7:30 PM

You can also see where they will be upcoming on their website.

Here's a video of the guys from 2011 when they appeared on Good Morning America. This was 6 years ago, and they've only gotten better since.

TICKET INFORMATION
Individual tickets for RAIN: A Tribute to the Beatles at the Oriental Theatre range from $35-$75. Tickets are available at all Broadway In Chicago Box Offices (24 W. Randolph St., 151 W. Randolph St., 18 W. Monroe St. and 175 E. Chestnut), the Broadway In Chicago Ticket Line at (800) 775-2000, all Ticketmaster retail locations and online at www.BroadwayInChicago.com. For more information, visit www.BroadwayInChicago.com.

BOOK REPORT: The Carp In the BathTub

We've been subscribing to PJ Library for the last seven years. It's a great service that sends free Jewish books to families every month.  Every month, like a clock, we receive a Jewish book (and once a year a Jewish CD) in the mail.  It's free to sign up. Families with kids ages 6 months through 8 years old with Judaism as part of their lives, are welcome to sign up. PJ Library welcomes all Jewish families, whatever your background, knowledge, or family make-up, or observance may be.

Kids enjoying Jewish books.  Photo via PJ Library Facebook

 A program of the Harold Grinspoon Foundation and local Jewish councils, it's a way to get Jewish content in front of kids, and to help kids build a Jewish identity.  For some kids its reinforcement of Judaism.  For other kids it might be the only Jewish thing in their life.  For the vast majority (and us) there's an in between.  This is not the only Jewish content he gets, but he gets less than is probably ideal.  Any way you slice it, I'm always glad to see that book in the mail.

I would say that my son likes about a third of the books that come our way, and I like about half. I read all of the books that come our way, and since he started reading on his own, he probably reads half.  If it were up to him, he'd probably read 1/4.  Part of the problem is that the books they select mostly are picture books, or at least heavy on illustration, and he prefers chapter books and larger books. Basically, since he became a realreader, he doesn't like to read books with pictures.

[GOOD NEWS:  In doing research for this article, I discovered that PJ Library is starting a pre-teen component for kids 9-11, where kids select their own books!  http://www.pjourway.org]

The books they send that I don't like are usually screaming too loudly "I'm a Jewish book.  I'm educational.  Read me, and be filled with Judaism!"  The books I like stand on their own and happen to be about Jewish topics, or present Judaism as a natural part of everyday life, not as something Special with a capital S.

One book that we both agree was great recently came in.  The book is called The Carp In The BathTub by Barb Cohen.
Originally published in 1972, it's a story of a two children living in a tenement apartment building in NY who befriend the fish their mom has purchased to make Gefilte fish for Passover.  The carp needs cleaning, before eating, so the mom is letting it rest in the bathtub for a few days before it meets its grisly doom.  The kids, try to rescue the fish, but it doesn't work out so well for them.

This is the 45th anniversary of this book, and the story has aged pretty well. I'm warning you now, this book has a sad ending for the fish.  But it has a warm and pretty lovely story about community, about family food traditions, about what it was like to live in a tenement, and yes, about Passover.

Our love of this book was made stronger by the song There's "A Carp In The Tub" by Robbie Schaefer. We've been listening to this song for some time, (it's a staple on Kid's Place Live) and seeing where it fit into our tradition/religion was pretty cool. I had actually assumed that the Carp in the Tub was a Chinese tradition that Schaeffer had appropriated,  (I'd read a story about it) so I'm really glad to know that it's part of my tradition as well.

If you like this song, consider buying it on Amazon.  The artist gets his royalty, we get a small cut of the proceeds, and you get a song you like!  Win! Win! Win!

Ravinia Schedule for 2017!

Ravinia just released its schedule for 2017, and as always there's a ton of great music to be heard.

In case you were unaware, Ravinia is an outdoor park in the Northern suburbs of Chicago, easily accessible by car or by Metra (there is a Metra station right out front!) During the summer, they present world-class musicians in a pastoral and beautiful setting.  You can bring a picnic, make a day of it, and listen to some amazing music.  They focus on classical, but have a fair amount of classic rock and jazz, and occasionally even some more alternative music (Blondie and Garbage are making appearances this year.)

One of the most amazing things about Ravinia (other than the music of course) is the picnicking! You can see all kinds of elaborate picnic setups.  I'm hoping to go a couple of times this summer just to take photos of some of the best picnic solutions!  Or you can just go look at this Pinterest board.

Click image to see larger, or view the Ravinia calendar on their site.

I've included a screen captured shot of their full schedule to the right.  You can click here to see the schedule in all of its fabulous glory.

Tickets are various prices, and they do have deals for kids, seniors, and those who buy tickets in bulk.

If you are a textual person, you can look below to see their schedule in list format or download  from this link.

Here are some of the highlights, with special attention to stuff that is kid and family friendly.  I'm not even including all of the many CSO concerts, or some of the special events like Aretha Franklin or Joshua Bell.

GREAT KIDS SHOWS
AT RAVINIA 2017

June 3 at 11 am, 2 pm, and 5 pm Catskill Puppet Theatre performs Sister Rain and Brother Sun.

June 17 at 11 am
Ko-Thi Dance Company performs

June 18 at 8 pm
Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra performs live accompaniment to the movie La La Land

June 29 at 7 pm Stars of the Peking Acrobats

July 15 at 12 noon Laurie Berkner performs a solo concert.

July 29 at 11 am
The Joyous String Ensemble

August 18-20 at 7 pm
The CSO, the Chicago Children's Choir, the Chicago Chorale, and the Lakeside Singers provide live musical accompaniment to The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.  Each night, one movie plays.

August 29 at 11 am 
Opera For the Young’s The Elixir of Love 

September 16 & 17 
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, a performance by the Performer’s School has 5 performances spread out over the two days.

Click image to see larger, or click here for PDF version

The Steve Goodman Post Office

Steve Goodman was a Chicago music legend--singer/songwriter on par with Randy Newman, Cat Stevens, and that ilk.  He wrote a number of amazing songs, including "City of New Orleans"  He also wrote the song that the Cubs sing "Go Cubs Go."  as well as "The Dying Cubs Fan Last Request."  When I went to college, I had several of his albums, and was, well, not a superfan, but enjoyed his music.  I think he was much better known as  a songwriter than as a singer, but I knew his albums.

I didn't really know the Chicago connection, so imagine my surprise when I roll up to the post office on Southport and Irving Park and find this sign.

I immediately knew who they meant, but I was just so surprised to find out that he would have a post office dedicated to him.  I wondered if he had been a postman in his day job.  Then I found out about his Chicago connection, and his tragic fight with leukemia, which I hadn't known about.  And it made sense.

Did a little more research, and found that Obama had signed this building into law in 2010.

I think it's really great that the post office named a building after him.  Normalizing and memorializing artists is important.

Here's some more photos from the display case at the Post Office.

If you want to find out more about him, look at the Amazon links below or go to stevegoodman.net

You can find some of his music on Amazon:

CLICK HERE for a full set of albums, or browse some of his most famous below.