Chicago Humanities Festival: Upshtat Zingerai Klezmer Music & Yiddish Dance Program
Chicago-based klezmer band Upshtat Zingerai has emerged over the last several years as a central force in the continuity and evolution of klezmer music and Yiddish dance — the traditional music and folk dance of Eastern European Jews — in Chicago. Join us as Upshtat Zingerai performs soulful klezmer melodies that have traveled where Eastern European Jews have lived over time, infusing additional cultural music traditions and stories that ensemble members have collected along the way. Experience the joy, connection, and resilience created through this rich cultural tradition, giving us a window into Jewish cultural history and diasporic living traditions.
Dancing will be led by Judy Sweet; no prior dance experience is necessary to join in this celebratory fun!
House of Dreams: Purim 5785 at Firehouse Art Studio
SOLD OUT
“The Divine disguises and reveals itself through our dreams – one sixtieth of pure revelation, animated by the characters of our waking hours, illuminated by the Purim story. There is prophecy to be found here in the House of Dreams…”
House of Dreams is a queer Purim party like no other. Join us for an immersive theatrical and musical experience on Thursday, March 13th at Firehouse Art Studio in Chicago. Each guest will have a unique experience as you move through different interactive rooms in the space featuring multi-media performances reflecting on the themes of Purim.
Please come in a costume inspired by a dream.
Doors will open at 7pm, and the immersive theatrical experience will begin at 8pm. At 9pm, klezmer band Upshtat Zingerai will perform, followed by DJ Tromblau.
Music direction & fiddle performance by Hannah Mira Friedland.
Past Public Performances
12/31/2024 Maxwell Street Klezmer Band (Violin) Hanukkah Concert @ The Selfhelp Home, Chicago
12/17/2024 Hannah Mira Friedland & Qi Yang Klezmer Duo Hanukkah Concert @ Niles Senior Center, Niles, IL
11/30/2024 Upshtat Zingerai Tantshoyz: Klezmer Dance Party (Fiddle & Yiddish Dance Leading) @ Clara, Chicago
10/26/2024 Upshtat Zingerai Tantshoyz: Klezmer Dance Party (Fiddle & Yiddish Dance Leading) @ Clara, Chicago
10/24/2024 Akenya Under the Dome Series @ Chicago Cultural Center
09/15/2024 Omit/Transmit Orchestra (Viola) - Contemporary Improvisation & Phrasework with Hannah Marcus @ Old Town School of Folk Music
09/08/2024 Upshtat Zingerai @ Chicago Judaica Market, hosted by Pushcart Judaica and the Jewish Museum of Chicago
08/28/2024 KlezKabaret @ The Museum of Jewish Montreal, Canada
05/11/2024 KLEZTRONICA: Upshtat Zingerai and Chaia @ Dorothy
03/31/2024 A Song For Main Street (Fiddle) Performance for Main Street Now Conference @ Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex, Birmingham, AL
03/28/2024 Upshtat Zingerai Plays for Jewish Council on Urban Affairs Fundraiser @ Sketchpad, Chicago
03/21/2024 Upshtat Zingerai Presents: Purim Tantshoyz & Cabaret @ Color Club, Chicago - SOLD OUT
03/17/2024 Ben & Hannah Mira Friedland Celtic Duo @ Samuel Adams Boston Brewery, MA
03/02/2024 Hannah Mira Friedland and Ethan Aronson Klezmer Duo @ Chicago Jewish Liberation Fund Fundraiser
02/24/2024 String Section for Kiéla Adira Fool’s Croon Live, Chicago
02/24/2024 Omit/Transmit Orchestra (Viola) @ Hideout, Chicago
10/01/2024 Solo Accompaniment for When Souls Stick Exhibition Closing Doikayt Performance @ Comfort Station, accompanying movement artists Zachary Nicol & Jasmine Lupe Mendoza Carrasco. Directed by Gabriel Chalfin-Piney.and Jess Bass.
09/01/2024 Solo Accompaniment for When Souls Stick Exhibition Opening Doikayt Performance @ Comfort Station, accompanying movement artists Zachary Nicol & Jasmine Lupe Mendoza Carrasco. Directed by Gabriel Chalfin-Piney and Jess Bass.
12/20/2023 Robot Heart Throb @ Sleeping Village, Chicago
08/16/2023 Upshtat Zingerai @ Pushcart Judaica Chicago Pop-up
05/26/2023 Measuring Marigolds String Quartet @ Queer Music in the Archives - A Musical Evening at Gerber/Hart, Chicago
03/30/2023 String Quartet (Viola) for Main Street America Big Bash @ New England Aquarium, Boston, MA
03/09/2023 Band (Viola) for Forbidden Fruits: A Purim Party @ Berlin in Chicago
03/17/2022 Band (Viola) Festival of Latz: A Purim Spiel @ Hairpin Arts Center, Chicago
04/2019 Solo Improvised Viola Accompaniment for Nature Through Movement kindergarten student performance @ Hubbard Woods Elementary School, Winnetka, IL