FOJAM set to present “Spun Stories”
Melbourne’s FOJAM (Festival of Jewish Arts and Music) is to present an online storytelling event Spun Stories.
FOJAM attracted 2,700 registrations to its first online event last month.
The program will feature Wiradjuri and Noongar Jewish activist Edie Shepherd, rising hip-hop artist Imbi the Girl, Yorta Yorta opera singer Deborah Cheetham, activist and author Yassmin Abdel-Magied, circus performer and neuroscientist Mahla Bird and writer Liv Steigrad.
Jewish-Chinese anti-racism educator and performer Elsa Tuet-Rosenberg will moderate Spun Stories.
She said: “As a Jewish woman of colour, it’s incredibly meaningful to me to have FOJAM platforming a line-up entirely of artists of colour, and for us to be telling the stories that we want to tell. So often we are pigeon-holed into telling the same stories of ourselves again and again. These stories can be reductive. This event lets us take control of our own narratives, and tell our own stories, whatever they might be.”
“As Jewish folks, we are so lucky to have the resources for a platform that celebrates Jewish art, and I’m so grateful to share this platform with other BIPOC artists- who have so many stories to tell. In the spirit of Tikkun Olam, it is not just an honour to share this space, but our responsibility as Jewish people. ”
Artistic Director Lior Albeck-Ripka commented: “We have put together a line-up of activists, artists and storytellers who represent a cross-section of our community. You will hear a mix of both well-known and seldom heard voices that resonate with the Australian Jewish experience in 2020. We have asked them to tell a story that they may not have told before – if they weren’t expected to be a spokesperson for a community or cause, what story would they like to tell?”
This event is being presented as a gift to the community, with the option for those in the position to donate to help support the creatives and artists who bring these events to you. FOJAM will continue its commitment to paying talent industry rates.
EVENT DETAILS
Thursday 16 July, 8pm – 9.15pm (includes panel discussion). Free via Zoom, registrations necessary, donations are optional.Tickets available via www.fojam.com
