Local News
After a three-year delay Winnipeg Jewish Theatre will finally present the premiere of “Narrow Bridge” by local playwright Daniel Thau-Eleff
By MARTIN ZEILIG Daniel Thau-Eleff was looking forward to seeing his play about a transgender person, “Narrow Bridge, “ on stage back in March 2020.
“But we were interrupted by the pandemic,” the Winnipeg-based playwright, performer, director, and artistic producer of Moving Target Theatre, said during a Zoom conversation with this reporter on January 26.
Ben Baader, an associate professor of history at the University of Manitoba, and the inspiration for his play, was interviewed along with Thau-Eleff.
Narrow Bridge will now premiere March 11 – 19, 2023 (with a preview on March 9) at the Berney Theatre in the Asper Campus.
Thau-Eleff and Dr. Baader will also discuss the play and its history on Sunday, March 12 at Limmud 2023—Winnipeg’s annual Jewish cultural festival at the Asper Jewish Community Centre — in a joint presentation called “TRANSGENDER AND ORTHODOX: TWO FRIENDS, A JOURNEY, AND A PLAY.”
“The play is a moving and engaging story told with heart and humour,” notes the publicity material.
“The main character, Sholem, transitions genders while discovering Orthodox Judaism. Walking the tightrope of family dynamics, history, activism and Talmud study, Sholem wonders if, as Rebbe Nachman said, “‘All the world is a very narrow bridge.’”
Featuring Elio Zarrillo, Alissa Watson, and Rhea Akler in their WJT premieres, along with long-time WJT favourite Harry Nelken, the play will be directed by “Drag Heals” creator Tracey Erin Smith.
Thau-Eleff’s plays are “personal-political,” meaning they explore an issue “usually related to human rights or social justice, through individual characters’ struggles,” mixing documentary and autobiographical elements into fiction, he says.
“My good friend, Ben, was the inspiration and has been on the journey with me the whole time,” he adds.
“This is the first interview we’re doing right now (about “Narrow Bridge”). Ben is both transgender and practices Orthodox Judaism. He wasn’t Orthodox when we first became friends. I’ve been lucky to be part of this journey.”
Thau-Eleff noted that the idea for Narrow Bridge began some 10 years ago after Baader returned from a national retreat in the U.S. hosted by Eshel.
“Eshel’s mission is to create a future for Orthodox lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals, and their families,” says its website.
“Through its innovative and culturally sensitive programming, Eshel supports LGBTQ Jews, opening hearts, minds and doors in traditional Jewish communities. Eshel envisions a world where Orthodox LGBTQ individuals can live out their lives in the Orthodox communities of their choice.”
Thau-Eleff noted that he met with Baader a short time after the Eshel retreat.
“We were talking about this apparent impossibility that so many people, whom Ben had just met, are living a transgender life within the Orthodox tradition, where there’s a barrier down the middle of the synagogue separating men and women,” he said.
“So, it seems impossible and yet people find a way to make it work. I was really fascinated by that contradiction.”
“Then, I was visiting another city and sitting in a coffee shop with an artistic director, whom I barely knew. We were getting to know each other. At the end of the conversation, he said, ‘Well, I’m interested in your play about transgender Orthodox Jews.”’
Thau-Eleff replied to his interlocutor that it wasn’t a play, just a story.
“Then, I returned to Winnipeg and I told that story to Ben and he said, ‘I would help you write that play’,” the playwright said.
“And, we started talking. I interviewed other trans Jewish and non-Jewish people. I read a few books on the subject and started writing. In 2018, we did a reading of the first draft of the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre’s “So New Festival.” That was great.
“But, a lot of the writing took place between 2018 and the present. Now, we’re back into things.”
Baader reflected that he came back from the Eshel retreat empowered by the “amazing and beautiful community; and how people, who are deeply committed to two different truths, are insisting on living their lives even though they are often shunned by their communities.
“It’s a space of tremendous beauty and courage,” he said.
“At the time being trans was much more scandalous than it is today. It’s less provocative today than it was ten years ago.”
Thau-Eleff added that at Limmud he’ll be talking about the process he uses when writing a play.
“When I launch a writing project, it’s always an opportunity to learn,” he emphasized.
“In this case, I got to learn from Ben’s and others’ experiences, and to explore my own experiences with gender and Judaism.”
Local News
Nakba exhbit at CMHR – you can see it right here and make your own assessment
By BERNIE BELLAN (Posted June 26, updated July 19) The Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Exhibit for Human Rights opened to the public June 27. The morning before the exhibit was set to open to the public, (it had a private opening for invited guests the evening of June 26) we received a press release from the CMHR. That press release gave a very detailed description of what was in the exhibit, along with photos (supplied by Annie Kierans of the CMHR).
There is also a link right at the beginning of the press release that will allow you to watch the same videos that anyone attending the exhibit can watch. We reprinted what was sent to us without making one edit. We leave it to you to form your own opinion as to whether the exhibit is fair in its presentation, and whether it is lacking “context” – which is an accusation that has been levelled at the exhibit’s organizers by some representatives of Jewish organizations.
We have received many emails in reaction to the exhibit. If you have an opinion and would like to see it published on this website, you can send it to jewishp@mymts.net, but please indicate whether you would be willing to have it published on this website.
Here is what we received the morning of June 26:
Winnipeg, MB — June 26, 2026 — The Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR) will open a new exhibit tomorrow that explores human rights violations related to the ongoing forced displacement of Palestinian Canadians.
Palestine Uprooted: Nakba Past and Present will be on display in the Rights Today gallery on Level 5 until 2028. Featuring personal stories told through artifacts and video testimonies, the exhibit presents Palestinian Canadians reflecting on their ongoing struggle for human rights. The small exhibit reveals enduring patterns of loss and resilience, helping visitors understand more about this contemporary human rights story.
Palestinian Canadian stories are now included alongside many other stories of forced displacement and human rights violations featured in the Museum’s galleries. Each of these stories contribute to our visitors understanding of human rights and help the Museum fulfill its mandate to foster reflection and dialogue.
Exhibition highlights
Personal stories and artifacts: Experience firsthand accounts from Palestinian Canadians sharing their journeys of displacement and memory through a series of five artifacts. Cases display artifacts like property deeds, house keys, and a traditional Palestinian embroidered dress, accompanied by short videos that deepen understanding of the impacts of displacement.
Powerful artworks: In her painting Bound Together in Gaza, Malak Mattar, a Gazan artist, captures the struggles and resilience of her generation shaped by conflict. Her work pays homage to Guernica, Picasso’s powerful masterpiece depicting civilian suffering during war.
Curfews and Closures, by Rajie Cook, bears witness to life under military occupation during the 2000–2005 Palestinian uprising, when curfews and closures were expanded and further limited basic rights and freedoms.
Cultural heritage: Discover traditional Palestinian embroidery called tatreez. Tatreez motifs and colours are tied to place, family history and regional identity. Patterns are associated with particular towns, villages or areas of Palestine. In this way, tatreez is a form of storytelling: a way of preserving memory, sustaining identity and expressing resilience across displacement and exile.
Poetry and reflection: Engage with Mahmoud Darwish’s evocative verses, inspiring personal reflection on exile, voice, and responsibility. Visitors can take a card containing Darwish’s poem and add a personal note, fostering ongoing dialogue beyond the exhibit.
Contemporary context: Witness striking images of current events in Gaza and the West Bank, connecting past displacement to ongoing struggles.
Quotes:
“No force can silence the truth we carry. Growing up in Canada, my children lived the Nakba through our stories. And now we watch it happen again, live, on our phones. When I see the images coming out of Gaza, I am not watching the news. I am watching my history repeat itself.” -Fouad Sahyoun, a Palestinian Canadian featured in the exhibit
“We developed this exhibit with a clear awareness that Palestinian Canadian voices have too often been marginalized, silenced or spoken over — and that anti-Palestinian racism affects whose stories are heard and whose suffering is recognized. That is why we intentionally centred Palestinian Canadian voices throughout the exhibit.” -Isabelle Masson, Curator of Palestine Uprooted
“Human rights matter precisely when they are inconvenient, when the question of who deserves the dignity of having their rights recognized is genuinely contested. These are the moments where having a national museum for human rights is most important.
There are people who believe this exhibit should not exist in its current form. There are people who believe it should have existed sooner. There are people who will visit this exhibit and feel that it does not say enough, and others who will feel it says too much.
We have listened to every one of these voices. We have reflected. And we have renewed our resolve to continue the difficult, sometimes contested, and often controversial work of building understanding about human rights. We are a museum grounded in Canada’s human rights framework, whose mandate requires us to bear witness to the full complexity of the human story. We are proud to open this exhibit because the story it tells will help achieve that mandate, and because this story belongs in the collective memory of Canadians.”
- – Isha Khan, CEO
Local News
A photo that’s being circulated on the internet about me
For those of you not familiar with nutjob Michael Kalo – the psycho who created the notorious “$hitler’s List” years ago and the same psycho who went after Ben Carr, well – now he’s obviously taken a strong disliking to the stance I’ve taken on the Nakba exhibit at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights. (You can read elsewhere on this website how I simply posted the entire exhibit as it is – and asked readers to form their own opinions.)
Kalo likes to send out emails to various individual using phony names – such as Frank Ostrowski. When people ask me (or asked Ben Carr) why we don’t take action against him, my answer is: What’s the use? He only basks in the attention.
So Michael – enjoy the attention you’re receiving. I know how much of an embarrassment you are to your wonderfully talented daughters.
Local News
Ami Hassan returning as owner of Falafel Place
By BERNIE BELLAN In a surprise move – and after more than a six-year absence as owner of Falafel Place (Corydon at Wilton) the legendary Ami Hassan has decided to return as owner of one of Winnipeg’s most famous eateries.
Long known for his sometimes irreverent attitude to his customers, e.g., “If you’re finished, get out!”, Ami decided to return to running Falafel Place after having retired years ago (or so he thought) from running the Corydon Avenue restaurant.
We asked Ami whether he’ll be sending a special invitation to Julia Roberts to come visit him at Falafel Place. He asked again: “Who’s Julia Roberts?” (Just kidding – he really does know how Julia Roberts is.) Read the story how Ami told her to leave the restaurant and come back later at Julia Roberts turned away from Falafel Place
Ami did note that when customers saw him inside the restaurant one recent day as he was getting it ready for the reopening Monday, August 10, over 20 of them came in asking him if he was open already.
We asked Ami whether the menu will be the same as it was when he last ran the place and he said everything will be the same.
Falafel Place will be open 7 days a week from 7 am – 2 pm. Remember, if you’re finished – get out!
