The Polish Institute and Radical House invite you to an evening that bridges history, literature, music, and contemporary culture. Through a lecture by Shalom Boguslavsky, followed by a performance by Neta Weiner, we will explore how the legacy of Polish Jewry belongs not only to the past, but continues to shape today’s cultural and artistic landscape.

In the first part of the evening, a guide and a writer Shalom Boguslavsky will present his bestselling book, The Unlikely and Insufficiently Remembered Story of the Rise and Fall of Jewish Eastern Europe, praised for the way it retells the history of Eastern European Jewry for contemporary readers.

Forget, for a moment, the image of the poor and passive shtetl. For centuries, the Jews of Eastern Europe were an active force in the political, economic, and social life of the societies around them. They were poets, tavern keepers, hotel owners, and operators of inns and casinos.

In his lecture, Shalom Boguslavsky reveals how Poland became the center of the Jewish world, why it was there that the largest Jewish community in the world flourished, and why this remarkable story has been almost completely forgotten.

The Author will examine how, during the period of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Polish–Lithuanian lands became home to millions of Jews and the most important center of Jewish life in the world for centuries, what enabled this extraordinary flourishing, and what remains of it today—in memory, in scholarship, and in the cultural sphere.

The second part of the evening will feature Neta Weiner—musician, playwright, actor, poet, and multidisciplinary artist, co-founder of the HaMa’abada Theatre and one of the most original voices in contemporary Israeli culture. His work brings together music, theatre, poetry, and cultural research, exploring language, memory, identity, and encounters between cultures.

In a unique performance, Weiner moves effortlessly between Yiddish, Hebrew, Arabic, and German, combining hip-hop, classic Yiddish songs, unexpected translations, and original compositions. Through music and text, he reimagines Yiddish not as a language of nostalgia, but as a living, creative, and relevant language that continues to raise questions about home, exile, belonging, memory, and identity.

Together, the lecture and the performance offer two complementary perspectives on Eastern European Jewry, highlighting Poland’s central role in its history and exploring how this rich legacy continues to resonate in contemporary culture. Boguslavsky takes the audience on a journey through the history of the largest Jewish community ever to flourish in Europe, while Weiner demonstrates how this same heritage continues to evolve and inspire contemporary artistic expression. Join us for a unique evening that brings together history and art, memory and creativity, inviting us to explore the past and the questions it continues to raise today!

Monday | July 20

Radical House
Address: 27 HaTchiya Street, Tel Aviv

Shalom Boguslavsky | 7:00 PM
Admission: ₪60
Tickets reservation

Neta Weiner |Doors open: 8:30 PM
Admission: ₪65
Tickets reservation

A discounted combined ticket for both events will be available. More information on the Radical House website.