By MYRON LOVE The Winnipeg Jewish Theatre (WJT) has introduced a new award –  the Chai Legacy Award. The award recognizes individuals for their “artistry, craft and lifetimes commitment to Jewish performing arts in Manitoba” – and the first recipient is none other than Harry Nelken.
A  WJT press release described the new award as “a historic first for the company.” In making Harry Nelken the first recipient of the award, the WJT says it recognizes Nelken’s “artistry, craft, and incredible dedication to Jewish performing arts in Manitoba.  
“To know Harry is to know the ultimate mensch,” the WJT press release continues. “Whether he is lighting up a room with his infectious, ear-to-ear smile while cheering on his fellow cast members, or bringing profound depth to the stage, his generosity of spirit is unmatched.

In response, Nelken, a veteran of more than 45 years gracing Winnipeg’s stages as well as other performing venues across Canada,  says “It was a complete surprise,” to be the first recipient of the award.
The award was presented on Sunday, September 13, during the cast party following the last performance of the WJT’s joint presentation  with Rainbow Stage of “Fiddler on the Roof.”  “Dan (Petrenko – the WJT’s artistic director) and Carson (Nattrass – Rainbow’s artistic director) were talking about the input of the Jewish actors in Fiddler,” Nelken recalls, “and then I heard my name.  I never expected to be singled out for my acting like this.  I know I mumbled something. I checked with (fellow cast member) Debby Maslowsky to make sure I said thank you. She assured me that I did.”

Nelken’s history with the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre goes back to the very beginning of the WJT.  He recalls that he was cast in the WJT’s first production in 1987. Bev Aronovitch was the artistic director (and WJT founder) and the production was “Today, I am a Fountain Pen,” in which Harry played the role of the bar mitzvah’ boy’s father.   

Over the years, he reports, he has appeared in 16 WJT productions.  This most recent production of “Fiddler” was also the third time that he has appeared in a Rainbow Stage production of the show. His previous show performances were in 1984 and 1993. It’s also the second time that he has portrayed the rabbi.  (He was cast as Lazar Wolf in the ’93 production.)   
Nelken reports that he took the initiative to contact Carson Nattrass about the role of the rabbi after he learned about the planned joint production.
“I threw my shtreimel into the ring,” he jokes.

Every role, he notes, is a new learning experience for him. He prepared for the part this time by researching what life was like for a rabbi in a small eastern European shtetl.
“I realized that Jewish life has always been about resilience,” he points out.  At the end of the play, after the Jews have been banished from Anatevka, when the rabbi’s son asks his father about how the Messiach will know where to find them, the rabbi replies that they will simply have to wait for him somewhere else.
“There is a great lesson to be learned here,” Nelken continues.  “We don’t know what the future will bring.  The question is do we put our faith in God or in man?”

Resilience is a primary feature of Harry Nelken’s career.   He recounts a story about Abe Vigoda (“Fish” to some of us older readers who, when asked by Johnny Carson how he felt about becoming an overnight star,  Vigoda’s response was that “I’m an overnight star but overnight was 25 years long.”)
In a much earlier interview I did with Harry for the Post, he recalled how his first acting gigs were in high school theatre. At the University of Ottawa, while studying criminology, he auditioned for and got a role in a play. From 1972 to 1979, he immersed himself in local amateur theatre.
He noted that even the busiest of working local actors – of which he has been one – barely scrape by and need a second source of income.  For over 40 years, he supplemented his income by driving a cab.
”Particularly in my early years, when acting roles were sparse, driving a cab was my lifeline,” he recalls. “On occasion, even when doing a play at MTC,  after the show, I would  report for taxi duty for a night shift.”
In recent years roles have been fewer. In the last four years, he has been in five locally-shot film projects: two Hallmark films – “ Hanukah on Rye” and “ Haunted Wedding”; the feature film,”Normal, ”starringf Bob Odenkirk and Henry Winkler; (available on Amazon Prime); and  the mini series “American Hostage,”,starring Jon Hamm and Giovanni Ribisi (available on Crave).
Nelken’s current film project is called “Pikohowin.” It’s the true story of how in 1990, Saskatoon police officers were revealed to be driving inebriated Indigenous people in winter out of the city and depositing them on the highway.  Harry has the role of  judge Shiebel.
“I’m 79 now,” Nelken says.  “I am no longer willing to go out of town for stage or film work unless it is for a really undeniable role.  I am happy to be doing more film work.  I feel energized by the work.  I am still regularly auditioning for film roles,
“Most of all, I appreciate that I can look back on a fulfilling career doing what I wanted to do more than anything else.”

By MYRON LOVE Next year, Gray Academy of Jewish Education will celebrate its 30th anniversary – and Western Canada’s only JK-Grade 12 Jewish day school has much to celebrate.
For starters, enrolment continues to grow.  Lori Binder, Gray Academy’s Head of School and CEO of the Winnipeg Board of Jewish Education, is pleased to report that this year’s opening enrolment stands at 521 – the highest number for September in 13 years.
For the third year in a row, Gray Academy is running three kindergarten classes, and all three are nearly full, as are the Grade 1 and 2 classes. While Early Years remains the main entry point for new families, the school also welcomed 37 new students to its elementary and high school this year – a total of 88 new students.
Lisa Boroditsky, the school’s admissions coordinator, points out that many kindergarten children are coming from the Kaufman Child Care Centre at the Rady JCC and Chabad-Lubavitch of Winnipeg’s Torah Tots early childcare program. At the high school level, she notes, Grade seven enrolment is also rising, with more students coming to Gray Academy after completing Brock Corydon Elementary School’s Hebrew Bilingual Program.
“From our parent surveys, we can report that parents are choosing Gray Academy not out of fear, but rather because they value the sense of Jewish community that is only available at Gray Academy,” Binder says. “The fact that so many current Gray Academy students are children of alumni also tells us that parents believe in the high academic standards and the positive Jewish experiences we offer.”
New for the school’s elementary School this year, Lori Binder reports, is a musical theatre program.  Over the years, our community has produced a significant number of young performers who have not only graced local stages but have also made their mark in theatre and film throughout North America. (Incidentally, this school year, Gray Academy will present its high school musical production, “Mary Poppins,” in March.)
In addition to the annual musical, Binder reports, Gray Academy this school year will be hosting the annual Canadian Accredited Independent Schools national varsity boys’ basketball tournament. Students and staff alike are looking forward to welcoming participating team from independent schools across the country.
Students are also looking forward to the school’s 50th Yom Ha’atzmaut Song Festival.  “We are excited for our current students to continue our long tradition of celebrating Israel through music,” Binder says. “We are also hoping for a lot of participation from past performers from the first five decades.”
Among newer programs for Gray Academy high school students are internship opportunities.  One is with Drs. Lorrie Kirshenbaum and Inna Rabinovich-Nikitin at the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences at St. Boniface Hospital – a great opportunity for students in Grades 11 and 12 who have an interest in pursuing studies in health sciences. The other program, which was piloted last year, is run in conjunction with the Saul and Claribel Simkin Centre, and gives students in Grade 9 and up opportunities to connect weekly with Simkin residents for hands-on activities. 
The corollary to that is a new program that focuses on the school’s relationships with grandparents. The Gray Academy Grandpals  program encourages grandparents (and other special seniors in the lives of Gray students) to connect with and volunteer at the school.  Since the program launched two years ago, Grandpals have attended special events and come into the school to volunteer for challah making, hamantaschen baking, and even with building projects such as at the new Hypedome by the ice rink, which will provide student skaters with shelter to warm up and change their skates in winter.
Lori Binder points out that, in addition to new programming, the school maintains a strong focus on affordability.  “It is very important to us that no child is turned away because a family can’t afford to pay,” she says.
She notes that Manitoba is one of only a few Canadian provinces that fund independent schools such as Gray Academy, with the school receiving approximately 50% of the funding public schools receive per student.  She adds that the school offers a robust Bursary Assistance program, strongly supported by funding from the Jewish Federation of Winnipeg’s Combined Jewish Appeal. “Over 60% of our families receive some level of bursary support,” she reports.  “We work with every family to ensure that no child is ever turned away because of inability to cover the full parental contribution.”
The school also continues to play an integral role in helping families moving to Winnipeg from Israel, Argentina, Brazil and other countries to adapt to their new homes.  Over the past few years, the school has expanded its EAL (English as an additional language) programming significantly to accommodate growing needs.
In an increasingly troubled world, Gray Academy remains a beacon of light, offering Jewish students and their families a warm, welcoming environment, along with a top notch Jewish and general education. 
For more information about what Gray Academy has to offer and application dates, phone 204 477-7425 or email admissions@grayacademy.ca.

By BERNIE BELLAN If you had been following the coverage that the Winnipeg Free Press has given to several major American-originated film and TV productions that have been shot in and around Winnipeg in recent years, you would know by now that Winnipeg has become a popular destination for production companies looking for a particular vibe – especially the kind of look the Exchange District can impart for period pieces.
And, while stars such as Bob Odenkirk (perhaps best known for his star role in “Better Call Saul”) sang the praises of Winnipeg to such a degree that he decided to shoot not just one, but three feature films here, Odenkirk’s praise for Winnipeg certainly reverberated among other Hollywood A-listers. Odenkirk’s first film shot here, called “Nobody,” was followed by a sequel, “Nobody 2”, a good part of which was filmed in Winnipeg Beach – which would have made many of the locations of the film’s scenes very familiar to members of our Jewish community. (Odenkirk also made a third movie in Winnipeg, called “Normal,” which co-starred Henry Winkler.)

But perhaps no production in recent times has received more attention than the eight-part TV series, “American Hostage,” starring Jon Hamm – who vaulted to fame in the TV series “Mad Men” and has gone on to achieve major stardom on both TV and in the movies.
Here’s a brief synopsis of what “American Hostage” is all about:
“Based on the acclaimed first season of the scripted podcast of the same name, American Hostage is a psychological thriller set in the 1970s inspired by the harrowing true story of Fred Heckman, a beloved Indianapolis radio reporter who is thrust into the middle of a life-or-death crisis when hostage-taker Tony Kiritsis demands to be interviewed on his popular radio news program.”

While Hamm was in Winnipeg between last November and February of this year, he made quite a name for himself as someone who was quite eager to explore our city, despite the cold weather he and the rest of the crew encountered. (One time he and two other actors in the series actually drove to Stonewall to take in that town’s recently reopened movie theatre.)
In addition to Hamm, “American Hostage” features many other well-known actors, although I have to admit that, since I don’t watch a lot of television, I have to take the word of other writers, especially writers for the Free Press, whose stories about “American Hostage” I read prior to writing this article, in order to give myself a better understanding of how this particular series came about and just who in it is considered well-known in the film and TV business.
Since what really made “American Hostage” so popular within our own actors’ community was its use of so many Winnipeggers as extras during its filming, I though I’d focus on several members of the Jewish community who have roles in the series.

Chief among them is Harry Nelken, who has had a prolific career in Winnipeg’s theatre scene, especially as a star in many Winnipeg Jewish Theatre productions. In “American Hostage,” Nelken provides some comic relief to the often heavy tone imbued by the hostage crisis. Nelken plays an over-the-hill sports reporter by the name of Franco (although I don’t recall hearing his name actually called out in the first three episodes I’ve been able to watch as of the time of writing.)

Another local performer, Susanna Portnoy, also has a comic turn as a nosy neighbour named Pearl in Episode 2 of the series.
In addition, in Episode 6 we can expect to see Kevin McIntryre (Cantor at Congregation Etz Chayim) play a role, also his wife Henriette Ivanans.
While there are a number of other individuals listed in the credits who are Jewish, the most prominent among them is Adam Arkin, who not only directed the first four episodes of the series, he plays the role of a lawyer by the name of Ruckelshaus, who serves as the lawyer for the hostage taker, Tony Kiritsis.
The show is being rolled out on a weekly basis on Crave TV. If you have a Crave TV account you have to login on your computer to see all episodes of the show that have been aired to date (four as of this writing).
Or – if you don’t have a Crave TV account, but have USA TV (Channels 104 or 1104 on Bell MTS TV or Channel 425 on Shaw T) as one of the channels in your TV package, you can watch episodes every Friday evening at 10:00 pm – and set your TV box to record all other episodes of the series. However, USA TV will be showing Episode 3 on October 9. If you want to catch the first two episodes of the series, you’ll have to watch them through your computer.